What does the future hold for upcoming school leavers?

Approaching the end of your schooling life should be an exciting time for many. Most of us reading this can relate to that. We can also likely relate to how it can be equally anxiety-inducing.

With hopes of a new adventure in life, whether that be university, a gap year, employment, travel or a combination of all presents boundless opportunities of exploration to further develop oneself and enjoy the early stages of adulthood while previously fuzzy ideas of career goals come into focus. The experience of moving, making home in a share house, having deep conversations about the world, weekend adventures, selfies, overseas tours, while working towards a career goal are all part of our development process. The sum of these experiences helped shape us while also forging life-long friendships. Or perhaps even more than that!

What if, though, someone was to tell you that this would not be the case in 2020. And possibly the next year. And the next? You will be restricted on where you can travel and who you can visit. Employment opportunities may be sparse and harder to acquire (facing more competition than ever before), particularly for people with little to no practical experience. The university experience, something you studied extensively for and were very much looking forward to, will also change as courses change to being delivered online, as opposed to a traditional classroom experience. These examples, plus more, just won’t be available to you like they have been for previous generations. How does that change the excitement they might feel? I likely know how it might impact their anxiety.

The cohort of school leavers completing or leaving school in 2020 (and likely beyond), along with other young career seekers are faced with real immediate challenges and they are coming to a point where they will need to make a decision.

They will ask you (or me) for advice with this decision. Here are some things to consider.

The Federal Government recently announced changes to university courses. The cost of courses that are determined “job relevant” will be much more affordable, and an extra 39,000 university places for Australian students will be funded by 2023. These changes have been made to coincide with industries predicted to have high employment growth and include (among others) Health and Social Services, Education and Training, Science and Technology, and Construction.

But what about those that would consider employment? What opportunities can they explore?

According to the Australian Governments Labour Force Summary August 2020 report, it shows youth unemployment across Australia is currently at 14.3%, above the 11.6% recorded in March 2020. When this is combined with the indication that Australia is facing its deepest recession since World War II, employment prospects for inexperienced youth sound less than stellar.

But the reality is that industries are experiencing growth, and there are many organisations hiring and building their workforce capabilities to meet demand now and into the future. Employers in these industries are developing leading talent and retention programs, and re-shaping their strategies to source local talent. This presents an opportunity for the highly adaptable apprenticeship and traineeship model.

So, if someone you know who is approaching the end of their schooling journey, or recently completed, what is the advice you will pass on?

Are we in a world of new opportunities or limitations? Do we dare to dream and make things happen, or do we give pause to see what happens?

I believe that the future will not wait, so neither should we. Today’s advice will likely sound different than previous years, but if any part of our population can adapt to change it is our youth.

So let’s do our part to, in the face of adversity, inspire.

Over to you.