Empowering Students: Evaluating the Impact of Career Education Programs on College Major Choices
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35335/jiph.v11i3.26Keywords:
Career Education Programs, College Major Choices, Student Empowerment, Program Effectiveness, Demographic VariationsAbstract
The selection of a college major represents a pivotal decision in the lives of students, shaping their academic and professional futures. Amid the ever-expanding array of academic disciplines and the challenges of navigating career aspirations, career education programs emerge as essential tools in empowering students to make informed choices. This research endeavors to assess the effectiveness of career education programs in aiding students with their major decisions and illuminates the significance of their impact. Through a comprehensive examination that included surveys, interviews, and data analysis, the study offers insights into the transformative potential of career education programs. The findings underscore the positive influence of these programs on students' major choices and career aspirations. Students who engage with career education programs consistently make choices that align with their passions and goals. The study also highlights the pivotal role of these programs in nurturing self-confidence among students in making major decisions, instilling in them the belief that they possess the ability to shape their own academic and professional destinies. Moreover, the research acknowledges demographic variations in the effectiveness of these programs. Differences in program impact among various student groups, such as gender and socioeconomic status, underscore the importance of inclusive and targeted approaches to program design and implementation. The implications of these findings are profound, extending across the educational landscape. They emphasize the significance of equitable access to career education programs, call for resource allocation decisions that support the investment in these programs, and advocate for policy measures that recognize the pivotal role of career education in student success.
References
Alexander, H. B. (1923). The College at the Cross Roads. Bulletin of the American Association of University Professors (1915-1955), 9(2), 37–39.
Allen, W. (1992). The color of success: African-American college student outcomes at predominantly White and historically Black public colleges and universities. Harvard Educational Review, 62(1), 26–45.
Altonji, J. G., Blom, E., & Meghir, C. (2012). Heterogeneity in human capital investments: High school curriculum, college major, and careers. Annu. Rev. Econ., 4(1), 185–223.
Armstrong, P. I., Day, S. X., McVay, J. P., & Rounds, J. (2008). Holland’s RIASEC model as an integrative framework for individual differences. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 55(1), 1.
Bentley, T. (2012). Learning beyond the classroom: Education for a changing world. Routledge.
Blau, P. M., Gustad, J. W., Jessor, R., Parnes, H. S., & Wilcock, R. C. (1956). Occupational choice: A conceptual framework. ILR Review, 9(4), 531–543.
Borg, J., Turner, M., & Scott-Young, C. (2017). Fostering student work readiness: A university case study. Proceedings of the 41st Australasian Universities Building Education Association Conference, 196–209.
Bowen, W. G., Chingos, M. M., & McPherson, M. S. (2009). Crossing the finish line: Completing college at America’s public universities. Princeton University Press.
Bredeson, P. V. (2002). Designs for learning: A new architecture for professional development in schools. Corwin Press.
Caprio, S., Daniels, S. R., Drewnowski, A., Kaufman, F. R., Palinkas, L. A., Rosenbloom, A. L., & Schwimmer, J. B. (2008). Influence of race, ethnicity, and culture on childhood obesity: implications for prevention and treatment: a consensus statement of Shaping America’s Health and the Obesity Society. Diabetes Care, 31(11), 2211.
Carroll, L. A. (2002). Rehearsing new roles: How college students develop as writers. SIU press.
Casner-Lotto, J., & Barrington, L. (2006). Are they really ready to work? Employers’ perspectives on the basic knowledge and applied skills of new entrants to the 21st century US workforce. ERIC.
Cech, E. (2021). The trouble with passion: How searching for fulfillment at work fosters inequality. Univ of California Press.
Conley, D. T. (2010). College and career ready: Helping all students succeed beyond high school. John Wiley & Sons.
Darling-Hammond, L., & McLaughlin, M. W. (1995). Policies that support professional development in an era of reform. Phi Delta Kappan, 76(8), 597–604.
Della Puppa, F., & King, R. (2019). The new ‘twice migrants’: motivations, experiences and disillusionments of Italian-Bangladeshis relocating to London. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 45(11), 1936–1952.
Fritz, M. M. C. (2021). 11 Students as change makers to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Revolutionizing Sustainability Education: Stories and Tools of Mindset Transformation.
Gallarza, M. G., & Saura, I. G. (2006). Value dimensions, perceived value, satisfaction and loyalty: an investigation of university students’ travel behaviour. Tourism Management, 27(3), 437–452.
Gordon, V. N., & Steele, G. E. (2015). The undecided college student: An academic and career advising challenge. Charles C Thomas Publisher.
Guertin, E. (2015). Helping students design an education. The Journal of General Education, 64(2), 131–138.
Gyamfi, G., & Lai, Y. (2020). Beyond Motivation: Investigating Thai English Major Students’ Grit. PASAA: Journal of Language Teaching and Learning in Thailand, 60, 60–96.
Halcomb, E. J., & Hickman, L. (2015). Mixed methods research.
Hall, D. T. (2004). Self-awareness, identity, and leader development. Leader Development for Transforming Organizations: Growing Leaders for Tomorrow, 153, 176.
Harren, V. A. (1979). A model of career decision making for college students. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 14(2), 119–133.
Howard, T. C. (2019). Why race and culture matter in schools: Closing the achievement gap in America’s classrooms. Teachers College Press.
