As a parent, you surely understand the importance of guiding your child as they forge their own career and life beyond school. There is absolutely no wrong time to encourage your child to think about their career, and even young students can benefit from awareness of particular job options and the steps required to create a future full of happiness and success.
Connection Between Interests and Career
One of the best things you can do is help your child realise how their interests can influence and be relevant to their future career path. It’s helpful to enlighten your child to the fact that not all these paths have to involve tertiary study; university study is not for everyone and not all careers require a degree.
Many young people appreciate knowing that a broad range of relevant, interesting and practical courses are available through high quality training providers, such as Careers Australia, and many of these courses develop the skills needed to enhance participants’ chances of securing lasting employment.
Observation of Work Environments
Take your child to your own workplace or facilitate their exposure to a range of work environments. Through observation, your child will develop an understanding of the skills required for various jobs and the sorts of behaviours expected in professional contexts.
Do the Research
In this day and age, we are fortunate that a wealth of information about many careers is freely and readily available on the internet. Through research into career options, children will acquire a better appreciation of the industries that interest them most and the sorts of jobs available.
Encourage Volunteering
Volunteering is one of the best ways to be exposed to the realities of work while making a positive contribution and having a hands-on experience. A range of organisations actively seek volunteers and others will take on people for work experience. Sometimes, exposure to a workplace in a voluntary capacity will convince an individual of a career choice or reveal that it is not appropriate for them.
Help Your Child Take an Interests Quiz
If you or your child have few ideas of the careers they might be interested in, taking a quiz to highlight their specific interests can be helpful. Many of these tools are available online and are an effective way to define interests that can then be pursued through a career.
Holiday Employment
The best time to consider career options is during holiday periods. Taking on a job during the holidays may be a good idea for your child. Even if the job they take on is far from ideal, your child will benefit from learning about skills needed for various positions and the skills needed to communicate with people at a range of levels within an organisation.
Above all else, as a parent you should be encouraging and optimistic as you help your child to find their path in life. Show your child that you believe in them and their dreams, and will support them as they forge their path in life beyond school.
This is an S2 POST.