In offering career guidance to today’s young people, it is essential to understand the habits and attitudes of what has been described as Generation Z and Millennials.
Generation Z are typically those people born in the mid-1990s to mid-2000s, and therefore follow the Millennials
Most of Generation Z have used the Internet since a young age, and they are generally comfortable with technology and with interacting on social media.
When comparing these two generations, Gen Z is more realistic than millennials when it comes to work. Gen Z gives preference to professional development than to financial stability. Socially, they have greater collective consciousness, which translates into being concerned about health, ecology and the economy. For them, there isn’t an online world and an offline world; both are one and combine their different realities. As a result, there is a more conscious use of technology.
Knowing that Gen Z prioritizes future work, at PDA we are developing a vocational orientation test that contains a report with the complete description of the profile and interests of the individual who completes it, as well as career suggestions and information. The test consists of four modules:
- Vocational preferences
- Abilities
- Behavioral profile
- Opportunities
The first module is based on vocational preferences, which will identify the tastes that will benefit the choice of a career or work activity by providing satisfaction and avoiding drop out.
According to US Psychologist Howard Gardner, obtaining a degree and educational achievements is not a key factor for knowing the intelligence of a person. Based on The theory of multiple intelligences, an intelligence must fulfill eight criteria:
- Verbal-linguistic: this area measures effective communication, both written and oral.
- Logical-mathematical: this area is related with the ability of logical thinking and solving mathematical problems. Speed to solve these types of problems determines the logical-mathematical intelligence of the person.
- Visual-spatial: this area measures the ability to visualize the world and objects from different perspectives, enabling the perception of internal and external images. It deals with the ability to think in three dimensions.
- Musical: this area measures the ability to perceive, transform and express musical forms. Music is considered a universal art form, which led Gardner and his collaborators to understand that musical intelligence is latent in all of us.
- Intrapersonal: this area measures the ability to create an accurate perception of the self, knowing one’s limits and abilities, being able to predict one’s own reactions or emotions.
- Interpersonal: this area measures the ability to perceive differences in others, identifying and understanding the circumstances and problems of others.
- Naturalistic: this area measures the ability to distinguish, classify and use natural resources.
These eight types of intelligence are studied to know the abilities of individuals and how they deal with reality.
The objective of the vocational orientation test is that the young find an array of opportunities based on the information they provide. Visualizing this opportunity will help them make better decisions on their future academic and work lives.
At PDA International, we believe we are protagonists of our future and encourage the young to embrace it.
