Ministry Policy Site

Career Development

Issued and in effect January, 2004.

Current policy

Career development is one of the goals of the public education system, shared by schools, family and community. Education programs in BC schools should help prepare students for successful employment when they leave the school system.

The purpose of this policy is to emphasize the important role that schools and boards of education have in providing students with career development, and to describe career programs and Ministry procedures related to career programs.

Definition - "Career Programs:" Educational programs focusing on a career or career-related area of study, which combine related courses with a work component. For purposes of reporting to the Ministry, career programs may include any of the following types of programs: Career Preparation, Co-operative Education, Secondary School Apprenticeship, Accelerated Credit Enrolment in Industry Training or Career Technical Centre Programs as defined in the Work Experience Order.

Definition - "Focus Areas:" Organizers for groups of courses taken in the Graduation Program 2004, intended to enhance career development. The eight Focus Areas that all students will learn about during the required Planning 10 course include: Business and Applied Business; Fine Arts, Design, and Media; Fitness and Recreation; Health and Human Services; Liberal Arts and Humanities; Science and Applied Science; Tourism, Hospitality, and Foods; and, Trades and Technology.

Schools and Boards of Education may also create career programs as educational options to support students in career development. Successful career programs provide students with opportunities to integrate school-based learning with community-based work experiences. In these programs, students explore a particular Focus Area or career interest, participate in workplace learning, and prepare for transitions to the workplace or to further education and training at a post-secondary institution.

To support and recognize student achievement in the area of career development, participation in a career program is acknowledged on a student's transcript.

Consistent with the principle of local autonomy, Boards of Education and independent school authorities ("boards/authorities") have control over the design of their own career programs. The number and type of courses for a specific career program are district decisions.

Boards/authorities must approve all career programs offered by the school, district, or authority. Before offering career programs, the board/authority may wish to establish a community advisory committee to create community partnerships.

For Secondary School Apprenticeship (SSA), which is a career program with paid work-place training for which a student registers as an apprentice with the Industry Training Authority, students earn 4 credits of SSA course work for each 120 hours of workplace training, to a maximum of 16 credits.

For Career Technical Centre and other industry training programs, all post-secondary courses completed as part of the program count as elective credits towards graduation.

In order for participation in a career program to show on a student's transcript, the school must verify that the student has completed a Ministry-Authorized work experience course, listed in the Course Information Book.

In reporting career program participation to the Ministry, schools must use codes as described by the Ministry in the Course Information book.

For more information, consult the Elective Work Experience Courses and Workplace Safety Policy, Course Information Book, and the Ministry of Education Career and Applied Programs web site.

If you have any questions relating to the Career Development Policy, please contact Robert Lazar, Graduation Standards Unit, Learning Management Division.