Career Advising Policy

Career Connections

Career advising is "an integrated process that helps students understand how their personal interests, strengths, and values might predict satisfaction and success in school and related career fields, as well as how to tie these interests and strengths to academic and career goals" (Gordon, V.N. 2007). The framework in which career advising occurs is defined as Career Connections. The Career Connection Framework is designed to support students in the development of a vision and realistic plan for their futures - during K-12 and beyond through career advising.

Career Advising

The foundational framework of career advising in Ohio is designed to support students in developing a vision and realistic plan for their futures across the K-12 spectrum. Its purpose is to give students opportunities to discover their interests and explore academic and career pathway options through relevant classroom instruction, career-related learning experiences, and consistent counseling and advising.

As prescribed in the Ohio Department of Education’s Each Child Our Future Strategic Plan, each child is challenged, prepared, and empowered for life after the classroom. 

 

Career Advising Toolkit

The Ohio Career Advising Toolkit includes tools and resources to support schools, districts, and educators in understanding the importance of career advising and factors within that impact and help shape the lives of the students, families, and communities they serve. Further, the toolkit provides schools, districts, and educators:

  • Engagement activities for strategizing and developing comprehensive career advising plans informed with an equity lens across each section of the career connections framework. 

The toolkit helps districts

  • Develop a foundational understanding of what career advising is and its application across Ohio's K-12 landscape through the Career Connections Framework.
  • Identify and understand the requirements of career advising found in the Ohio Revised Code.
  • Recognize the significance of educational equity and utilize the outcomes of the Advancing Academic Excellence for All: Equity Gap Analysis Tool.
  • Acquire an understanding of career awareness, exploration, and planning within career advising through the career connections framework.
  • Develop an understanding of the 8 factors of career advising across the core Career Connections Framework.
  • Design intentional strategies of implementation of policies and practices that are inclusive of and reflect the needs of all students served.
  • Develop a career advising plan using the Career Advising Plan Template.
  • Identify resources and strategies for student success and graduation plans.
  • Design strategies for sustainability and monitoring of practices established within career advising plans.
  • Utilize strategies and tools outlined in the toolkit to inform district career advising policies.

Intended audience

The career advising toolkit is designed for multiple audiences, including district-level staff and board members (administrators, career readiness leaders, business advisory members), school-level leaders and staff (superintendents, principals, career and community resource coordinators, counselors, career readiness educators, and individual teachers).

Materials needed

  • Career Advising Toolkit Plan Template
  • Documented outcomes of the Advancing Academic Excellence for All: Equity Gap Analysis Tool.
  • Copy of the district Career Advising Policy.
  • Information on local student success and graduation plan elements.
  • Any additional local or district level information in support of career advising planning.

Career Advising Toolkit

  • This resource is a downloadable PDF version of the career advising toolkit.

train-the-trainers: Career advising toolkit

  • This resource page supports local district and school leaders in guiding stakeholder groups through the career advising toolkit in a two-step process. A recorded training is available.

Parts of the Toolkit

Part 1

Career Connections Overview and the Foundations of Career Advising

 This part will provide definition to, and correlation across career connections and career advising. In addition, outlining the legislative requirements of career advising.

Part 2

Career Advising through an Equity Lens

This part supports districts, schools, and educators in establishing an understanding of the significance equity plays in developing policies and practices that are inclusive of and reflect the needs of all students served. Further, this section will define the Advancing Academic Excellence for All: Equity Gap Analysis Tool and the components within that will support the design of equitable strategies of career advising.

Part 3

Making a Plan

This part of the toolkit will require districts, schools, and educators to collaborate and analyze current career advising policies, outcomes of the Comprehensive Educational Equity Gap Analysis Tool and if available, local student success and graduation plan elements. Districts, schools, and educators will develop an understanding of career advising and the factors of career-connected engagement across the core Career Connections Framework (Awareness, Exploration, and Planning). Districts, schools, and educators will then, apply knowledge and resources and design intentional strategies of implementation using the Career Advising Plan Template.

Part 4

Sustaining a Plan

Policy Redesign, Implementation, and Monitoring - During this phase, districts, schools, educators, and stakeholder partners will co-design a common vision for career advising that encompasses equitable, student-centered goals and strategies that support the needs of all students and provide pathways for post high school success. Further, identifying the 5 initial “actionable” steps required to proceed in the implementation of the plan and the stakeholders to fulfill those steps. Lastly, participants will identify current or create progress monitoring strategies and tools to help track the progress and impact of the career advising plan. Individual teachers and school counselors may monitor their own progress or their students’ progress that stem from formal or informal career advising activities.
 


Career Advising FAQ

Model Policies and Plans for Districts to Localize

Archived Resources to Support Planning and Implementation


Career Awareness and Exploration Funds

To support the implementation of a more career-focused approached to education in Ohio, House Bill 110 has established funding to be used towards career awareness and exploration in each city, local, exempted village, and joint vocational school district, community school, and STEM school.

Career Awareness and Exploration Funds Guidance Kick-off Session:

The Department offered a virtual event to provide guidance about Career Awareness and Exploration Funds Guidance Kick-off Session.

The Department’s Office of Career-Technical Education and Office of Graduate Success will lead the session.

Last Modified: 11/10/2023 3:07:59 PM