Several Activities to Be Staged for National Careers Awareness Week

The Ministry of Education and Youth (MOEY) will host the annual National Careers Awareness Week (NCAW) from February 4 to 9, under the theme ‘Expanding our Horizon: Respecting the Journey through Career Development’.

This will be staged in collaboration with HEART/NSTA Trust, Junior Achievement Jamaica and CHOICES.

Assistant Chief Education Officer in the Guidance and Counselling Unit at MOEY, Kennecy Davidson, told JIS News during an interview, that this deliberate approach to engage the youth is necessary to assist them to appreciate how the development of career thinking affects how they choose their careers later on in the future.

“As they participate in the Week’s activities, the objective is to have these young people explore career options – wanting to know what is relevant, what is current, what their capacities are like, what are their competencies, and what would they need to achieve to become the best version of themselves,” she explained.

Mrs. Davidson pointed out that in preparing for this year’s NCAW, labour market trends were taken into consideration.

“We are using data to push our young people towards those emerging career areas in Science, Technology, Engineering Arts and Mathematics (STEAM), which are very student centred,” she said.

The six days of activities for NCAW 2024 will commence with a National Church Service at the Emmanuel Apostolic Church, 12 Slipe Road, Kingston, on Sunday, February 4.

This will be followed by several Library Service expositions throughout the parishes.

These will be held at the National Libraries in each parish on Monday, February 5.

Senior Education Officer, Guidance and Counselling Unit at the MOEY, Simone Smith Parkins, informed JIS News that on February 5, students will be mounting displays reflecting careers in the Sciences.

In addition, the education regional offices across the island will also mount displays.

On Tuesday, February 6, students will mount displays showcasing careers in Technology.

Also on February 6, the Ja Biz Town competition and Junior Achievement Company of Entrepreneurs (JACE) competition for primary and high schools, respectively, will take place.

The National Youth Career Conference is scheduled for Wednesday, February 7, at the Jamaica Conference Centre, downtown Kingston. Career exhibits will also continue in schools on February 7, focusing on Engineering.

On February 8 and 9 schools will again mount displays looking at careers in the fields of the Arts and Mathematics, respectively.

Also on February 9, HEART/NSTA Trust will host Career Exposition at The Mico University College Gymnasium.

This expo will target youth and adults living in the communities surrounding the institution.

The final activity of the NCAW is a Poster Competition Awards ceremony.

The ceremony is the culmination of the competition launched prior to the Week.

The theme from the winning poster will be used for 2025 NCAW.

Mrs. Smith Parkins pointed out that all the activities for National Careers Awareness Week will be in line with the MOEY initiative ‘Transforming Education for National Development (TREND)’, which is being implemented as part of the Ministry’s effort to position Jamaica to become a more globally competitive nation.