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COLLEGE & CAREER READINESS -
COVID: The College & Career Challenges By Dana Lofties Reeder, CEO & Founder Reeder Consulting: College & Career Paths COVID is a topic that has impacted anyone who has a child in high school or a college freshman. The last 2 ½ years, I believe, will prove to be some of the most challenging times in our youths’ lives. The research has already begun, and I’m hearing from university student success professionals, HS counselors, and mental health providers about the changes they are witnessing. And as a career counselor, I’m seeing it firsthand as well. In my practice, I help individuals 14 years of age through adulthood identify ideal careers based on who they are and what they enjoy - and ultimately will be great at - through aptitude testing. My research led me to write this article. I work with families all over the US, which, unfortunately, highlighted stories this summer of first-year college students failing out of school at a rate I’ve not experienced to date. Great performers in high school have stumbled in a manner they’ve never faced. There is a reason I’m witnessing this. 24 78209magazine.com
They missed out on truly learning, so getting back into a formal educational environments has been a struggle. Learning to self-advocate is either a new art or a relearned one. Learning to socialize again is a priority and a significant part of reassimilating into the real world and college life. If any group of kids needs friends, it’s this group. But a challenge can define their future, and I’m passionate about helping them to hopefully avoid that being a negative impact on their career story. Due to the pandemic, many families could not tour college campuses, which is critical to making an informed decision on if the school is a good “fit.” Many schools made SAT/ACT tests optional, so it was hard for students, and the schools, to determine if they were an academic fit. A major trend I’m seeing in my research is students having little to no “interest” in their assessment outcome results. In
