Education Plan - Transition Year ‘Evolution’ Bridging the gap from education to employment
“A Global Network – Linking Academia to Business and Public Sectors”
Created & Written By Greg Dalton Career Coach
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did do” Mark Twain
Objectives
• To give students a better understanding of who and what they are in terms of their career strategy for life, prior to them launching themselves into their adult life.
• To reduce the costs of recruiting the wrong candidate to the public and corporate sectors.
The long term valuable effects on personal lives, businesses and the health service will be enormously beneficial as this programme will reduce stress related illnesses, absenteeism, save lives, marriages, families, relationships and lead to greater productivity and profitability for the economy as a whole.
The plan
To change Transition Year by moving it from 4th year to 6th year.
Why?
At 15 years of age young adults have no idea what the most suitable career is for them. Transition Year is one of discovery and development. However, if they are adolescent, confused, worried what others will think etc at these tender ages, how are they to decide for sure what type of career is suitable for themselves, given that they really don’t understand what they’re all about yet.
Most teenagers would have three objectives at this stage of their lives
1. To learn how to drive 2. To get into a relationship 3. To get served alcohol without needing ID
Selecting a career or further education is probably one of the furthest things on their mind, until parents or teachers suggest, advise or encourage a specific route for them.
While it is their best intentions, these suggestions are often based of what they believe their adolescent is suitable to or worse what they want for them. (for example: he/she is good at maths so become an accountant or physics, become an engineer)
Giving these young adults further opportunity to develop and understand what makes them tick would not only serve them well, but the nation as a whole.
How it would work…
Change Transition Year from 4th year to 6th year making it compulsory for all classes regardless of their social demography.
Transition year to become a 45 week academic year rather than a 33 week year.
The timetable to include the following:
1. Career Assessment for each individual 2. Psychometric & Competency Assessment for each student 3. Project based work placement for at least 6 weeks 4. Subsequent work placement for additional 4 weeks 5. Two weeks voluntary work within social care 6. Presentation Skills 7. Interview Skills 8. CV building Skills 9. Study research of further education 10. Skills and Interest analysis 11. Developmental programme for each student 12. Marketing skills 13. Networking Skills and Events 14. Job search & placement
Each student would take an initial career assessment.
• This would show a generic career orientation for each student, giving the student a general overview of the types of careers suitable to them
• Each student would then do a psychometric, skills, interests and competency assessment which would confirm or otherwise the individuals suitability, motivations and capabilities around their personality and behavioural traits for these careers
• The student would then research additional educational routes to gain access to these career types
• The student would then research companies which employ these type of employees
• Each student would then do a weeks presentation skills course where they would learn how to present them selves to the market place
• Subsequently another two weeks of interview skills, giving them the full understanding of the interview process from an employers and employees perspective
• Each student would be directed in building their Curriculum Vitae for the job market. Considering they would have no previous employment record it would be difficult for these students to demonstrate experience within the selected field. This CV would be interests and capabilities driven, showing the benefit to employers of employing these individuals
• The student would then seek an internship within these companies for a minimum period of 6 (six) weeks - This internship must be work related around the potential career, where he/she would have a project based internship to be assessed by the company/organisation, the school and the student upon completion
• Each student will undertake a full development programme for themselves where they will learn how the workplace operates. This development programme will educate these students on the various areas such as personal development, networking skills, financial skills including how to maintain a good credit rating, live within their means, avoiding credit blacklisting, pension planning, insurance and so on
Each student will at the end of this year, know what type of career is suitable for them rather than following on with what there friends are doing or are not fully advised or challenged on. They will know how to market themselves, how to use the internet as a medium to promote themselves rather than their activities on holidays etc. They will understand how to network themselves and to gain access to the right people and markets suitable to themselves, their interests, personality, behavioural traits and most importantly what motivates them in their career.
Given that 70% of people are unhappy in their career due to selecting or falling into the wrong career for them straight from school or college and that 40% of student drop out of their 3rd level course prior to completion.
