Information, Advice and Guidance

College Courses
I completed some work with a young person about their future and discovered that they wanted to go to college, however they did not know how they would go about this. I sat down with the young person and talked about what their interests are and what they want to do for a job when they are older. The young person stated they are interested in doing sport and would like to become a football coach. I asked the young person if they were aware of any local colleges in the area and if they knew anything about them. The young person was aware of one college in the area. I asked the young person how they might find out more information on colleges in the area and they replied they could research this on the internet. I did this because finding out information is a life skill and knowing where to access this information will help the young person later on in life and gives independence. I supported the young person to access the internet who was able to find three colleges in the area and one that specialised in sport.
I took the young person to all three colleges to gain course prospectus’s to help him choose a course appropriate for him. I checked that the prospectus’s were up to date and accurate as to ensure that the young person does not become disheartened, disempowered or looses confidence if wrong information is given which will not meet his expectations. Having inaccurate information can cause massive anxieties and stress to the young person and is why it is paramount that all information is checked for validity before giving it to the young person. The young person looked through all three prospectus’s and circled courses he was interested in. To narrow the search down I suggested he look at the requirements for each course and if he reaches those requirements the course is a possibility. However if the young person does not meet the requirements for a specific course, a lower course could be looked at to work towards the higher course. This allowed the young person to take ownership of the course choice which was appropriate and applicable to them. After this process the young