Hunter, A., Laursen, S. L., & Seymour, E. (2007). Becoming a scientist: The role of undergraduate research in students’ cognitive, personal, and professional development. Science Education, 91(1), 36–74.
Jabbaar-Gyambrah, T., & Vaught, S. (2018). Is College a Lousy Investment?: Negotiating the Hidden Costs of Higher Education. Rowman & Littlefield.
Kinshuk, Chen, N.-S., Cheng, I.-L., & Chew, S. W. (2016). Evolution is not enough: Revolutionizing current learning environments to smart learning environments. International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education, 26, 561–581.
Kuh, G. D., Kinzie, J., Buckley, J. A., Bridges, B. K., & Hayek, J. C. (2011). Piecing together the student success puzzle: Research, propositions, and recommendations: ASHE higher education report (Vol. 116). John Wiley & Sons.
Kvanvig, J. L. (2003). The value of knowledge and the pursuit of understanding. Cambridge university press.
Laal, M., & Salamati, P. (2012). Lifelong learning; why do we need it? Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 31, 399–403.
Lea, S. J., Stephenson, D., & Troy, J. (2003). Higher education students’ attitudes to student-centred learning: beyond’educational bulimia’? Studies in Higher Education, 28(3), 321–334.
Leech, N. L., Dellinger, A. B., Brannagan, K. B., & Tanaka, H. (2010). Evaluating mixed research studies: A mixed methods approach. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 4(1), 17–31.
Lozano, F. J., & Lozano, R. (2014). Developing the curriculum for a new Bachelor’s degree in Engineering for Sustainable Development. Journal of Cleaner Production, 64, 136–146.
Oliver, K., Innvar, S., Lorenc, T., Woodman, J., & Thomas, J. (2014). A systematic review of barriers to and facilitators of the use of evidence by policymakers. BMC Health Services Research, 14, 1–12.
Ostroff, W. L. (2016). Cultivating curiosity in K-12 classrooms: How to promote and sustain deep learning. ASCD.
Passarelli, A. M., & Kolb, D. A. (2011). The learning way: Learning from experience as the path to lifelong learning and development. The Oxford Handbook of Lifelong Learning, 70–90.
Patton, W., & McMahon, M. (2014). Career development and systems theory: Connecting theory and practice (Vol. 2). Springer.
Paul, J., & Jefferson, F. (2019). A comparative analysis of student performance in an online vs. face-to-face environmental science course from 2009 to 2016. Frontiers in Computer Science, 1, 7.
Petrides, L. A., & Nodine, T. R. (2003). Knowledge management in education: defining the landscape.
POINTS, P. (2011). Given the importance of school administration, the role of educational leadership in school improvement, and the preparation of education leaders, it is essential to understand the his-tory, development, and promise of the principalship. This chapter, which is intended to be illustrative rather than exhaustive, examines those pivotal points. Due to changing demographics, conflicting societal values, and shifting expectations, the principal’s role is ever evolving. As such, this chapter briefly outlines the causes of some of those shifts before describing the effects on the role in general, on the preparation and certification of principals, and on the gender equity of career advancement opportunities. The SAGE Handbook of Educational Leadership: Advances in Theory, Research, and Practice, 81.
Ponce, O. A., & Pagán-Maldonado, N. (2015). Mixed methods research in education: Capturing the complexity of the profession. International Journal of Educational Excellence, 1(1), 111–135.
Savickas, M. L. (2013). Career construction theory and practice. Career Development and Counseling: Putting Theory and Research to Work, 2, 144–180.
Savickas, M. L., Nota, L., Rossier, J., Dauwalder, J.-P., Duarte, M. E., Guichard, J., Soresi, S., Van Esbroeck, R., & Van Vianen, A. E. M. (2009). Life designing: A paradigm for career construction in the 21st century. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 75(3), 239–250.
Schaub, M., & Tokar, D. M. (2005). The role of personality and learning experiences in social cognitive career theory. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 66(2), 304–325.
Smith, D. G. (2020). Diversity’s promise for higher education: Making it work. JHU Press.
Szelényi, K. (2006). Students without borders? Migratory decision-making among international graduate students in the US. Knowledge, Technology & Policy, 19(3), 64–86.
Taylor, K. M., & Betz, N. E. (1983). Applications of self-efficacy theory to the understanding and treatment of career indecision. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 22(1), 63–81.
Tinto, V. (1982). Limits of theory and practice in student attrition. The Journal of Higher Education, 53(6), 687–700.
Toglia, T. V. (2013). Gender equity issues in CTE and STEM education. Tech Directions, 72(7), 14.
Tyre, P. (2008). The trouble with boys: A surprising report card on our sons, their problems at school, and what parents and educators must do. Harmony.
Vacc, N., & Loesch, L. C. (2013). Professional orientation to counseling. Routledge.
Valickas, A., Raišienė, A. G., & Rapuano, V. (2019). Planned happenstance skills as personal resources for students’ psychological wellbeing and academic adjustment. Sustainability, 11(12), 3401.
Warschauer, M. (2000). The changing global economy and the future of English teaching. TESOL Quarterly, 34(3), 511–535.
Wong, B. (2016). Science education, career aspirations and minority ethnic students. Springer.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Oskar Oskar, Rempi Simbolon, Kondar Kondar, Marzan Sinaga
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