This programme will ensure a reduction of tertiary drop outs, reduce the stress on employees within the workforce, reduce the man hours required to manage unhappy employees, reduce the mental illnesses within our country and lead to a far more enjoyable lifestyle with better financial management, and a healthier lifestyle in the longer term.
Subsequent to this course it is suggested that the students going on to tertiary education be allowed to study a general year of studies where they will further understand what they are all about in terms of career identification.
This general year of studies should cover a multitude of education avenues as per the following:-
• Business Studies • Commerce • Economics • Computer Studies • Marketing • Law, business, family, criminal • Engineering • Science • Languages • Medicine basics • Psychology • Architecture • Human resources
Once they complete this year of studies the students will then finally decide which course is most suitable to them and subject to their capabilities and psychometric assessments they should be interviewed for positions within the tertiary institution for their chosen major qualification.
During these years of education the student will be actively marketing and networking with a variety of their future potential employers ensuring the transition from education to employment.
The reduction of cost associated with employing the wrong person for the wrong career will be offset by the economy in the short term and the longterm benefits to the economy and country as a whole will make this process a global education and employment process allowing further trade between Ireland and the rest of the world.
In its fully established state, it provides a supportive structure and directional guidance by way of significant and affordable services, their complimentary products, and consultancy offerings to people wishing to identify and subsequently arrive at a business career that plays to their natural strengths and utilises their innate and unique potential.
Its strategy is to develop and implement a desperately needed support structure to bridge the gap between individuals in the current education system and them trying to launch themselves wholeheartedly into their career and the rest of their lives. It will have service based and a complimentary product-based business model with intellectual property, which achieves high market demand.
These services to be made initially available across 3 primary target audiences:
Category Age Audience No. of potential patrons*
(Ireland) A. 15 - 18 Secondary School Students 313,000 B. 19 - 22 3rd Level Students 195,000 C. 23 - 35 First Job employees 1,180,000 Totals 1,688,000
*Sources are the CSO
Resources required
Broadband in Schools - has recently been implemented and there are insufficient applications available to deploy in schools. This is a fantastic opportunity to roll out business training modules to Transition Year Students.
Career Guidance Counsellors – Ms. Rose Tully of National Parents Council Post Primary agreed and recommended to the council and the Department of Education that the Jobnet programme be introduced to schools nationwide.
We have subsequently met in person with Former Ministers for education & Science Mr. Noel Dempsey, Minister Ms. Mary Hannifin and the Deputy Chief Inspector Ms. Doreen McMorris who all felt that the system and potential for the changes was beneficial, one comment was "This is election winning stuff".
We have also had live national radio debates with Mr. Brian Mooney, Former President GCI who agrees the need for Jobnet™ and its services. We have discussed with Career Guidance Teachers in Dublin, and have contacted others around the country by phone and they are asking for additional training resources and materials e.g. Train the Trainer, additional modules for students and more.
EU initiatives aimed at a mobile work force – opportunity to provide services to incoming EU workers via a multi-lingual site, particularly recent accession countries e.g. Poland, Lithuania etc
Web-Based Portal & Forum support with Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and Content Management System (CMS) Each member has their own personalised Website/electronic CV through the portal system as their personal marketing tool with networking capabilities.
Career Coaching Each individual can avail of the career identification programme Talent Discovery & Development Programme.
Psychometric & Competency Assessments – e.g. Career Planning, Communication Style Temperament Assessment, Skills & Interest assessments
Personal Marketing Plans – Personal Marketing + Action Plan (Printed CV & Personal Brochure and how to use them)
Business Training & Education Modules – Training Modules that can be bought in a classroom environment, and when developed further, over the web as distance learning.
Business Networking & Training Centres/Units - An initial 6 week-long (1 meeting per week) intensive and inter-active business learning experience followed by regular project managed meetings to maintain continuous development. Frequency of these meeting will be monthly thereafter.
Added benefit services in the form of: Curriculum Vitae Skills, Interview Preparation Kits, Presentation Skills, Networking Skills etc., which are being developed for working modules in University Campuses and on-line at present.
This project and introduction of this education plan would reduce the enormous quantity of Stress Related Illnesses in Young Adults.
To support this project please contact greg@jobnet.ie with you comments
Thank you
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