Pillar 1: Education and Career Navigation

Providing academic and career advising and support is crucial for student success and helps learners make informed and sustainable education and career choices. This includes helping students understand the educational options available to them—such as industry-recognized credentials, apprenticeships, and postsecondary degree programs—and how they align with students’ interests and career goals. Navigation systems also ensure learners are aware of the prerequisites or preparation required to take advantage of these options, build career awareness, and strengthen social capital.

Why It Matters:

Navigating the transition from school to career and college is complex, and no learner should have to do it alone. High-quality career navigation systems help learners clarify their aspirations, understand the evolving world of work, and identify postsecondary options that align with their interests, values, and labor market demand. As emphasized in A Vision for Equitable Pathways (The Education Trust & All4Ed, 2024), providing access to personalized, developmentally appropriate advising, particularly for learners of color, multilingual learners, and learners from low-income backgrounds, is critical to disrupting inequities in access to opportunity1 Research also shows that learners who receive personalized advising are more likely to complete high school, enroll in postsecondary education, and pursue pathways that lead to economic mobility.

Recent data also confirms that learners who use college and career advising services experience better workforce outcomes. Graduating seniors who used at least one advising service received an average of 1.24 job offers, compared to 1.0 for those who used none. Each additional service used increased the likelihood of a job offer, and learners who received help finding internships were 2.2 times more likely to secure a paid internship, thereby enhancing both their earning potential and long-term outcomes23

Furthermore, in many states, learners can graduate with different types of diplomas; however, these options aren’t always well understood by learners or their families. Some pathways may limit access to four-year colleges, while others better prepare learners for a range of career and postsecondary options. Districts must ensure every learner has access to high-value pathways and transparent advising that supports informed decision-making.4

Advising systems must help learners understand not only their postsecondary and career options but also the implications of the graduation pathway they choose. Too often, learners from historically underserved communities are steered, intentionally or not, into diploma tracks that limit access to four-year colleges or competitive workforce opportunities. Clear, transparent advising is essential to ensure every learner has access to and support through high-value pathways that align with their goals.5 Without a coherent advising system, learners, especially those from historically underserved communities, are often left to navigate critical decisions without the information, relationships, or resources they need. Systems that embed college and career advising throughout the learner experience are better positioned to support informed postsecondary planning, workforce readiness, and equity in access. Advisors help learners ask deeper questions, such as: “Where am I headed?”, “What will this career look like in 10 years?”, and “How can I grow or pivot as I move through life?”

High-quality advising systems are longitudinal in nature, extending beyond high school graduation to support the transition into postsecondary education and the workforce. This piece is especially important as the handoff from 12th grade to community college or other post-secondary institutions is often fragmented and problematic. Districts must be intentional in these connections and relationships.

System-Level Strategies for District Implementation

To implement this pillar at scale, districts must:

High-quality advising ensures that learners are not left to navigate the complexity of postsecondary choices on their own. Advising systems should help learners explore their interests, set goals, and understand the steps needed to pursue them. It’s vital for learners to make informed decisions about course selection and other pathway experiences so they will be positioned to make choices about their postsecondary journeys. Choices should not be made for them based on their lack of preparation. Strong systems go beyond course selection; they integrate career exploration, financial planning, and navigation of both college and workforce pathways. Advising is not a one-time conversation, but an ongoing, developmentally appropriate process that builds at each level and continues throughout high school, ensuring learners graduate with a personalized, clear, and actionable plan.

District Implementation Strategies

  • Develop a district-wide college and career advising framework that builds on the work at the elementary level, expands in middle school, and continues throughout high school, ensuring consistent advising at each grade level.
  • Ensure adequate staffing and training for counselors, career coaches, and advisory roles to meet recommended learner-to-staff ratios and support equity in access.
  • Provide ongoing professional learning for counselors, advisors, and educators to better understand labor market shifts, postsecondary systems, and workforce trends.
  • Align local graduation pathways with postsecondary and workforce outcomes, ensuring families and advisors understand how diploma options impact future opportunities.
  • Leverage data systems to monitor and connect learner interests, plans, and progress, enabling personalized support and informed decision-making.
  • Integrate advising into the school day through structured activities, advisory periods, and curriculum connections, rather than treating it as an add-on or afterthought.
  • Build partnerships with families, postsecondary institutions, and workforce organizations to ensure learners receive timely, aligned guidance and access to real-world experiences.
  • Ensure that advising services are accessible and culturally responsive, including translated materials for families, as well as support for military-connected learners and those with disabilities.
  • Extend advising beyond high school graduation to support learners during the first steps of postsecondary education or career training.
  • Integrate advising into the school day through structured activities, advisory periods, and curriculum connections, rather than treating it as an add-on or afterthought.
  • Build partnerships with families, postsecondary institutions, and workforce organizations to ensure learners receive timely, aligned guidance and access to real-world experiences.
  • Ensure that advising services are accessible and culturally responsive, including translated materials for families, as well as support for military-connected learners and those with disabilities.
  • Align advising with community-based organizations to provide wraparound supports, particularly for historically underserved learners.
  • Embed financial planning modules into advising, including FAFSA, debt-to-income considerations, and scholarship navigation.
  • Schedule annual learner-led conferences that involve families and reinforce agency in pathway planning. 
  • Conduct annual equity reviews of advising outcomes and adjust strategies to address identified gaps.
  • Advocate for change in out-of-date state laws that are getting in the way of career-connected learner opportunities.

