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A career initiative at SKA

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What do I want to be when I grow up?  

 An important element of high school education is awareness of and preparation for the myriad professional opportunities that exist in the ever evolving world beyond.

As a follow up to the Stella K. Abraham High School for Girls’ New Year’s Career Day sessions, the school partnered with WayFind Career Counseling Services to create a career education initiative designed specifically for young Orthodox women. This three part series included an interest inventory to assist the girls in identifying their strengths and passions, and then sharing information on a vast array of career choices. 

Since the U.S. Labor Department reports that 60 percent of current high school students will likely end up in careers that don’t exist yet, the seminar included preparation for researching careers moving forward.

The SKA Juniors have started to think about where their interests lie, what strengths they may have and what is important to them.  The sessions focused on personality types, character traits, individual interests and talents.  Students can use this information to think about what classes to take and what internship will best serve their future; hopefully, they will continue their own research independently.

Junior Shoshana Rockoff noted, “It was eye opening to see how our values, interests and skills play such a significant role in choosing a career that is right for us.  Learning and identifying exactly what values and interests applied to every single one of us served as a valuable guide in discovering what we ultimately want to accomplish.”

Fellow classmate Rachel Ash agreed. “The career program at SKA really showed me what professional possibilities are available. We were taught different considerations to examine when you are deciding what career you want to have.  It really made us think about it on a deeper level.”

The program has been an enormous success!  The enthusiasm in each session has been remarkable as students discussed the range of professional possibilities available to them and what steps are needed to reach their goals.  

We are hopeful that this important program will be replicated in many high schools and are proud to be pioneering an effort so consistent with our mandate of ‘SKA - Find Your Passion, Live Your Dream!’