One aspect of education at Bethany that is quite unique is the senior job shadowing experience. As a graduation prerequisite, every senior is required to shadow at two different job placements, in an effort to grow their interest in any given career or industry. This year, seniors shadowed at a wide variety of locations. From engineering and manufacturing facilities, to the hospital, to court chambers, to veterinary clinics, our seniors were all over Elkhart County last week. While the rest of the high school was in an interterm class, seniors spent Wednesday and Thursday at their job shadowing placements, while taking Friday off from school entirely. Although they effectively got to skip a day of school, seniors don’t have it so easy, as they needed the day off from school to work on their required Job Shadowing Reflection Essay, as a part of their experience and evaluation.
Job shadowing is rather unique, but is a very valuable and meaningful experience. It gives seniors firsthand experience in different career fields, and has in the past, even served as a deterring or drawing factor towards them studying that particular field.
Being a senior can be an incredibly stressful time, as they navigate through college and post-high school decisions, career opportunities, and so much more. Having job shadowing is beneficial as it can help narrow down the decision making process… at least a little bit. Good luck to all seniors as you navigate through this milestone in life!