Job shadowing is a great way to get an idea of a day in the life of your career choice and is extremely recommended for high school students.
Jack Paxton, current senior, job shadowed at Lighthouse Electric where he put his engineering skills to the test by doing Cadd and Engineer work. Paxton says, “I chose to job shadow to better understand the future work that I will be doing.”
Job shadowing is an amazing opportunity for upperclassmen who are interested in a certain career to get real-world experience with what they want to do for the rest of their lives.
For underclassmen, shadowing can change the route of your classes here at BPHS!
Lacie Scheidler, a senior, majoring in early education has job shadowed as well.
When asked about her experience job shadowing, she says, “I chose to job shadow to make sure I would enjoy the job before I spent money and time on it in college.”
Education data claims that almost 30% of students drop out of college in the first year. Ohio State University claims that about 75% of students end up changing majors throughout college.
This number would be greatly decreased if students would take the chance to see their potential future in action.
Mr. Bruce, guidance counselor here at BPHS, is extremely passionate about the idea of job shadowing.
Bruce said: “The benefits of Job Shadowing are MANY! As long as you are actively involved in the shadowing process by asking as many questions as possible the results can yield many long-term decisions. Decisions such as, is this the right job for me what college education (Bachelor/Master/doctorate) will I need and where is the best place to get that education? Sometimes, the person will share where they went to school and what they did to get where they are currently. That is the basis for doing these shadow opportunities. You have to find out that you are chasing down your dream job and matching it up with your intended major(s) and the right education pathway. If you are doing a great job with the shadowing opportunity, sometimes the person may invite you back for more experiences OR introduce you to other people in a different role/job.”
Bruce continues by saying: “I am a BIG fan of these opportunities as they lead to more of a solid career pathway because the student did the research in person and doesn’t lead to transferring colleges because of having to change a major while in college and the college doesn’t have the major.”
The last piece of advice Mr. Bryce gives goes out to underclassmen. He said, “Sometimes IF you do a shadow early enough in your high school years then it could shape the courses you take throughout your high school years at BPHS!”
Emma Thimons, a current senior at BPHS, is going to Seton Hill University and will be in the physician assistant program!
Thimons has job shadowed multiple times. Emma said: “I have been job shadowing since sophomore year and is a major reason I was accepted into my college program. These experiences have given me mentors to go to for the rest of my life as well as confirmation of what exactly I want to do. Job shadowing is extremely encouraging and I recommend everyone do it at least once.”
Ava Arnold, current senior, also job shadowed.
She said: “I shadowed at the Pittsburgh Zoo. I handled small animals, interacted with the public, guided exhibits, cleaned exhibits, and also just learned about (exotic) animal care. I chose to shadow at the Pittsburgh Zoo because I am interested in conservation, and the zoo offered a way to learn and help animals in a new way.”