The Path to Career Success: High School Achievement, Certainty of Career Choice, and College Readiness Make a Difference

ISSUES IN COLLEGE SUCCESS The Path to Career Success: High School Achievement, Certainty of Career Choice, and College Readiness Make a Difference Introduction It is essential for all students to be ready for college and career when they graduate from high school. Postsecondary educators expect high school graduates to be prepared academically for success in postsecondary education (ACT, 2005), which in turn influences success in the work world. Employers continue to call for workers to have the tools needed to perform well on the job and stay in the job (The Conference Board, Inc., 2006). In the United States today, “all American workers [should] have the opportunity to equip themselves with the necessary tools to succeed in their careers” (U.S. Department of Labor, 2007). How can future workers better prepare for career success? We examined three indicators of early career success: college degrees obtained in career field of interest, job attainment in career field of interest, and satisfaction in these jobs. Data reported here are from a recent study based on 12,019 full-time employees who earned degrees from 293 colleges or universities in 39 states; these employees had completed the ACT® test during high school and were later surveyed about their college experience, their current job, and their job satisfaction.1 By examining results from these employees we were able to answer important questions about the effects of high school academic achievement, certainty of occupational choice, and college readiness on early 2career success.Our results demonstrate that academic achievement (as represented by ACT Composite score3), certainty about one’s occupational choice,4 and college readiness in all four subject areas (as represented by attainment of the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks5) are positively associated with early career success. These factors, separately and in combination, improve students’ chances of attaining college degrees and jobs consistent with their occupational choices, as well as increase the likelihood that as employees these students will be satisfied with important aspects of their jobs. Strong Academic Achievement and More-Certain Career Plans in High School Improve Chances of Meeting College and Career Goals ACT research shows that academic achievement in high school is a strong predictor of college degree attainment (ACT, 2007). It also shows that high ©2009 by ACT, Inc. All rights reserved. The ACT® is a registered trademark of ACT, Inc., in the U.S.A. and other countries. school students who are ready for the academic challenges of college are more likely to complete a college degree (ACT, 2008). In addition, research by others has shown that more well-defined career plans or goals positively influence decisions to remain in college (Tinto, 1993). According to Hull-Blanks, Kurpius, Befort, Sollenberger, Nicpon, and Huser (2005), students with a “defined job-related career goal” were more likely to decide to persist in college than students without such a career goal. In another study involving Asian international students, Singaravelu, White, and Bringaze (2005) showed a positive relationship between career certainty and intent to persist in college. Further, Ting (1997) found that setting long-term career goals predicted positive academic performance. And, Altmaier, Rapaport, and Seeman (1983) reported that uncertainty about career goals contributed to poor academic performance. It follows that those students who achieve higher Composite scores on the ACT and are more certain about their choice of occupation will perform better academically in college, and are more likely to persist to graduation and attain degrees in their chosen career fields. Our study of employed alumni corroborates these findings—strong academic achievement and more-certain occupational choices positively contribute to degree attainment in careers of interest. Figure 1: College Degree Attainment in Career Field of Interest, by Certainty of Occupational Choice and ACT Composite Score Range 20 24 2828 32 3736 41 46 0 20 40 60 80 100 Percent Earning Degree in Career Field of Interest 13–19 20–27 28–34 ACT Composite Score Range Not Sure Fairly Sure Very Sure Figure 1 shows that college alumni who were very sure of their occupational choices were more likely to earn degrees in their career field of interest than alumni who were fairly sure or not sure of their occupational choices. College alumni who were fairly sure of their occupational choices when they took the ACT were also more likely to earn degrees in their chosen career field than those who were not sure. 2 In addition, the figure shows that at all three levels of occupational-choice certainty, college alumni with ACT Composite scores from 28 to 34 were more likely to earn degrees in their career field of interest than alumni who scored from 20 to 27. Similarly, al