Helping teens with career choices

[TravelingChris]

I would really love it if people from the mentioned fields or their spouses responded. I have an almost 16 yo dd who is my most all over the map girl. Her current thinking is that she may want to be one of the following- lawyer, psychiatrist, some other type of MD, involved with politics but not as a politician (maybe speech writer), psychologist, or the latest veterinarian. It was so much easier with my son who wanted to be a historian but switched in college to philosophy. It will be much easier for my youngest who currently wants to be an accident investigator but most likely will stick with engineering/hard sciences. But this one???

 

Specifically I am at a loss as to how to structure her remaining two years in homeschool and how to help her narrow down college choices and choose activities. Last year, she started out with only the lawyer, psychologist or political worker. I had her take psychology, work on campaigns, and was going to have her do debate this year. The problem is that she is trying to do too much. Her schedule will be too heavy if she tries to do everything. Basically I think she should volunteer at the hospital less than a mile from my neighborhood and do debate. I am not going to add anything for the veterinary interest since we have pets and the shelters are 10-15 miles away. I still don't have English or Biology, planned and she could take one of these in CC. I am just thinking that with her regular classes- ALg. 2, US History Pt 2, Government and Economics, and Spanish, alosng with Choir 1 night a week, she is going to be overwhelmed. She is very hard working and diligent but she is ADHD and her medication runs out by 6pm plus she gets migraines frequently. By the way, her personality matches up perfectly with the lawyer career. (SHe wants to be a prosecutor if that is what she does). SHe has talents in writing and has memorization problems. I really don't think the medical field is that realistic but don't know if I should conitnue headlong into this crazy path or start trying hard to steer.

[Peela]

Lol, my dd is 15 and I am having the same crazy problems as she really doesn't know yet what she wants to do. I dont have any advice, just :grouphug: because I have foudn it very stressful! ANd she is only 15- I dont want to force her to decide now. I want her to enjoy the rest of her childhood.

I looked at courses and volunteering as you are doing...the photography course she wanted to do wouldn't accept her at 15. The workshop I booked her in for was cancelled.

I have taken a step back and stopped trying too hard to make it work for her when she really has little sense of direction yet. Its her life. I will keep her doing the schooling that keeps her options open, and stop worrying so much about her future. I kept feeling it was my responsibility to make it all happen for her- but I was taking too much on myself.

I asked her to discuss with me the subjects and schooling for our next term. She said "surprise me, mum" , because she doesn't want to take responsibility yet.

You can only do so much...then sit back and wait for the next sign to come that there is a definite direction to follow.

[Deb in NZ]

with my dd, we are looking at where she needs to go to get the training she needs to do what she wants to do. Since December she's had her heart set on attending polytech down south to get a trainee ranger certificate-level 3 (1 year course)in June 2010. By this December she'll already have earned two level 3 certificates + one level 2 certificates from our local polytech. We're trying to encourage her to attend a polytech closer to home that offers a diploma (2year) in Marine Biology, with an option of doing a 3rd year to earn a bachelor's degree in Marine Biology. Dd has always loved the sea & has just finished her PADI open water course. But she keeps saying, "but I won't get my chainsaw license at the 2 year course!" We've had to take a step back & have asked her to compare all parts of the 2 courses, to see where they overlap & take note of where they differ, if she can get those skills easily from other places. Trying to get her to look at the big picture has been hard.

 

Ds#1 is a bit easier. He wants to enlist in the NZ Navy. He ideally wants to be a Navy Diver, but realizes that that is quite hard to get into, so we've asked him to choose a 2nd & 3rd option as well. As he may enlist in less than 2 years from now, we need to begin mapping out his last few terms of study. We'll most likely enroll him in the NZ Coorespondence School when the new schoolyear begins in February as its easier to have the same type of qualifications as PS kids. With dd we didn't worry about gaining highschool quaifications, but instead she began her tertiary study at age 16 at the local polytech. Ds#1 may do some polytech next year, but not as much as dd.

 

I do realize that my dc are a bit unusual in the way that they have quite firm direction in their life. It's not set in concrete, but it does make planning out a learning program much easier. It also allows me to take advantage of opportunities as they arise to give my dc a taste of their chosen career. Sometimes those opportunities come up quite unexpectedly. Ds#2 wants to be a mechanic. A friend is putting together a bike club to teach kids how to keep their bikes in working order. I've signed up ds#2 as it gives him a chance to learn to use tools for a real purpose.

 

Blessings,

[Denise in Florida]

Suggestions for lawyer/politician:

 

My dd15 works as a prosecutor at Teen Court (real court run by teen lawyers and juries for teen defendants who have pled guilty).

 

One of her friends also competes in Mock Court (mock trials that have team competitions at the state level)

 

My dd also participates in 4H Legislature (county level preparation work and one week at the state capitol running a mock session). She was a lobbyist/page this year and wants to be a congressman next year.

 

Suggestions in general:

 

Ask around at church or friends to see if anyone knows a working professional who would allow her to 'shadow' for a week.

 

Look up the local professional organization for one of her interests and see if a teen can sit in on one of their meetings or if they have youth seminars.

[Veronica in VA]

If she is interested in vet medicine, see if one of the larger local vets have some sort of program. My son was interested at one point and attended a one day vet program where the vets discussed salaries, education necessary, and showed lots of slide shows - including some that were kind of icky (whcih quickly eliminated the kids who were there just for the cute animals). Ds also did a vet shadowing program through 4-H. He ultimately decided it wasn't for him.

 

Veronica

[OrganicAnn]

We don't represent any of those fields, but have had friends and family in them.

 

I would recommend maybe trying to 'shadow' someone in those jobs. Spend the day with someone and feel what it is like.

 

My sister loved animals and thought she found the dream job in high school working for a kennel. She thought she would spend the day petting the animals. Boy she was in for a shock as she had to feed and clean out the cages and dealing with some not very happy animals. She never considered a job with animals again. Plus she hated the idea of dissecting animals in school so could never be a vet.

 

Not on your list but I knew someone who was working towards being a CPA but had never considered she'd what it was like to work in a CPA office. She was at that time working at a hospital, wearing scrubs and nurses shoes. She never thought what it would be like to wear suits, heals/hose and work 8 to 5 or more during tax season.

 

Just to say that you should consider the whole environment of the job. I knew someone who had a psychology degree and was working for the prison system with certain types of offenders. Not a dream job. Someone else in psychology/psychiatric that works with troubled or abused kids. Not an easy job.

Edited July 12, 2009 by OrganicAnn