Career talks with guest speakers

Strong career guidance systems allow students to explore potential futures in work through authentic and frequent interactions with people in work and their workplaces. One form of career exploration that can be expected to be of particular value to young people is career talks with guest speakers. Typically undertaken through secondary education, career talks allow students to hear directly from people in work about their jobs, careers and their pathways through education and training. This Policy Brief summarises available evidence on the impact of teenage career talks on adult employment outcomes; draws on the wider research literature and examples of practice in some countries to illustrate why and how career talks can be expected to benefit students; and, provides a step-by-step guide to the effective design of career talks in person and online.