Summary
In 2021, Lanyon High School contracted the ACT Careers Association (ACTCA) to conduct career interviews for all year 10 students. The interviews were timed to precede college subject selection interviews held in late August 2021, and aimed to provide year 10 students a personalised career guidance interview with a qualified career development practitioner and support students in their transition to college.
As part of the interview process, ACTCA career practitioners asked students to participate in a survey to measure career understanding before and after the career interview. Results of the survey showed that a stand-alone career intervention, that is a career guidance interview with a career development practitioner, showed a positive impact on student career understanding, as well as hope and optimism for their career future.
Introduction
ACT Careers Association (ACTCA) career development practitioners delivered career interviews to 94 Lanyon High School students in July and August 2021. The purpose was to prepare students for college subject choice interviews and college transition, occurring within the next four weeks.
At the time Lanyon High School did not have a qualified and professionally current career development practitioner on school staff, and therefore no year 10 students had experienced a career interview before the student career interview program (SCIP) was implemented.
Students were asked to participate in a survey to evaluate the effectiveness of a career interview on career understanding. 40 of 94 students participated in the survey. The outcomes for the Lanyon High School Student Career Interview Project (SCIP) showed that student career understanding increased in all four areas measured by the survey, and also increased in career hope and optimism.
Procedure
Lanyon High School students were scheduled to attend a twenty-minute face-to-face career interview conducted by ACTCA career development practitioners during school hours. The interviews were initially targeted for students in year 10, however a number of year 9 students were also included in the Lanyon High School Student Career Interview Project (SCIP).
Career interview content was student led, with the career development practitioners guiding the interview process. The majority of year 10 interviews focused on college subject selection, education and training pathways other than continuing at college, career options, and post-college career pathways. A written record of the interview was made available to each student. Students were provided the original copy of the Record of Interview form and the school was provided with the carbon copy. Students were asked to sign the record if they deemed it was a true record of the interview. The SCIP also provided ACTCA career practitioners an opportunity to explain and distribute the Universities Admission Centres Steps to Uni for Year 10 Students book to students.
As part of the project ACTCA evaluated the effectiveness of the one-off career interview.
All 94 students were invited to participate in a Post-Pre Survey designed to measure changes in career understanding. Participation in the survey was voluntary and 40 surveys were completed and submitted by students. The ACTCA utilised a Post-Pre survey design developed by ACTCA career practitioners and modelled on a similar survey used by Canadian career practitioners and researchers Redekopp and Huston (2020).
Students used a 5-point scale from 0 (Terrible) to 4 (Very good), to rate their ‘before’ (Pre) and ‘after’ (Post) career understanding and experience with regards to five statements. These statements were:
- My understanding of the role my interests play in making better career decisions.
- My understanding of the role my interests play in making college subject selection.
- My understanding of how to plan my future career.
- My understanding and knowledge of how college subject selection relates to my career planning.
- My feelings of hope and optimism about my career future.
The survey also asked students to provide a written response for Questions 6 and 7.
- How do you feel about the career interview experience?
- What would you like to see improved about the career interview process/experience?
Once compiled and analysed, a written report was shared with Lanyon High School staff.
Results
The SCIP was delivered within the four days allocated by ACTCA and Lanyon High School. 94 interviews of the 98 proposed career interviews were completed by ACTCA career development practitioners.
Table 1. shows the Post – Pre Student Survey data compiled from 40 student responses. An average ‘before’ score, average ‘after’ score and average ‘difference’ score was calculated from the ratings.
Responses collected for statement 1 showed that 25% of survey participants rated the before interview understanding of the relationship between their interests and making better career choices as Terrible or Not good. 95% survey participants rated the after interview understanding as either Good or Very good. Average ratings rose from 1.99 (Before) to 3.34 (After), a difference of 1.45.
For statement 2, 31% of survey participants rated the before interview understanding of the role interests play in college subject selection as Good or Very good. This increased to 97% after the career interview.
More than half (54%) of survey participants rated the before interview understanding of how to plan their future careers (Statement 3) as Terrible or Not good. This dropped to 13% for the after career interview rating.
65% of survey participants rated the before interview understanding and knowledge of how college subject selection relates to their future career planning (Statement 4) as Terrible or Not good. This decreased to 11% of survey participants after the interview.
88% of respondents reported an increase in hope and optimism about their career future after participating in a career interview.
Table 2. shows the total number of Terrible, Not good, Okay, Good and Very good before and after interview responses for survey statements 1 to 4.
Table 3. shows 33 written responses to questions 6 and 7.
