New Directions in Careers Counselling

An Update from Fort Street’s Careers Adviser

Who Do You Want To Be?

• Once upon a time the question teenagers were asked was “what do you want to do when you leave school?” Now, as the world of careers and employment undergoes significant change, the focus has moved from the type of work to the type of worker. The shift from asking “What do you want to do?” to “Who do you want to be?” represents a profound change in the way school Careers Advisers approach personal student career development programs.
• This paradigm shift emphasizes the importance of personal identity, strengths, skills, capabilities, and values in shaping a student’s future career choices.
• Individual student Identity plays a central role in this approach. It encourages students to deep dive into understanding who they are, beyond academic achievements. This self-awareness fosters a sense of purpose and direction, crucial for personal and professional growth. By exploring their identity, students can align their future paths with their true selves, leading to more fulfilling and authentic life choices, and therefore greater professional success. As universities are keen to emphasize: first choose your cause, then choose your course to match!

Through these efforts, career counsellors empower students to begin to research careers that align with their unique strengths and aspirations, leading to more successful professional lives.

Employers are increasingly recruiting for social-emotional skills and employability attributes. If they are paying a human to do a job, it’s because they need the human qualities the employee brings. After all, if a task can be completed by AI, an algorithm or a robot – it will be.

In contemplating possible future career paths, students should focus on activities that enable them to develop and demonstrate their employability (social-emotional) skills not just academic knowledge.

All students are encouraged to connect with the school’s Careers Adviser, Ms Salisbury, to have these vital conversations and begin the deep-dive into what matters to them and what could give their life meaning now and into the future.