I recently started working as the University and Careers Counselor at my school. I’m still teaching science classes, and I’m still leading the Middle Years Program (the IB MYP). But now, I’m also helping students figure out what they’ll do after they graduate – the next big step in life.
Transitioning from classroom teaching into university and career counseling has raised a simple question. What actually changes?
It’s been less of a shift than I initially expected, and more of a continuation.
At their core, both roles are about helping students find their way in the world.
In the classroom, that might mean understanding how a dataset, a scientific concept, or a global issue relates to students’ daily lives – their lived experiences. In counseling, it’s about university systems, application strategies, and life decisions.
But the underlying skills are the same.
Students need to reflect, they need to ask good questions, and they need to make informed choices. They have to understand themselves before they can effectively navigate the options available to them.
My background in environmental science and instructional leadership shaped how I approach this work. I don’t see university admissions as a transactional process. I see it as an opportunity for students to connect their learning to their future.
What have they been consistently curious about?
Where have they demonstrated initiative?
How have they responded to challenges?
These aren’t new questions. They’re the same ones we should be asking in classrooms to personalize students’ learning, to make it more authentic, and to ensure that it’s relevant to them.
After all, it’s their education, right?
The difference is that now, as part of the university selection and application process, the answers carry immediate consequences.
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