Career Decision Making & Post Secondary Planning

Sandy Weaver                                      Brian Merhar

Professional School counselor               MSUM Intern 2000-01’

Stillwater High School                           Stillwater High School

Stillwater, MN                                      Stillwater, MN

Description of the Lessons

Career Decision-Making and Post Secondary Planning is a classroom guidance lesson developed at Stillwater High School for eleventh graders who need to start considering their options after high school.  Activities assist students in figuring out their college and career interests while keeping them open to changing their plans in the future.  Each student has a portfolio that was started in tenth grade and is handed out with results from their career interest survey and PLAN test results. This lesson provides students with the information from the 10^th grade guidance unit and the Keirsey Temperament Sorter to take a look at what direction they are headed for their future goals.

Part #1:           

Introduce the career/college lesson and describe it as a process of students learning about themselves.  Preview the activities of Keirsey Temperament Sorter and ECOS web based computer program.  Explain the goals of the lesson: for students to continue their process of career or college decision making.  Show and explain statistics that Juniors have been in school for 96 months so far (Since Kindergarten) and have only 16 month left until graduation.  Transition with need for a post-high school plan.

Part #2:          

Explain other resources to use for post high school planning – career center, talking with people in careers, career shadowing, talk to parents.  Students will explore their interests, abilities, values, and personality temperament with the Keirsey Temperament Sorter.  Like personality, temperament is tendencies/preferences that people are born with.  Use specific examples that you have witnessed other students doing in post-secondary preparation so that those students may relate.  Ask students for feedback or to share their own experiences, goals, and plans thus far.

Part #3:           

Explain each of the eight scales used by the Keirsey Temperament Sorter: Extraversion vs. Introversion, Sensation vs. Intuition, Thinking vs. Feeling, and Judging vs. Perception.  Use overheads for visual learners and explain elements of each for auditory learners.  Have them take the Keirsey Temperament Sorter on-line at www.Keirsey.com allowing ample time for them to finish the seventy-question survey.

Part #4:            

Each student will have a four letter code such as (INFP) each letter stands for each of the eight scales described above from the Keirsey Temperament Sorter.  Conduct a classroom activity in which you have students get up and stand on the side of the room in which you designate for each part of the survey, e.g. Extroverts on one side of the room and Introverts on the other.  Read aloud the elements of each personality giving examples from real like work situations.  Ask the kids if these elements sound familiar to them in their own lives. 

Connections to Related Standards, Competencies and Domains

Career investigation Minnesota Graduation Standard area #8 is touched upon by these activities.  Exploring personal temperament and applying that to careers involves career goals, career development, and career decision making.  Each activity is an example of the career development domain.  The lesson allows students to become more in touch with themselves, interests, and personality connecting with the career development domain. 

This lesson meets the qualifications of the American School Counselor Association Ethical Standards for School Counselors area A & D.  Responsibilities to the school, community, and student are covered in this lesson with emphasis on the guidance component that serves the students needs.

References and Resources

Weaver, S & Tennyson, S, (Junior Counselors at Stillwater High School).  Career Decision Making and Post Secondary Planning (2000).  For further information: Stillwater High School, 5701 Stillwater Blvd. N., Stillwater, MN 55082. (651) 351-8040.

Minnesota Department of Children, Families, and Learning, Minnesota profile of Learning Content Standard: Decision-Making: Career Investigation, Decision Making and Post Secondary Planning.

Gysbers, N. C. & Henderson, P.  (2000)  Developing and managing your school guidance program.  Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.