IN Peters Township February/March 2018 | Page 69

Career Chats at PTMS “Students use these tools to begin the exploration of careers,” explained Leyna Steffen, Dean of College and Career Readiness at the High School. They learn about the education required for specific careers, earning potential, view job descriptions, review important skills to have, typical tasks, and related college major. Naviance will also directly link students to colleges that have these majors available. “As students and their families begin this process, the amount of information can be overwhelming,” continued Steffen. “Naviance is one central location and it makes it easier to work through the process. It’s like a suitcase with all the work in one location that travels with a student throughout high school.” Experts estimate that 30 million people are currently working in jobs that didn’t exist last year and today’s professionals are projected to have 10-14 jobs by the time they are age 38. “There is this notion that students need to have a career chosen before they graduate, but that’s not always the case,” said Lori Pavlik, Principal of Peters Township High School. “We want our students to understand how their interests can lead to a career path, knowing that we have provided them with the transferable skills to help them find success.” The key is using the tools that have been provided to discover what opportunities are available, adds Steffen, “Students can’t dream about the things they don’t know.”