Career exploration is an essential component to planning for "life after high school." The following resources are recommended to assist students in exploring various career fields and to investigate how specific careers match students' interests, abilities, and aptitudes.
ELCO High School provides the Career Cruising program to faciliate students in their career exploration. Students may log-in to the website and create a portfolio to track their career exploration activities. ELCO students need to obtain access codes from the high school counseling office in order to access the website. All ninth-grade students will work with the Career Cruising program during their Personal Computing class.
This site, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, offers detailed information on high demand occupations in specific career fields. Students will learn about different types of careers, the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful in specific careers, and the education and training opportunities that are available to pursue a career in the high demand occupational areas.
Students may complete a comprehensive self-assessment and explore the exciting careers available in Pennsylvania. The site also provides links to professional networks, job banks, and state agencies.
The Occupational Outlook Handbook, from the U.S. Department of Labor, details the education and training needed, earnings prospects, anticipated job outlook, and working conditions for hundreds of occupations.
The ACRN provides information for students, parents, and education professionals to guide students' career development.
The U.S. Department of Defense sponsors the My Future website to help students understand the post-secondary options available to them. The site provides career planning tips, help with cover letter and resume writing, interview strategies, assessment tools, and other resources, including information on opportunities available through the military.
This site provides information on health-related careers in the areas of nursing, pharmacy, therapy, and technicians in Pennsylvania.
The national PTA organization provides this guide as a resource for parents to assist their child's career development. The guide provides suggestions on how to facilitate career development from elementary school through the high school level.