Career technical education. Get your student started today.
With Stride Career Prep, your student gets a chance to explore the ins and outs of their career before they get their diploma.
Career Technical Education
Too many students lack the tools they need to succeed in the 21st century workforce. The labor landscape is changing, and rapid advancements in technology have blurred the lines between outdated worker categories.
But career technical education prepares young people with the academic and technical skills, knowledge, and training they'll need for the careers of tomorrow.
Many of those future careers will include "new-collar" jobs—requiring specific knowledge and precise skills such as computer specialists and cybersecurity technicians. The number of jobs in the science and engineering space has grown and is projected to continue growing, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.1 The subsection of those jobs seeing the highest growth is in computer science and health.1 Career technical education can help prepare students for some of these high growth industries, so they'll be ready for the jobs of the future.
Making High School Relevant
According to a survey by Edge Research and K12,2 Americans overwhelmingly feel that their high school experience failed to equip them with the skills necessary to succeed in life after school. This skills gap applies to "knowing how to get ahead in the workforce" and "exposure to different career paths of interest," [A1] as well as hard skills, such as computer skills. Parents and millennials alike recognize this discrepancy..
Career technical education (CTE) programs can help fill that gap and better align what is learned with what is needed, making learning relevant to work and everyday life.
Career technical education, also referred to as career readiness education, is a great option for students interested in going directly into the workforce or college. CTE programs are relevant to all students who want to prepare for life after school. And the options available go far beyond what previous generations may remember in vocational, technical, or "VoTech" school programs.
According to the Association for Career and Technical Education,3 students with greater exposure to career technical education through CTE programs have a 93 percent high school graduation rate, compared to an average national graduation rate of 80 percent.
How do CTE programs work?
Three out of four parents say middle school and high school are the best times for students to start exploring career paths, according to the Edge Research and Stride K12 survey results.2 This early approach lets students discover their likes and dislikes with time to adjust their path, if needed.
CTE Programs include many benefits. They give students the opportunity to:
Build careers and technical skills that apply directly to the workforce
Strengthen soft skills, such as communication and critical thinking
Get exposure to different types of career fields and industries
Choose from exciting and relevant focus areas, such as healthcare or business
Prepare to take industry-recognized certification exams or enter college programs
Stride Career Prep program
Stride Career Prep offers a variety of career and technical-focused options. This program combines traditional high school academics with career technical education to offer industry-relevant, CTE courses* that help students gain real-world skills and prepare them for college and career.
Each career field includes a variety of pathway options. For example, in the Information Technology career field, students can focus their study in pathways* such as programming, game design, and more. Lots of new-collar jobs can be found in the technology and healthcare fields but there are so many others. A sample list of in-demand new collar jobs can be found on Learning Liftoff. The variety of pathways available from Stride Career Prep* provides something for everyone depending on your students interests.
With Stride Career Prep, students can focus on specific career fields that are both interesting to them and appealing to employers, including:*
Still have questions?
Think an online public school option that offers Stride Career Prep might be right for your student, but you want to explore more? Take a look at our FAQs page for more info about Stride Career Prep.
1Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook. Website last modified date: Wednesday, September 1, 2020.
2Career Technical Education (CTE) Survey
3Association for Career and Technical Education
*Opportunities vary by school; please visit your school website or check with your school counselor.
**Stride Career Prep is a program for grades 9–12. At some schools, career exploration is offered in middle school.
