The Professional Technical Students Department offers courses in many career fields to students in DoDEA middle and high schools. The mission of this department is to prepare students to be technologically literate and employable in a global workforce. Professional Technical Studies are a group of classes offered in the high school curriculum that are design to prepare students for the 21st century. Career Clusters and Pathways are a way of organizing those classes offered by the Professional Technical Studies program.
Career Clusters and Pathways represent a nation-wide effort to help schools ensure that students get the knowledge and skills they need for multiple career choices by matching what is taught in the classroom to business and industry standards. Career Clusters and Pathways not only provide a big picture to students in terms of career options and understanding a broad industry, but it also enhances academic achievement of all students. Career Clusters represent major groupings of similar occupations and industries within the U.S. job market. Within each of the career clusters are various Career Pathways that represent a variety of occupational fields or jobs associated with the career cluster.
Career Clusters and Pathways is help students to focus on what they want to do with their lives after graduation. By choosing a pathway of interest, students are guided into appropriate courses to take, and students begin to understand the importance of subjects like math, science, and English in preparing them in the area of their career interest. Each pathway focuses students on the courses and experiences that allows them to explore careers and prepares them for two-year and four-year colleges and the workplace. Students completing the four credits of study from the courses required and recommended for a specific Pathway earn a Pathway endorsement on their graduation transcript. Students need to check with the school counselors for up-to-date course offerings.
