Youth Choice Drives New Careers Resources from YES

YES products have consistently served as a mechanism for introducing youth to engineering careers. Early exposure to STEM-related careers is important in building awareness and sense of belonging in fields where many students may not initially see themselves.

The timing of this career exposure is vital: students form attitudes about careers as early as elementary and middle school, and these attitudes are predictive of the careers they eventually pursue (Tai et al., 2006; Wiebe et al., 2018). By engaging youth at younger ages, these experiences spark interest and inform decisions, such as elective course selection, participation in extracurriculars, and additional learning opportunities.

There is a growing need to expose students to a broader scope of career options beyond engineering. Increasingly, employers are seeing science, technology, engineering and math as orientations to careers rather than tied to specific careers themselves. Given the dynamic and evolving landscape of work, students should think about learning as a lifelong process and envision careers involving a variety of jobs in different fields. Showcasing a wider array of career options—including those in arts, data