Broadening career horizons for students in at-risk environments

Researchers and practitioners embarked on a collaborative venture to develo p, implement, and evaluate a career intervention program for 7th grade stud ents who were at-risk for Vocational underachievement. Students participati ng in the Career Horizons Program demonstrated enhanced confidence in perfo rming tasks related to investigating, selecting, and implementing a career choice. They also considered a greater number of careers and selected those that were congruent with their interests. No change was found in confidenc e regarding degree of self-knowledge. Suggestions are provided for improvin g on the development and evaluation of career exploration programs to enhan ce career self-efficacy and broaden the career horizons of students in at-r isk environments.