Career Readiness

Career planning is an important part of high school. Students should be considering what their strengths are and what types of employment interest them. Hopefully a career can be found at the intersection of interests and strengths. Whether you are planning on attending a trade/vocational school, 2-year college, or 4-year college/university, you must plan appropriately in high school to be ready to enter higher education. This means be successful in your high school classes, don't slack off in your freshman and sophomore years! So many seniors tell me they wished they hadn't messed around as a freshman and/or sophomore, because they are playing major catch-up to graduate and continue in furthering their education. Some seniors are not able to be admitted to the school of their choice because of the poor choices they made in their freshman and sophomore years. It can be disappointing.

Continuing your education beyond high school is a wise decision. Post-secondary education can increase your overall earnings in a lifetime, further your knowledge and experience in areas you are passionate about, and open opportunities you never knew were available. Planning for post-secondary education can seem overwhelming, but there are many resources to guide you. Start exploring now, the early the better!

AVHS counselors will help direct you and make sure you are completing the required courses for your planned future. Do not sell yourself short, think long range and open your possibilities!

Here are some suggestions that might help in your decision making process.

Gap Year

A Gap Year is a great opportunity to do something unique between high school and college and is a time for a person to grow both as an individual and as a student. Benefits include travel, exposure to new cultures, and a chance to gain experience for your college admissions application or professional resume. It is also a chance to do some serious good in the world.

The best way to arrange a gap year is to gain admission to college and then request that admittance be deferred for a year, if the college supports this option. This step will usually require that a plan for the deferred year be submitted and approved. If admission to college is not secured prior to the gap year, then the student must be sure to maintain contacts with high school counselors in order to complete the admission process the subsequent year.

Apprenticeship Training

An apprenticeship is a formal way of learning a skill or trade by working with someone who works at that particular job. Apprenticeship programs almost always include class study along with a full-time job. Apprenticeships usually cover periods of time specified by the government or labor unions. Time spent in an apprenticeship depends on the difficulty of the skill to be learned. While most programs are between three and four years, a few can be as short as two years or as long as five or six years. One advantage of an apprenticeship is that rather than paying for the training, the apprentice is being paid while learning a skill. The number of apprenticeship openings is limited and not all qualified applicants can enter such programs. Tests and personal interviews are often required. Occupations with apprenticeship training include carpentry, plumbing, etc. Check out http://www.snvwaca.com/ for more information. For a List of Registered Apprenticeship Programs http://www.laborcommissioner.com/apprenticeship_list.html .

Vocational Training and Certificate Programs

Is a four year university just not the right choice? Perhaps a trade school or a vocational program at a community college is a better match. A number of well-paid and rewarding careers are attained through vocational certificate programs. Forbes magazine published an article in June 2012 summarizing a report by the McKinsey Global Institute and several books discussing college alternatives. Following is an excerpt from this article:

“A recent report by the McKinsey Global Institute that while low-skill jobs are on the decline, by 2020 employers around the globe will need an estimated 45 million more mid-level workers who have a high school education and vocational training. Meanwhile, a highly cited study by the Harvard Graduate School of Education last year concluded that in the U.S. “we place far too much emphasis on a single pathway to success: attending and graduating from a four-year college. ”According to the report, 30% of the 47 million new jobs expected to be created in the U.S. by 2018 will only require an associate’s degree or a certificate.”

You may view the entire article online: Jobs that don't require a Bachelors Degree.

There is also a great resource: 300 Best Jobs Without a Four-Year Degree in which researcher Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D., pinpoints jobs that require an associate’s degree or less and offer high earnings, thousands of annual job openings and strong projected growth, using the latest data available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Those that ranked in the top 20 were concentrated in health care, construction, skilled labor, and sales.

Military

Is the Military the right Career for you? One of the many post-secondary choices is a career in the armed services. There are five branches of the U.S. Military: Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard. Each of the military branches involves the armed defense of our country and requires a specified period of commitment.

In spite of the risks and requirements involved in joining the military, there are many benefits. The most important of these are the opportunities for career training. Others include steady income, health care, and tuition assistance for continuing your education.

Service corps

Some high school graduates may choose to work for a service organization for a few years in order to figure out what they want to do with their life (and also spend that time benefitting others). Check out AmeriCorps: http://www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps/segal-americorps-education-award/segal-americorps-education-award-matching

Working Full-Time

For students who are interested in immediately entering the workforce after high school, there are several local online resources. If you’re ready to begin your job search, just click on the link for free job seeker services at https://nvos.state.nv.us/seeker/index.asp . Signing up gives you access to all Self Service features. You'll be able to create an electronic resume which will be available to employers, save job searches and have them run automatically (Job Scout) with job listings sent to your email account.

If you are looking for a state job visit: https://nvapps.state.nv.us/NEATS/Recruiting/ViewJobsHome.aep

Nevada Job Connect Resource Guide for job seekers is a valuable tool: http://detr.state.nv.us/PDFS/DETR_job_resource_guide_2010_FINAL.pdf

The Resume:

You may not think you need a resume as a high school student, but oftentimes, you will be competing with older applicants for a job, so you need a document that highlights why you’re the best person for the position. Get prepared to apply for a job by creating an effective resume. Focus on recent accomplishments to make yourself stand out.

http://www.jobsplusonestop.com/documents/Resume_Packet.pdf

Additional Resume dos and don’ts

At this early point in your life, keep your resume to one page
Utilize a “chronological resume" (view of employment and education beginning with most recent date) or a "functional resume" (emphasizes capabilities and qualifications from all experiences, not just work history) or a combination of the two
Always include your most important and pertinent information first
Resume paper should be white, off-white, ivory or cream
Paper (medium weight 24 lbs.) and envelopes should match
Ink should be black
Use one style font such as Times New Roman, Bookman, New Century Schoolbook or Souvenir
Body type should be 10 to 12 point type, with the exception of the name header, which can be one to three point sizes up from the body type, and the section heads which can be one or two point sizes up from the body type
Use boldface on the elements that need emphasis such as the students name, job titles, employers, headings
Use all-cap, underlining and italics sparingly (perhaps all caps for the students name and section headings)
Use “ragged right” type layout instead of “justifying” the copy which usually takes up too much space
Bulleted items should be at least two lines of copy in a section
Limit paragraph length to no more than four or five lines
Do not use I, me, or we
GPA’s should be listed in no more than 3 numbers (3.25 for example)
Your voice mail message should sound professional and should include your name
Your Facebook or MySpace site should be a positive ad for yourself as many employers are looking at these sites in order to get a better idea of what type of person the candidate is…additionally, the employer might go so far as to search your friends sites to see what they can find on you…and if you think that the employer is blocked from your site, don’t count on it as most will find ways to access it…in other words, make sure what is written on your site is professional, mature and appropriate, including the photos!