College, Career, & Military Research

Texas OnCourse's "Middle Galaxy" is an interactive, space-themed career exploration game designed specifically for middle school students in Texas. 

Middle Galaxy makes career exploration engaging and accessible for Texas middle schoolers, helping them think about their future and the academic choices that can lead them there. 

A fun activity to do before exploring the world of work. Take a few minutes to answer 60 questions to identify occupations relevant to your likes and interests. Your results will lead you to a list of occupations for you to explore.

Similar to Texas Career Check, students answer questions and receive a personalized interest profile. They then get a list of careers that match their interests, with detailed information about each career, including required skills, education, salary data (national), and even videos.

Why it's good for middle schoolers: It's very intuitive and visually appealing. The career exploration aspect is robust, allowing students to click through and learn a lot about different jobs. It can broaden their horizons beyond what they see locally.

A shorter, simpler interest quiz that guides students through selecting activities they find interesting.

It quickly provides personalized career cluster recommendations (e.g., if they like building, it might suggest Architecture & Construction). From there, students can explore options within those clusters.

Lesson Learning Objective: I understand different career clusters.

Essential Question: Why does thinking about my career now matter?

Enduring Understandings: Analyzing all options allows me to make better choices.

This curriculum provides TEKS-aligned career education lessons for elementary, middle, and high schools. It's explicitly designed for the Houston-Galveston region but many lessons are broadly applicable.

The middle school section includes lesson plans focusing on:

• Discovering interests.

• Making career choices.

• Reality Check (connecting lifestyle desires to career earnings).

• Learning about careers (including labor market information and high-skill, high-growth occupations).

• Career videos to see occupations in action.

While primarily a website for exploring careers, it's an excellent resource to integrate into lessons. It provides comprehensive data on hundreds of occupations relevant to Texas.

After students complete the "Interest Profiler" (as mentioned in the previous answer), they can delve into detailed information about careers, including:

• • Job descriptions and daily tasks.

  • Required education and training (including specific Texas programs).

  • Wages and job outlook in Texas.

  • Links to related occupations and programs.

• Where to find it: https://texascareercheck.com/

The inventory aims to identify whether an individual primarily learns best through visual, auditory, or tactile (also referred to as kinesthetic) methods.

It typically consists of 20 multiple-choice questions. Each question presents a situation with three options, and the test-taker chooses the option that best fits them.

Have you ever wondered why you do better in some classes than others? It may depend on your individual learning style. Your learning style influences the way you understand information and solve problems.

There are three primary learning styles:

• Visual

• Auditory

• Tactile

Many people use a combination of learning styles, whereas others learn best by using just one. Want to know your learning style? You're just 20 questions away from finding out!

A Holland's Code quiz equips you with valuable insights into your vocational personality, helping you navigate the complex world of career and college planning with greater clarity and purpose. 

Knowing your Holland Code can guide you, while in high school, in selecting elective courses, extracurricular activities, or even dual credit programs that align with your emerging career interests. 

Many colleges and universities classify their majors using the RIASEC framework, which is used in the Holland's quiz. Knowing your Holland Code can help you identify college majors that complement your interests, leading to a more satisfying academic experience. 

Learn how your personality type influences many areas of your life. 

Dr. Howard Gardner, a professor at Harvard University, came up with the idea that there isn't just one type of "smart." Instead, he believes there are many different kinds of intelligences, or ways that people can be smart. This is called the Theory of Multiple Intelligences.

This idea is important because it shows that every person has unique strengths. Knowing your intelligences can help you understand how you learn best and what you might be good at in the future!

Multiple Intelligences Checklist

Multiple Intelligences Descriptions

TexQuest's career exploration is a free, online toolkit that helps you research different careers, figure out what you need to do to get there, and even practice for the tests that can help you get into college or a specific job. It's all there to help you plan your future! TexQuest is available to all RISD students through ClassLink.

​Selecting a career pathway can be a challenging task! Career assessments can help you find out your career interests, skills, values, and more. Lightcast, the official assessment tool for Dallas College, is an easy-to-use, comprehensive career exploration and information system. Start today and find your way!

Will you be able to afford the lifestyle you want?

It's difficult to predict the future, but it's never too early to start planning for it. Texas Reality Check will show you how much your living expenses will cost, and the amount of money you will need to earn to pay for them.

Find out what careers may interest you, compare different careers side by side, learn more about specific careers and mark your favorites!

