Concept – Careers by Colour

The Careers by Colour process

The Careers by Colour process comprises a number of dedicated steps. These steps ensure that learners optimally benefit from the visit to the career guidance centre.

STEP 1: Introduction

Facilitators in the career guidance centres commence each session with an introductory talk about the centre, its services and career development.

A video, tailored and produced for each centre, explains the concept of career path identification and the steps to successfully identify and develop a career path. The video illustrates the steps to make an inventory of career interests, skills and values and how to relate them to the individual learner’s personal qualities and interests.

Wall posters visually enhance the career guidance message and demonstrate today’s world of work and the process of career path identification.

STEP 2: Assessment

A pictorial questionnaire and workbook are used by each learner to compile a personalised interested profile. Assessment is the key to successful career exploration – it represents the first step in finding the careers that are best suited to the individual. Successful matching ensures a happy working life.

Interest questionnaires aim to estimate how closely learners’ personal profiles match each of six broad career categories. The theory is based on the assumption that the working environment can be loosely classified into six different groups. Each group is colour-coded to enable learners to associate their career group with a specific colour hence the “Careers by Colour?” concept. The six career categories are:

Green – the do-ers or the realistic type. They are practical, mechanical concrete and systematic
Red – the thinkers or the investigative type. They are inquisitive, analytical, scientific and logical
Yellow – the organisers or the conventional type. They are well organised, accurate, methodical, practical and systematic
Purple – the creators or the artistic type . They are imaginative, unconventional, expressive and original
Orange – the persuaders or the enterprising type. They are self-confident, sociable persuasive and extroverted and
Blue – the helpers or the social type . They are friendly, generous, empathetic and kind

Dedicated questionnaires are developed for each career guidance centre to ensure that learners can easily understand and associate with the cultural, language and visual presentation of the questionnaire. The activity workbook is designed to enable individuals to interpret their own results. It guides learners to organise their career research and exploration activities. It also serves as a resource and referral document for after-care purposes and serves as the starting point to build a self-managed career portfolio.

STEP 3: Career exploration

The career exploration phase brings the reality of the world of work to learners. It is a cost- effective, creative and a fun way to explore career options. The exploration sections comprises:

Career exploration units –
Each colour-coded display unit offers learners a magic carpet ride through the reality of the world of work of the specific career category. Career information is presented to learners in interactive video format. The videos in each display unit explain the work activities and environment of thirty different careers per category and provide a list of related careers. The presentation format ensures that all material is accessible to learners with vision or hearing challenges (voice, text and visual application). Each career category is enhanced with a pictorial collage and text to give learners a better understanding of the specific career cluster.
Career edutainment –
The objective of career edutainment is to engage learners in fun and creative activities aimed to identify or enhance the appropriate skills applicable to their career category of interest. Interactive displays provide learners with insight into the practical components or demands of specific careers. Many learners may not fully understand concepts such as ‘manual dexterity’ or ‘logical thinking’ or ‘hand-eye coordination’. Such concepts are then explained through interactive edutainment. Career edutainment is provided through interactive digital display material and board games.
Resource counters –
The Resource Centre is an informational computer room with Internet access to assist learners and teachers to do online research on various identified career and study options. The Resource Centre is furthermore stocked with specialised digital and printed career information.
Poster displays –
Posters are displayed throughout the centre illustrates and familiarise learners with information on the 4^th Industrial Revolution, the working environment of the digital future, fastest growing industries, opportunities beyond academic training and careers related to people and innovation. The worksheets in the activity workbook guide learners through the process of interacting with the displayed information.

In this step learners identify and start developing their career paths through a continuum of career awareness, exploration of and exposure to activities that assist them to discern their own career path.

STEP 4: Identifying

Career identification aims to empower learners to explore the way forward and to start developing a career path, based on their interest and value profile and the information obtained during career exploration.

STEP 5: Defining

The objective of the career identification process is to provide a career path management service to learners and assist them to make subject choices and to link the school education to further studies or specific careers.