Illinois PaCE: Postsecondary and Career Expectations

As part of Illinois' Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness Act, the Illinois Board of Education outlined what a student should know at the end of each year of high school to help ensure readiness for life after high school. The IVC Guidance departments meets with students both as a class and on a 1-on-1 basis to discuss the career exploration process as well as post-secondary plans. Students are always encouraged to stop by to see their counselor with any questions.

By the end of 9th grade, a student should know:

• One or two career clusters for further exploration and development
• The relationship between high school coursework, attendance, and grades to post-secondary plans
• Importance of community service and extracurricular activities to post-secondary and career plans

By the end of 10th grade, a student should know:

• Different types of post-secondary institutions and credentials
• General timing of college entrance exams and applications
• Educational requirements, cost, expected entry level, and midpoint salary for occupations in selected career pathway
• Benefit of early college credit opportunities to post-secondary access and completion

By the end of 11th grade, a student should know:

• Negative impact of remediation on post-secondary goals
• 3-5 match schools, one safety school, and one reach school for post-secondary program of study
• Entrance requirements, including application deadlines for expected post-secondary program of study

By the end of 12th grade, a student should know:

• Estimated cost of each post-secondary option
• Terms and conditions of any scholarship or loan
• How career pathway courses and experiences translate to degree programs at post-secondary options