LookAtVietnam – Many students still do not know where they will go after finishing high school or what they will do.

Other students say they will take university entrance exams, but they do not know at which schools. Students who know which universities and which fields of study they will follow, choose their career based on parental advice.

Only a few of students choose careers based on their personality, characteristics and capabilities.

No one helps them understand their abilities and which schools they should choose.

Many high school students said that they feel alone in the decision process. When they must choose what to do after finishing high school, parents do not care much or have limited information. Thus, they cannot help their children to choose the right career.

High schools, meanwhile, have not been very helpful for career guidance, though the administrators know that this is a very important task.

A student at a Gia Lam high school revealed that occasionally they have career guidance lessons, but they are not very informative. Sometimes, he and his classmates have to study science during their career guidance hours. “Last year, my teacher asked us to study chemistry in our career guidance hours,” he explained.

High schools admit that they do not attach much importance to career guidance. Nguyen Danh Du, Deputy Headmaster of Bim Son High School noted that teachers are not trained to offer career guidance. Meanwhile, students do not have the opportunities to go directly to workshops or visit companies to see what the workers do.

Education experts point out that bad career guidance is an important reason why most high school graduates rush to take university exams. They think that studying at universities is the best way for them to make their way in the world.

Nguyen Quoc Binh, Headmaster of Vietnam-Germany High School recalled that a delegation of German students visited his school earlier this year. On this occasion, the school organized a career seminar.

“I can see a big difference between Vietnamese and German students in views on careers. Only one out of the 13 German students said that he would study further at university, while all the others responded that they would go to vocational school. Meanwhile, almost all Vietnamese students wished to study at universities,” Binh observed.

According to Dang Dinh Dai, Headmaster of Nguyen Gia Thieu High School, the curriculum for 12^th grade students previously included 27 career guidance lessons. This number has dropped to nine.

“What should we teach during the nine lessons?” Dai questioned, adding that teachers would not have enough time to impart real knowledge to students.

VietNamNet/TP