| Student | |
| 1 | I feel much more at ease |
| 2 | I feel good as I have a better understanding of how to plan my future and my college subjects |
| 3 | Nothing needs to be improved as the interview process went really well |
| 4 | I like that I got a proper opportunity to talk and get advice from someone else. I felt a bit better about myself and my future afterwards |
| 5 | I would have liked to have the interview before I select my subjects for college. |
| 6 | Nervous before – after I feel okay, better that I thought |
| 7 | It made me have a better understanding of college |
| 8 | Feed good – more of an idea about future |
| 9 | Helpful – I like being part of the conversation |
| 10 | Really good |
| 11 | I felt very good about it. My career adviser helped me understand a lot more of what I can do for college for my career |
| 12 | It was good. I was able to find things out that helped me in choosing my subjects and what I would like to do in the future |
| 13 | To improve, allow us to have more information prior and allow us to choose if we want to or not as I already knew what I wanted to do |
| 14 | She was easy to talk to so it was easier |
| 15 | It was very helpful because before this interview I didn’t know what to do |
| 16 | It helped me realise what I wanted to do and how my subjects linked to my career |
| 17 | It was very good and gave me a lot of clarity |
| 18 | I need more suggestions about places to go to start my career |
| 19 | It helped me understand how choosing college classes affects my career |
| 20 | I understand a lot more and feel more confident |
| 21 | Need a bit more help with what I need to do in college to get to the point I want |
| 22 | They were very helpful and really gave me guidance towards my future |
| 23 | Feel better about my career pathways – I need info about ATARs and uni pathways |
| 24 | It helped me, thank you. |
| 25 | Very good, my interviewer was very kind |
| 26 | I learnt a lot |
| 27 | I understand more now. It was amazing. |
| 28 | It helped me a lot, to know what I want to do. |
| 29 | I understand a lot now |
| 30 | I learnt a lot from it and (it) was interesting. Got a better understanding of all the classes I am interested in. |
| 31 | Helped me understand what I need to do and understand myself |
| 32 | Okay and helpful to understand college |
| 33 | It was helpful and informative |
Of the 94 students who attended SCIP, 30 (32%) were identified as requiring further career guidance, and were referred onto the college career practitioners. A note was added onto the Lanyon High School’s copy of the Record of Interview, and the relevant college career practitioners were provided with a spreadsheet of students referred for follow-up.
Conclusions
ACT Careers Association (ACTCA) career development practitioners delivered career interviews to 94 Lanyon High School students in July and August 2021. The purpose was to prepare students for college subject choice interviews and college transition, occurring within the next four weeks.
Post – Pre survey results showed an increase in all average scores for survey statements 1-4. This indicates that participation in the career interview had a short-term positive effect on student career development understanding and preparation for college subject interviews.
Before and after interview ratings of statement 3, showed that respondent’s understanding of how to plan for their future career increased by the greatest margin of all survey measures. This may have been due to the before interview scores being very low, with over half of survey respondents recording a rating of Terrible or Not good for their understanding of how to plan their career future.
On average, ‘Understanding and knowledge of how college subject selection relates to my career planning’ achieved the lowest average score difference, an increase of only 1.38. Only 3 of 40 survey respondents rated their understanding of the relationship between college subject selection and career planning as very good. This result warrants further investigation as students would have engaged in transition to college programs earlier the year.
A number of students also recorded over half of their before and after survey responses, as Terrible or Not good across all measures. Consistent low scoring may indicate low to very low student career readiness, and/or low career management competency. A number of students may therefore require intensive career development intervention in the future. The score may also indicate that the school requires a whole school universal career education program to support every student’s career development.
At no point were mental health outcomes of ‘hope’ or ‘optimism’ explicitly discussed in the career interviews, however 88% of respondents (35 of 40) reported an increase in feelings of hope and optimism about their career future after the career interview.
From the survey results, it can also be concluded that single career intervention, that is a career guidance interview with a career development practitioner, has shown to have a positive short-term impact on student career development.
All ACTCA career development practitioners involved in the SCIP commented that Lanyon High School students approached their career interview with a positive attitude, and that students were polite and respectful at all times. Comments in Table 3. are indicative of student willingness to engage with the ACTCA career practitioners.
Recommendations
Including the Post – Pre Student Survey into SCIP delivery provided an opportunity to collect data on student career learning and understanding. In the future ACTCA may ask schools to inform students about the purpose of SCIP and encourage all students to submit feedback via the survey. Participating schools may also consider co-designing the student survey with ACTCA.
Student responses (Table 2) and survey data (Tables 1 & 3) indicate the SCIP had a short-term, positive impact on improving career understanding. It would be interesting to survey students again before the students transition to college to see if SCIP had had a lasting / long term impact on student career understanding.
Parents/carers have the greatest impact on student career decision making. Lanyon High School may consider parents attending future SCIP events.
Research shows that students benefit most when a school has a stable, multifaceted and evidence informed career development service, delivered by a team of experts (Hooley 2010 and ACT EDU publication 2019). It would be beneficial if SCIP be included as part of the school’s universal, whole school career development service in the future.
Acknowledgement
ACTCA would like to thank the following career practitioners for volunteering their time to participate in the Lanyon High School SCIP.
Dianne Bradford
Karen Burton
Joanne Hastings
Karen Tuhan
References
Redekopp, D.E. and Huston, M. (2020). Strengthening Mental Health through effective Career Development. CERIC. Toronto, Canada.
Ministerial Council for Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs (MCEECDYA). (2010). Australian Blueprint for Career Development. Available at: https://docs.education.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/australian_blueprint_for_career_development.pdf
Steps to Uni for Year 10 Students. (2021). Universities Admissions Centre (NSW & ACT) Pty Ltd available at https://www.uac.edu.au/assets/documents/year-10/year-10-booklet-2024.pdf
Guidelines for ACT Public School Career Practitioners (2019) Publishing Services for the ACT Education Directorate. Australian Capital Territory, Canberra.
Andrews, D. & Hooley, T. (2019). The Career Leaders Handbook. How to create an outstanding careers programme for your school or college. Trotman Publishing. Richmond UK.