5 Signs of a Healthy Student Journey Part 5: Opportunities & Growth

One of the best aspects of education is that it’s always about moving and changing. Education is by definition a process of change, a process of entering into a program or community or intellectual space intending to exit different from how you entered. Helping students to keep an eye on that “Exit” sign throughout the duration of their educational journey can be one of those guiding lights of the health of a student journey.

The details of what happens after a particular educational goal is achieved may vary greatly in their scope. Students may have their eye on specific job opportunities available to push them down a clearly defined career path.

They may have an advanced degree planned and need to be ready to navigate a new application process and new academic community. Or, they may be more nebulous in their expectations for the future, hoping to have had certain formative experiences like studying abroad, or wanting to develop character traits or practices that will shape their life.

These approaches will likely result in greatly different needs on the student’s part, but they’re all part of helping a student to assess their opportunities and plans for growth beyond this specific educational journey.