Careers and Transition Advisers
Students develop ideas about careers and create plans for life after school.
About careers and transition advisers
During high school, careers advisers and transition advisers guide students to identify career options and help them achieve their preferred pathway.
Celebrating the work of career advisers
Hear from three career advisers, Chris, Melissa, Kate and past students talk about their roles and support provided. The career advisers and their students share inspirational stories on how the career aspirations of students were supported.
Careers advisers help students explore their education and career options. They liaise with parents, teachers, employers, community agencies, as well as education and training providers to deliver career education programs and activities for groups of students or individuals. Careers advisers:
- guide students to decide on and develop career goals, explore career options and create effective career and transition strategies
- assist students identify abilities, skills and interests through a range of careers resources and learning opportunities
- work with other teachers to develop students’ employability skills, expand their knowledge and experience of the workplace
- contribute to the school calendar to provide careers activities throughout the year to avoid burnout and avoid clashes with exams and assessments
- negotiate a careers space and timetabling to deliver career education
- help students, parents and carers understand how the curriculum, subject selection, HSC, further education and training, as well as employment impact on career decisions
- provide workplace learning opportunities for students
- provide opportunities for students to learn about careers and career pathways, working conditions, skills shortages and work/life roles including entrepreneurship
- support parents and carers to use tools and strategies to help search for a satisfying career path for students
- ensure students know how to get financial support for further study
- keep careful records of programs, careers counselling, work experience and workplace learning as required by the Retention and disposal legal and department obligations.
The transition adviser works as a member of a school to work team by actively working in the following areas:
- promoting the active engagement and retention of targeted students
- collaborating with targeted students to develop a personalised program of career and transition support
- collaborating with staff and students to develop programs for the important transition points in and out of school
- developing and strengthening partnerships between schools, industry, business, government and non-government organisations, to provide identified students with authentic career learning opportunities
- promoting effective communication strategies between schools, employers and local communities
- seeking opportunities through community support agencies for students most likely to be experiencing disengagement from learning
- connecting with the student wellbeing team
- linking with community youth and wellbeing support organisations and other local initiatives available to the school community.
To prepare high school students for the world of work, career and transition teams use feedback, data and the Career education self-assessment tool for schools to measure how well the school is performing. Teachers use a student-centred approach to help develop the skills needed for success after school.
Employment-related skills
Learning employment-related skills empowers students throughout their working life, even as the workplace changes around them. Skills such as collaboration, critical and creative thinking and problem-solving are highly valued by employers and help young people become active citizens in their community.
Employment-related skills taught in our high schools include:
- learning – the ability to develop new skills and/or knowledge
- communication – expressing and understanding information
- collaboration – working effectively with others to get things done
- critical and creative thinking – being able to evaluate tasks and look for new solutions
- planning and organising – coordinating and prioritising tasks and resources
- problem-solving – identifying problems and developing solutions
- self-management – setting and achieving personal goals
- initiative and enterprise – seeking and taking advantage of opportunities
- technology – using appropriate technologies to complete tasks
- cross-cultural understanding – respecting diversity and acting without discrimination.
Teachers are encouraged to develop and report on employment-related skills in the classroom by:
- documenting these skills
- discussing how these skills might be used in a variety of contexts.
To read how 21 schools across NSW and Victoria are improving employment-related skills, visit The Paradigm Shifters: Entrepreneurial Learning in Schools to download a copy of the report.