Expand your career research. There are hundreds of careers in our economy and multiple ways to group them.  The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics organizes career information by grouping jobs by occupation. This clustering of career pathways is helpful for understanding the world of work.

Learning Objective: I understand the educational options available to me after high school.

Essential questions: How do my educational choices connect with my long-term goals and vision for my life? How does planning my next steps help set me up for success?

Enduring Understandings: Learning is a lifelong journey and will continue to develop and evolve over time. Analyzing all options before making a decision allows me to make better choices.

Features:

• College Search: Powerful filters by major, location, size, type (public/private), campus life, diversity, affordability, and more.

• Personalized Matches: Get college suggestions based on your grades, test scores (if you enter them), and preferences.

• "My College List": Save and organize colleges you're interested in, track deadlines, and compare them side-by-side.

• Financial Aid & Scholarship Search: Extensive resources for understanding financial aid and finding scholarships.

• Career Exploration: Connects majors to potential career paths.

• Comparison Aspect: Allows you to add colleges to a list and view key data points side-by-side.

Features:

• Comprehensive Profiles: Detailed information on academics, campus life, diversity, professors, dorms, food, safety, and more, often with student and alumni reviews.

• College Search & Rankings: Filterable search and unique rankings (e.g., "Best Campus Food").

• "College Compare Tool": Allows you to select up to four schools and compare them on key metrics and Niche's letter grades.

• Admissions Chances Calculator: Estimates your likelihood of admission based on your profile.

• Scholarship Search: Connects students with scholarship opportunities.

Comparison Aspect: Excellent for side-by-side comparison of multiple schools, especially valuable for understanding the "vibe" and student experience.

Features:

• Robust Search: Filter by location, programs, type of school, size, etc.

• Detailed Statistics: Provides in-depth data on tuition, fees, financial aid, enrollment, graduation rates, retention rates, crime statistics, typical earnings after graduation, and more.

• Comparison Tool: You can select multiple institutions and generate a comparison chart with various data points.

Comparison Aspect: Ideal for a data-driven, objective, side-by-side comparison of official statistics.

Features:

• Search and Filter: Easy search by program, location, size, and more.

• Key Metrics: Highlights important data like average annual cost, graduation rate, salary after attending, and student loan repayment rates.

• Direct Comparison: Allows you to add schools to a list and compare them on these essential metrics.

Comparison Aspect: Excellent for a quick, impactful comparison of affordability and post-graduation outcomes.

Features:

College Search & Match: Uses your profile to suggest colleges that might be a good fit.

"Apply Match" / Direct Admissions: Connects you with colleges that might offer direct admission based on your profile.

Scholarship Search: Robust scholarship database.

Admissions Calculator: Estimates your chances of getting into a particular school.

Comparison Aspect: While it has comparison features, its strength is often in initial discovery and matching. 

Features:

• College Search: Detailed profiles, rankings (many unique ones like "Best College Dorms"), and data on academics and campus culture.

• Quizzes: Help you find colleges that align with your personality and preferences.

Comparison Aspect: Good for comparing aspects of campus life and non-academic factors.

Going Merry is best known for scholarships, but their "College Match" tool helps you explore schools with a financial focus!

Key Features:

• Affordability & Net Cost: Helps you discover what a college will actually cost you after potential financial aid, rather than just the sticker price.

• Direct Scholarship Connection: Seamlessly connects your college search with finding and applying for relevant scholarships directly on their platform.

• Budgeting & Comparison Tools: Provides tools to help you budget for college and easily compare the financial impact of different schools.

Comparison Aspect:

• Financial Aid Emphasis: Excellent for comparing colleges based on potential cost after aid and for streamlining the scholarship application process.

This is an official Department of Defense (DoD) website specifically designed to provide an overview of military life and careers. You'll find: 

• Detailed sections on each of the six branches (Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard).

• Information on "Ways to Serve" (Active Duty vs. Reserve/National Guard, Enlisted vs. Officer).

• Insights into military life, benefits, education opportunities, and career paths.

• It focuses on broad comparisons rather than recruiting for a specific branch.

Here, you'll find head-to-head comparison for the military branches. Also, discover the following:

• Ways of joining

• Enlistment options

• Enlistment incentives

• Job choices

• Compare boot camp and recruit training

• Education benefits

• ASVAB information and practice tests