One of the most exhilarating choices to be made in the final years of school is what to do when the final schoolbook is closed. Before that, at the end of Grade 9, children also have to pick the subjects that they will study from Grade 10 to matric. We’re here to help you, and your child, make those choices.
At Edify, we focus on assisting learners to develop the self-efficacy and necessary self-confidence to make informed, relevant decisions for themselves regarding their future.
We make these tough, but vital, decisions fun, interesting and fulfilling for learners and their parents.
At Edify we use psychometric testing to help your Grade 9 child pick the subjects they study in the final Grade 10-to-matric leg of school, and to identify possible study fields for when they reach the tertiary education stage.
Each one of us is the sum of many unique characteristics, some of which we inherit from our parents, and others developed in the environments in which we find ourselves and by the people we are surrounded by.
We at Edify believe it is crucial for these unique characteristics to be identified, which is why we use individual, scientifically developed, modern psychometric assessments, standardised to the South African population to highlight each of your child’s unique characteristics.
The following aspects are evaluated during a career guidance assessment at Edify:
- Personality: the combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual’s distinctive character
- Ability: the means or skill to be able to do something (this can be developed)
- Aptitude: a natural ability to do something
- Values and motives: what inspires and motivates the individual to take part in events, even despite challenges
- Interests: an activity or subject that one enjoys doing or studying
- Brain profile: the individual’s own unique thinking preferences, which they use when they explore and develop concepts and which they use to make decisions
The benefit of these comprehensive, individual assessments is that nothing gets overlooked.
Once the assessments are done, the results are analysed by our industrial psychologist, Marli Jonker. Marli is well-versed in using the information gained from the assessments and matching it with relevant subjects and possible fields of study for your child.
After that, Jonker works to establish a relationship with your child. As we know, no two people are the same. It is because of this that Edify does not follow a “copy and paste” approach to career guidance. The same psychometric assessments are used, but this extra layer, with the counsellor or psychologist spending individual time on each learner, means your child is assured of receiving unique recommendations carefully suited to their particular needs, talents and interests.
Here’s how our career guidance process works:
- Step 1: an appointment is made for the assessment – assessments take place on Saturdays, with a maximum of six learners
- Step 2: each learner completes five or six different individual psychometric assessments, and has a one-on-one interview with a psychologist/counsellor
- Step 3: the psychologist looks at the information they have – gained from the learner and the assessments, and from knowledge of the current schooling situation – to prepare personalised feedback
- Step 4: the psychologist has a feedback session with both the learner and their parents
- Step 5: the psychologist provides the learner and their parents with a detailed feedback report (hardcopy), containing all the assessment results and recommendations
Answers to some common questions:
- Why is the process so expensive? As Edify believes in providing only the best and most credible service, the psychometric assessments that are used focus on individual elements, and are modern and standardised to the South African environment. Unfortunately, individual assessments are costly
- When should I bring my child for career guidance? There is never a wrong time. Preferably, a learner should come for the first time in their Grade 9 year, a few months before they have to submit their subject selections. After Grade 9, a learner should preferably come back in Grade 11, or early in Grade 12, to establish whether any specific changes have taken place, and to help them identify a study field direction
- How do I know this is a reliable service? The industrial psychologists who offer career guidance at Edify are registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa. As well as, ensures to regularly update herself with the latest labour market trends and university requirements
- What if my child wants to become something that I don’t think is suitable? During the process all relevant and necessary factors involved in being an adult are taken into consideration, such as having to earn a steady income, high interest rates, high unemployment rates, etc. We thus strive to make only relevant and realistic recommendations based on the learner’s situation
- Can my child be assessed annually?? No. At Least 24 months must pass after a learner has taken any psychometric assessment before they are allowed to take it again