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Since the 1960s, career cluster resources have been used as career planning and exploration tools in schools, learning communities, and organizations across the nation. Career Clusters is a system that combines education and career planning.
Step 1: Identifying Career Cluster Focus Areas
Career clusters are groups of similar occupations and industries. When teachers, counselors, and parents work with teens, college students, and adults, the first step is to complete the Career Cluster Assessment. The assessment identifies the highest career cluster areas. Career Ratings show rankings of teens, college students, and adults from one of the following 16 focus areas or clusters:
1. Agriculture, food and natural resources
2. Architecture and construction
3. Art, audiovisual technology and communication
4. Business, management and administration
5. Education and training
6. Finance
7. Government and public administration
8. Health science
9. Hospitality and tourism
10. Personal services
11. Information technology
12. Law, public safety and security
13. Production
14. Marketing, Sales and Service
15. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics
16. Transport, distribution and logistics
Step 2: Explore Career Clusters and Related Careers
After locating the top career groups, teens, college students, and adults explore different careers and create educational plans. Career cluster tools used in career and education planning include:
- LISA: A Comprehensive Database of Career Clusters
- Models
- Brochures
- Paths
- High school curriculum
- Areas of interest and expertise
- Pedestrian crossings
After completing a Career Cluster Assessment, teens, college students, and adults look at high school websites, career templates, brochures, pathways, and plans. One of the more unique comprehensive career cluster resources is the Louisiana Integrated Skills Assessment (LISA), an Internet program. LISA lets you explore career clusters, careers, skills, training requirements, and more. There are 3 steps in the LISA program:
STEP 1: Click here to select a career cluster
STEP 2: Click here to select a career group
STEP 3: Explore the professions within this career group
In step 1, when choosing a career cluster, you will see a description of the cluster. When you select a career group in step 2, several careers appear. Finally, in step 3, you’ll see a wealth of information:
- Job description
- Educational and training requirements
- Pedestrian crossings, such as ONET, DOT, GOE and other codes
- Ability
- Knowledge
- Skills
- Assignments
- Work values
- Labor market information
Even though LISA is a great program, in the classroom or in the workshop, you need printed materials. When using printed materials, the career model is the best place to start. The templates provide excellent overviews listing cluster definitions, sample careers, pathways, knowledge and skills. Visual models show career clusters, subgroups of clusters, and related careers. Templates are an excellent way to introduce career clusters.
For presentations, workshops and group discussions, the career cluster brochures provide further information. Adults and teenagers read about the different careers available in each career group. Teachers, counselors and parents use the booklets to consolidate potential career or educational decisions of adults and adolescents. The brochures cover topics such as:
- Definition of career clusters
- Careers
- Career Paths
- Employment prospects
- Skills
- Credentials
Teachers, counselors and parents use career paths for more detailed information. Career paths are subgroups or areas of concentration within career clusters. Each path contains career groups. Career groups have similar academic skills, technical skills, educational requirements, and training requirements. Career paths are curricula that outline required secondary courses, post-secondary courses, and related careers. Career Pathways are essential tools that teachers, counselors, parents and other adults use to provide advice on educational planning.
Several websites feature high school curriculums. These study plans show required, optional, and suggested courses for each year level. Curricular plans also match career groups with related careers, career paths, and post-secondary options. Teachers, counselors, and parents find these school plans to be guides in selecting the right high school courses to suit potential careers. Beyond high school, the Utah System for Higher Education has created a College Major Guide. Parents, teachers, and counselors can use the guide to match college majors to certificates and degree programs.
Additional resources for counselors and teachers
Detailed knowledge and skill tables and cluster crosswalks are available for curriculum and educational program planning. Knowledge and skills expand on the information listed in the career cluster templates. Performance elements and measurement criteria are envisaged for each area of knowledge and competence. Crosswalks show the relationships between career clusters and other career models:
Career clusters build a bridge between education and career planning. There are several types of career cluster resources available: videos, websites, booklets, brochures, activity sheets, and workbooks. Teachers, counselors, and parents use Career Cluster resources to successfully complete career and educational planning.
Resources:
American Careers Career Pathways, Career Communications, 6701 W. 64th St., Overland, KS 66202, 800-669-7795
Career Click, Illinois Department of Occupational Safety, 33 South State Street, Chicago, IL 60603, (312) 793-5700
CIP Code Index for Career Clusters, Adult and Postsecondary CTE Division, Bureau of Career and Technical Education, 333 Market Street, Harrisburg, PA 17126, (717) 772-0814
Career Clusters and Videos, Career One Stop, United States Department of Labor, Frances Perkins Building, 200 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20210, 866-4-USA-DOL
College Major Guide Utah System for Higher Education, Board of Regents Building, The Gateway, 60 South 400 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84101-1284, (801) 321-7100
Find Careers (Video), iSeek Solutions, Minnesota State College and Universities, Wells Fargo Place, 30 7th St. E., Suite 350, St. Paul, MN 55101-7804
High School Curricula, New Hampshire Department of Education, 101 Pleasant Street
Concord, NH 03301-3860, (603) 271-3494
Introduction to Career Clusters, Vocational Education, Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, PO Box 543
Blacklick, OH 43004-0544,
Louisiana Integrated Skills Assessment (LISA), customized Internet version of OSCAR, a product of the Texas Workforce Commission/Career Development Resources, TWC/CDR, Austin, TX 78753
Maryland Career Clusters, Maryland State Department of Education 200 West Baltimore Street Baltimore, MD 21201,
Rhodes Island Career Cluster, Rhode Island Career Resource Network, 1511 Pontiac Avenue, Cranston, RI 02920, 401-462-8790
Education to Career Cluster, State of Connecticut, Department of Labor, Job Bank, 645 South Main Street, Middletown, CT 06457, (860)754-5000
State’ Career Clusters Initiative (SCCI), 1500 W. Seventh Avenue, Stillwater, OK 74074
Career path plans, career clusters, knowledge and skills graphs
VTECS Cluster Frameworks, VTECS, 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, GA, 30033,404-679-4501 ext 543
What are career clusters? Career Prospects System, New Mexico Career Resource Network, CAREER TECHNICAL AND WORKFORCE EDUCATION BUREAU (CTWEB), Education Building, 300 Don Gaspar, Santa Fe, NM 87501, (505) 827-6512