Career Interventions Help Eighth Graders
Make Wise Educational Choices

     Recently the School Counseling Research Brief (2003) revisited a study on how career interventions can impact the educational choices of eighth graders. The brief reported results of a study conducted by Peterson, Long, and Billups (1999) in which they examined three groups of eighth graders. These eighth graders were all preparing to plan for their high school courses. The control group was informed that they were choosing classes in one week and they were asked to complete a “Four-year Trial Program of Study Form.” The second group had the same announcement and were given printed material to review. The third group had a four day class including career assessment. In addition to the career assessment the students completed a career grid to help them understand the “relationship between educational attainment and career opportunities.”
     The authors found “The students who had the level 3 intensive, four-day intervention were most able to make wise and informed decisions related to their course selections based on a multi-step process that allowed them to look at various careers and the educational criteria related to these careers.”
     The COPSystem is an ideal tool to use in an intervention of this type. The COPSystem provides complete assessment and the COPSystem Comprehensive Career Guide provides three worksheets that help students explore careers, plan an educational program and relate their career choices to job information.
     As has been reported previously, the COPSystem is useful in helping eighth graders make informed decisions (Stability of Interests, 2003). It was found that after students received a career intervention, over half of the students previously needing career information no longer needed it in the 12th grade.
    This self-report information along with previous follow up studies (Knapp, Knapp, & Knapp-Lee, 1990) provides conclusive support that the COPSystem is helpful in career and educational success.

Worksheets

References
   National Center for School Counseling Outcome Research. (2003, April) School Counseling Research Brief. Retrieved from http://www.umass.edu/school counseling/.
   Peterson, G. W., Long, K. L., & Billups, A. (1999). The effect of three career interventions on the educational choices of eighth grade students, Professional School Counseling, 3, 34-42.
    Stability of the COPS Interest Inventory scores between eighth and twelfth grades. (2003, Spring). EdITS Research and Developments.
   Knapp, R., Knapp, L., & Knapp-Lee, L. (1990). COPSystem Technical Manual. San Diego, CA: EdITS.