High School Students, Make This One Career Choice
“Make this one career choice: decide on, enroll in and show up for a 3-month to 4 year postsecondary program to start in the Fall of your graduation year – or enter the military. That’s it. Study/train on something. This one decision will lead to another, and another that are more likely to lead to your lifelong career and financial well-being. Don’t let the rest of us make it too complicated for you… 😊 “
Your Wise Advocate
New report makes it real and visual
High school seniors and GED holders don’t have to invest much time or money to make big progress toward career success. But they must get some postsecondary education (including apprenticeships, postsecondary non-degree awards) for most good jobs. A new report, “After Everything: Projections of Jobs, Education, and Training Requirements through 2031” from Georgetown University’s Center for Education and the Workforce (CEW) makes that abundantly clear.
And when a student chooses a program that matches their personality and interests (congruence), they are more likely to get better grades, persist, and graduate on time. There are many programs in which they will thrive.
Almost any option is better than “going to work” after high school
From 1983 to 2031, the number of jobs for people who only have a high school diploma or less drops from 68% to 28%. The future is not your parents’ or grandparents’ job market.
Explore the CEW report interactive graphs that break down these trends by occupation and industry. You can also get more local data from their state by state report.
It’s not 3 options: “college, career and military”
Again and again, I hear from school counselors, teachers and parents about students’ lack of knowledge about diverse postsecondary options after high school. Students and parents/guardians keep thinking that college = 4-year university.
Myth: plumbers, carpenters, construction workers need no training. Working in the trades for good wages requires postsecondary training, often sponsored by a community college, union or trade association.
The next step after high school is NOT a ternary (3 option) choice:
4-year college
work
military
And yet that seems to be a common misunderstanding. Politicizing higher education doesn’t help.
Let’s connect the dots
Beat the drum and deliver the message: Don’t stop learning after high school!
Our personality and career interest inventory Career Key Discovery contains many promising postsecondary education programs that require less than 4 year bachelor's degree.
Some programs take less than one year, where after completion a student will make 4-5x more in wages than a fast food or retail job replaced by AI in a few years. (think: phlebotomist vs. Taco Bell)
Let’s also make it easier by introducing people to real, local pathways to their local community college programs, postsecondary nondegree awards, and apprenticeships. High school students and adults in career transition often have no idea about the money (i.e. Promise programs like Oregon’s) and support that exist.
Career Key can help you start those conversations – explore our resources and link to our website to spread these ideas.
Education is still the key, it’s just not necessarily a 4-year degree. Okay, that rhymes (badly) and no, ChatGPT did not write this blog! Obviously I won’t make poet laureate anytime soon… Until next time!
