CHOOSING COURSES IN DEMAND
Being equipped with the right kind of training will prove vital as many jobs face a period of great change as technology advances
STILL unsure about what direction you should take after finishing high school?
Well, it should be comforting to know the future is looking to be bright for those hoping to study nursing, science or teaching.
Careers in healthcare and social assistance, scientific and technical services, education and training are expected to be high in demand in 2022.
Other skills, such as computer coding, critical thinking, entrepreneurship and interpersonal skills are set to be equally important to potential employers as well, according to a new study by Jobs Queensland.
Bond University career development centre director Kirsty Mitchell said that with new technologies, we would see jobs change as tasks associated with them were substituted by autonomous processes.
With great change on the horizon, students will need to have versatile and adaptable skills.
“It is change and it creates an enormous amount of opportunity,” Ms Mitchell said.
“The future of work is technology-enabled and allows humans to utilise their skills they are really good at.
“However, the challenge is we do not know what it is going to look like.
“High school students can obtain an array of skills now and need to remember they are not the sum of their ATAR score.”
There has been a few changes coming for students who are starting Year 12 next year.
From 2019, students commencing Year 11 in Queensland will graduate Year 12 with an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR).
An ATAR is a culmination of a year’s worth of high school work that determines a student’s future after high school and where they would like to study.
The ATAR will replace the current Overall Position (OP) for tertiary admission in 2021 and beyond.
Emmanuel College director of studies Peter Robertson said the new curriculum was rigorous. However, they were preparing students in more ways than one.
“Year 11 and 12 is high stakes learning,” he said.
“We are trying to tap into motivation that is already there and give students the tools to see it comes to success in their senior subjects.
“It is becoming more important now because there is a need to master the new subjects.
“Students need to be more resilient and think more long term.” Emmanuel College is one of the first schools in Queensland to place a primary focus on students becoming confident and competent leaders of themselves, their wellbeing and their learning.
These skills are fostered through professional development workshops and the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People program in their mentor groups.
The conference and program, based on the bestselling self-help book by Stephen R. Covey, focuses on students’ metacognition and equips them with essential life skills such as leadership, time management, interpersonal skills, integrity, emotional intelligence, teamwork, and wellbeing.
Emmanuel College student Caitlin Sutton said the programs had enabled her to cope with her secondary studies and provided a great foundation for life after school.
Ms Mitchell said any framework that got people to think intentionally and spend their time wisely was beneficial.
“I encourage everyone to do as many things as they can, explore and test,” she said.
“There is not one perfect thing but networking, volunteering or joining a club can help students work out what they like and learn more about themselves.
“There is no pressure for people to have their eyes set on a particular profession, it just has to make sense to you.”
By 2022, Jobs Queensland expects more than 2.5 million people will be employed in Queensland.