Browse through this website, especially the Career Awareness and Career Planning pages. This will fast-track you to the latest terminology and options available for your child.

You can help your child research:

• potential careers or jobs

• the skills and qualifications they'll need

• subjects at school that could be useful

• paid training opportunities - like apprenticeships and traineeships.

Exploring the VET Pathways page is a great place to start researching careers and the different industries in South Australia where jobs are expanding.

Ideas to start your child thinking about what happens after they leave school:

• Encourage them to talk about their strengths - what they're good at and how they might use these abilities in a job or career.

• Listen to what they want to do and offer suggestions.

• Research careers together - focus on the skills, behaviours and study needed for those roles.

• Encourage them to discuss their options with you, their teachers and career adviser

• Talk to family and friends about what kind of work they do to learn about different types of jobs.

• Encourage them to develop skills outside the classroom that support their interests.

• Help them to reach out and make connections - with work experience or potential employers.

Your child's goals, interests and their voice need to drive this next stage in their life. Your role is to support, advocate and sometimes step back.

Years 7 and 8

• What careers have you learnt about at school? Can you see yourself doing any of those?

• Do you know what type of skills will be in demand for people your age after school?

• Do you know who to talk to at school about career options?

• What subjects are you good at?

• What subjects would you like to be better at and how can I help you improve?

• What are your interests outside of school?

Years 9 and 10

• What subjects do you enjoy, and which are you interested in continuing in year 11?

• What kind of jobs might these subjects lead to?

• What are the right pathways for further study in these subjects? (Use the VET Pathways page to explore some options.)

• What type of work experience would you like to do? (Explore opportunities together.)

• Do you know if you want to do VET or go to university?

• When choosing subjects for year 11: Do your plans for further education after school have any prerequisite subjects?

• Would you like to start a VET qualification in year 11? Do you know who to speak to for information on how to apply?

Years 11 and 12

• What would you like to do after school? (It might have changed since you last talked about it.)

• Have you discussed plans for after you leave school with any teachers or a career advisor?

• If they're doing a VET qualification, ask how it's going and whether they like it, or can see themselves working in that industry. Ask: Would you like to consider changing pathways at any point? What might you like to do instead?

• If you're planning to apply for university, what courses are you interested in?

• What were the most recent ATAR requirements for those courses? Are they any other entry requirements?

• After you finish year 12, would you like to get a job or apply for an apprenticeship? What are some places you can apply or find out more? (Help them connect with a registered training organisation or a trade apprenticeships hub. Ask if they need help applying.)

• Are you planning on taking a gap year after year 12? What are your plans for the year, what are the pros and cons?

• Would you move to a new area for study or work? Will you need to? What are the costs involved and what support will you need?

• After you finish a VET course, what are the job opportunities like?

Contact your child's school or go to:

• Services Australia - lots of useful information including an e-kit to help your child decide what to do after school, get financial assistance, find an apprenticeship or trade.

• School Leaver Information Kits - help for special support in different pathways, plus information for parents and caregivers, and schools. You can learn here about further study, budgeting tools and wellbeing support.

• YourCareer - access the Career Explorer tool and other help here.

• MyFuture webinars and extra job seeker resources - these can be accessed through your child's EdPass school account.

• 6 simple ideas for your future: A talk by Dr Michael Healy, myfuture's career development expert, to help your child think about their future with confidence.

• Making confident career choices at results time: A talk by Dr Michael Healy with tips for how to make sense of your child's results and plan the next steps.

• Myfuture - Australian Government website aimed at connecting VET students and school leavers with information about their career profile and helps connect occupations and training.

• Ticket to Work - an independent resource with great content to help carers navigate this part of a young person's life.

• Skilled careers - a great South Australian resource for people looking for their first job or wanting to pivot into a new career.

• South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE) - find information about SACE subjects and other recognised learning that your child can do in their senior secondary qualification to prepare effectively for their preferred post-school pathways. You can also get a copy of their results online.

Workplace learning is an opportunity for your child to learn about the world of work, begin to develop employability skills, and learn about self-reliance and responsibility.

Students looking to study vocational education and training (VET) through school or an apprenticeship or traineeship will need to complete workplace learning as part of their training application. The course coordinator or materials will explain how much work placement is needed. Your child may need your help with arranging their placements.

Essential information

• Workplace learning agreement form - must be completed by you, your child, their school, and the workplace before workplace learning begins. All sections of the form must be completed, with the final signature provided by the school principal (or delegate) to comply with legal and policy requirements.

• See the main sections on this website about work experience for everything you need to know about how your child will be prepared and what to expect:

  • Student-specific - work experience detail

  • Schools-specific - work experience detail.

• Help your child make sense of and share their experiences each evening after their day. Ask about what they learnt, what they did, who they worked with and how they liked it. It could start conversations about whether they see this as a future career.

Start early and keep it natural. Year 7 conversations can be casual. Ask about people they admire and what they like doing. Year 9 to 10 conversations become more formal when subject choices need to happen. By year 11 and 12, planning becomes more focused.

That's completely normal. Most young people don't have a clear plan at 14 or 16. Career exploration is what this website is for. Use the tools, talk about interests and strengths, and remember that careers change throughout life.

Think of yourself as a cheerleader, not a director. Share information, ask questions, listen to their ideas, and support their decisions. Career questions to ask your child has practical questions to ask and conversation starters.

Our Disability Pathways page has details to help – information about NDIS funding, planning, for life after school, and inclusive pathway options.

Career pathways are now a lot more flexible. Students can move between VET and university, study while they're working, or combine multiple options.