How Educational Programs Are Organized

In choosing a career direction, you need to take into account your interests and abilities, what you're looking for in a job, and the kind of educational program you will have to pursue to reach your career goal.
Before developing or choosing an educational plan or program, you need to make sure it will provide you with the knowledge and skills you need to pursue the career direction you want. To do that, you need to know the various occupations that are available in your area of interest and be aware of the kinds and extent of instruction required by these occupations. Career clusters can help you understand how interests, occupations, and educational programs relate.

Career clusters organize educational programs of study around sets of knowledge and skills required by related occupations. There are 16 of them and the titles can be seen through the link provided below.

You can survey the clusters and their pathways and occupations to determine which of these clusters and/or pathways capture your interest.

Career clusters, the pathways, and the occupations identified within each, are grouped by the kind of instruction required and do not reflect how these occupations are distributed within the labor market or industrial sector. For example, each career cluster identifies occupations employed within the generally defined areas of agriculture, business management, finance, and health sciences. But the agricultural industry itself employs information technology, business management, finance, and health science professionals and technicians who are also trained in appropriate aspects of the agricultural industry.

Blank sheets for students:

PDF | MS WORD

Blank sheets for students:

PDF | MS WORD