Promising Pathways to Careers Toolkit

User's Guide to "Promising Pathways to Careers" Toolkit: A How-to Guide For Creating Quality Work-based Learning Opportunities for Young People

The major focus of this toolkit is to provide information, tips and templates to help employers create quality work-based learning experiences for young people, but there is also a section geared toward local work-based learning partners and one for afterschool providers. There are three distinct components of the toolkit:

• Toolkit for Local Work-Based Learning Partners is geared to those professionals who promote, develop and/or coordinate local work-based learning opportunities for young people in their region (from now on referred to as Local Work-Based Learning Partners) -- such as Regional Career Education Partnership (RCEP) Coordinators, Chamber of Commerce staff, community-based organizations, etc. The toolkit provides information and tips on convening local partners and coordinating activities, the elements of successful work-based learning programs, and engaging more employers to participate in activities.
• Toolkit for Employers provides employers information, resources and tips to help them conduct successful career exploration and work-based learning experiences for young people. It includes information on how to identify and contact local work-based learning partners, elements of successful programs, how-to guides and checklists on conducting a high-quality job shadow or internship, and a variety of templates.
• Toolkit for Afterschool Providers provides information, resources and tips to help afterschool providers integrate work-based learning activities into their programs for middle and high school students. It includes information on how to identify and contact their local work-based learning partner, the benefits of incorporating these activities into afterschool programs and helpful tips to get started.

Because the toolkit contains three separate stand-alone components targeted for different audiences and provides a large variety of information and templates to help create quality work-based learning opportunities for young people, all pieces of the toolkit will likely not be appropriate or useful for all audiences. Therefore, we have the following printing options:

1. Promising Pathways to Careers Toolkit – Complete
2. Promising Pathways to Careers Toolkit – Local Work-Based Learning Partners
3. Promising Pathways to Careers Toolkit – Employers – Complete
4. Promising Pathways to Careers Toolkit – Employers – Job Shadows
5. Promising Pathways to Careers Toolkit – Employers – Internships
6. Promising Pathways to Careers Toolkit – Afterschool Providers