Framework for Career Education & Guidance

We follow the benchmark for good career guidance practices to support schools and colleges in providing the best possible career-linked education and guidance.

A stable career education programme

Every school/ college should have a stable, embedded programme of career-linked education and guidance having a trained and certified career counsellor responsible for it with the explicit backing of the senior management. The careers programme should be published on the school/college website in a way that enables students, parents, teachers and employers to access and give feedback.

Learning from occupational information

By the age of 12, all students should have access to authentic information about occupations and the labour market to plan their career paths and study options. Teachers/Parents should be encouraged to access the career website to support children.

Personalised career planning

Students have different career planning needs at different stages. Some have to attend universities and others don’t have such plans. So, a personalised career assessment and career dashboard should be provided to each student. Schools should keep systematic records of the guidance provided to each student and keep track of their education or employment destinations after they leave school.

One-to-one Guidance

Every student should have opportunities to consult with a career counsellor, whenever significant study or career choices are being made. Every student should have at least one such meeting by the age of 13, and the opportunity for regular interaction by the age of 15.

Linking curriculum learning to careers

All teachers should link curriculum learning with occupations and highlight the relevance of subjects for a wide range of future career paths. By the age of 12, every student should have a clear knowledge of "which subject is useful for which career".

Interact with employers and professionals

Every student should have multiple opportunities to learn from employers about work, employment and the skills that are valued in the workplace. This can be through a range of enrichment activities including visiting speakers, mentoring and job shadowing schemes. Every year, from the age of 12 onwards, students should participate in at least one meaningful visit to the workplace in which the student learns about the nature of the work and the skills required to be successful.

Gain work experiences

Our report found that (in comparison to 81% of European schools) only 0.001% of Indian schools are offering their students a meaningful experience of the workplace by the end of class 11-12th. Every student from class 11 onwards should have a minimum of one part-time summer work experience to help their exploration of employability skills and expansion of networks. By the age of 18, every student should have had one further such experience, in addition to any part-time jobs they may have.

Explore higher education

By the age of 15, all students should understand the full range of learning opportunities that are available to them. This includes both academic and vocational routes and learning in schools, colleges, universities and the workplace. This should include at least two visits to different universities/institutes to meet staff and students.

NICE Methodology

When we talk about career planning, we are not preaching to someone. We do personalised “career mapping” of a student which is:

Self-engaging – means involving a student to design his/her career;

Impartial – not being judgmental or making decisions for others but helping students in their decision-making process;

Authentic – research-based scientific tools and updated information from original sources;

Measurable – various stages of career development should be measured, compared and analysed;

Transparent – all the stakeholders i.e. student, parent, teacher and advisor can share the student’s career portfolio;