  • Do all learners, regardless of background, have access to consistent, personalized advising that supports their postsecondary and career planning?
  • How are we currently investing in the staffing, tools, and partnerships needed to build a sustainable advising system? What changes may need to be made?
  • Are we using data and feedback to ensure our advising system is equitable, developmental, and learner-centered?
  • How equitable is access to advising supports across schools and learner groups
  • Do all learners have personalized plans that are meaningful, updated annually, and connected to graduation and postsecondary planning?
  • How are families engaged in advising, financial literacy, and navigation of both college and career pathways?
  • What professional learning is provided for school counselors and teachers to keep advising aligned with evolving college, career, and labor market trends?
  • How are advising systems integrated into daily schedules to ensure universal participation?
  • Which learner groups are underrepresented in dual enrollment, advanced coursework, or credential pathways, and how are advising practices addressing these gaps?
  • Do our advising platforms and tools provide accurate, transparent information on college outcomes and labor market opportunities?
  • How do we track advising outcomes, such as FAFSA completion, postsecondary enrollment without remediation, and certificate completion, while monitoring possible equity gaps?

  • Districts recognize that college and career conversations are an and/and, not an either/or, and understand the fluid relationship between the two.
  • Individual Career and Academic Plans are developed starting in middle school and updated annually to guide learner reflection and planning, ideally in a one-on-one setting, having multiple touch points per year.
  • Districts prioritize the human connection and relationships necessary for successful advising and strategically employ artificial intelligence or other technology tools. 
  • For states that require Individual Plans of Study for middle and high school learners, align pathway work to state-wide requirements.
  • Multi-tiered advising systems that include academic counseling, postsecondary planning, and wellness supports.
  • Advising is embedded into the academic day through advisory periods, SEL integration, or project-based learning.
  • Mentoring programs pair learners with trusted adults, alumni, or community partners for personalized support and guidance.
  • Success Coaches or pathway navigators provide individualized, relationship-based guidance.
  • Use of data and diagnostics (e.g., interest inventories, skills assessments, labor market data) to personalize advising.
  • Equity-focused training for counselors, advisors, and teachers to support culturally responsive guidance.
  • Learner-led conferences, where learners present their academic and career plans to families and educators.
  • Technology tools that support career planning, learner reflection, and access to virtual mentorship.
  • Partnerships with youth-serving organizations and workforce boards to expand advising reach and real-world alignment.
  • Advising outcome tracking disaggregated by learner group to monitor effectiveness and equity.
  • Financial literacy and college affordability advising are embedded into career navigation systems to support informed postsecondary decision-making.
  • Early FAFSA support and postsecondary financial planning workshops begin in early high school.

Advising is the connective tissue of Future Ready Pathways. It transforms exploration into action by giving learners the tools, guidance, and confidence to navigate complex choices. When advising is equitable, culturally sustaining, and embedded into the daily fabric of schools, learners graduate with clarity about their next steps and confidence in their ability to pursue them. With strong advising systems in place, districts can leverage the next pillar, Dual Enrollment, to ensure learners’ plans translate into meaningful, credit-bearing opportunities that accelerate both college and career success.

Education and Career Navigation Self-Assessment

This self-assessment helps school and district leaders evaluate the strength and equity of their college and career advising and navigation systems. Grounded in research and aligned with the Future Ready Pathways framework, it highlights key practices such as early exposure, personalized guidance, integration with pathway experiences, and equitable access for all students. Use this tool to reflect, identify gaps, and take action to ensure every learner receives the support needed to navigate their future with confidence.

  • Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District

    Texas

  • Mineola Public Schools

    New York

  • Leyden High School District 212

    Illinois

Dive into Pillar 2: Dual Enrollment

Looking Ahead to Section 2: Career-Connected Exploration & Four Design Pillars

Dual enrollment enables students to take courses for which they earn both high school and college credits simultaneously. It is an evidence-based strategy to increase high school achievement and postsecondary attainment.