Part IV - The Scarecrow Syndrome

     There are two or three more topics I'd like to discuss as middle/pre high school segments.  I had inititally planned to move on to use of the Bureau of Labor Statistics and CareerOneStop this week.  However, I think it would be beneficial to discuss/explain a statement I made in Part III that not everyone need or should go to college.
     Now that, hopefully, you/your child have used some of the tools discussed to discover general interests, I'd like to caution you not to fall into the trap of believing someone can't be happy in a job unless it requires a college degree.  While more and more employers might favor applicants with post-secondary education, that's largely due to the current unemployment rate and economy.  There are just that many more job applicants. 
     Another factor is that parents feel there's a sense of prestige in saying their kid is going to such and such college, the pricier, often times, the better.  Ivy League names seem to garner the most respect. ( A lot of people responsible for this economy went to these schools.  Enough said!)  I call this the Scarecrow Syndrome.  In the Wizard of Oz, the Scarecrow mistakenly thinks the showy diploma that declared him a Doctor of Thinkology made him smart.  It should be so easy!  It's a lesson as to how so much of what we hold true can be a matter of perception.
     People seem to deliberate more about the cost of a car and what they get for it than they do the cost and worth of a specific college, or even college in general.  A colleague of mine and I were discussing what our children were planning to do after high school.  Naturally, the discussion turned to college.  I said that I really wished my kid wanted to be a plumber.  The other teacher couldn't believe I was serious.  Another colleague chimed in, "My plumber is a millionaire and only takes the jobs that he wants".  Who's the "thinkologist" here?
     The Bureau of Labor Statistics has a great site which we will get to next week.  Their studies show:


While the general trend is that more education leads to higher wages,
the level of education is not the only determinant of wage.  For example, elevator installers and repairers, who are classified in the long-term-on-the-job category, had a median annual wage of $69,380 in May 2008, which is higher than the median annual wages for occupations in the bachelor's degree category, which was $57,770.

They say, in summation, that "occupations categorized in postsecondary categories are projected to have the fastest growth from 2008-18."  However, "on-the-job training and work experience categories still are projected to comprise the majority share of 2018 employment".
     The point of this post is that in helping someone decide what career path they should take, options should be considered that include training in addition to or in lieu of formal postsecondary education.

Part III - Interest Inventories

     When I began my career as a counselor, a phone and good communication skills were two of the biggest assets I had.  Later, it boggled my mind how any school counselor with a computer (which means just about every one of them!) could be ineffective in helping students with career planning.  When you search "student career inventories", you get over 200 thousand results!  The trick is picking out a good one and here's where the counselor should come in.  I'll review three possibilities of good places to start to help assess a middle/high school student's career interests.  Remember to check with your/your child's counselor to see what they suggest and if the school district offers this service to their students.
     Strong Career Tests/Interest Inventories are available at http://www.discoveryourpersonality.com/.
The site gives a complete list of career tests they offer and a video gives advice as to which test might be right for you/your child.  The Strong Interest Inventory Profile with High School Profile is very comprehensive and includes suggestions as to which high school courses correspond to the individual's areas of interest.  A sample of a profile may be viewed online.  This option is pretty pricey at $110 for each inventory but the reports are very detailed and easy to understand.  The price includes an optional phone consultation to answer any questions you may have.
     A much more affordable option is available for $18 plus tax at http://psychcorp.pearsonassessments.com/. The Campbell Interest and Skill Survey focuses on careers that require some post secondary education.  It is geared to students 15 and older with a 6th grade reading level.  It includes interest and self-rated skill items.  It takes between 25-40 minutes and doesn't need to be completed in one computer session.  Having people self-rate their skills may skew the results, but I like the fact that the ability component is at least taken into account.  The students can access a twenty page printable report with results of their interests and abilities in various occupations/occupational areas.  An eighteen page Career Planner is also part of the package.
     An even more affordable option (You can't beat FREE!!!) is to use http://www.college.gov/, a website run by the Federal Department of Education.  While I don't like the implied emphasis on college, as not everyone should or need go, a student can use this site as a portal to CareerOneStop.  This site is run by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  The student is taken to a page that asks them if they are interested in:  Math; Reading: Science; Social Studies; Music and Arts; Building and Fixing Things; Helping People; Computers; Law; Managing Money; Sports or Nature.  This site can be used in conjunction with the results of an interest invenory or alone.  It taps into what a student might already find interesting or things she feels she does well.  It's so easily navigable and readable that students might explore pages and careers that they formerly hadn't thought of.
     In honor of Labor Day, I'm taking next Wednesday off - how oxymoronic!  (If you think teaching is easy, notice how many parents are smiling more broadly as September 1 approaches!)  On September 8,  I'll discuss this Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) site in more depth and how to use the  information it provides.