Students are career-ready, and educators around the world are looking for ways to bridge the gap between the classroom and future careers. Students often rely on guidance programs, career aptitude tests, and other similar methods to decide their future. However, we cannot ignore the question, "How effective are these methods?" With a report suggesting that nearly 70% of Americans feel less than satisfied with their career choices, it is no surprise students' inability to decide/over-thinking is a roadblock in choosing a career that suits them.
Think about this, wouldn't it be better if students get a sneak peek into potential future career paths? Virtual reality brings career exploration to life and offers students a first-hand experience of exciting job opportunities.
Do you want to learn more about exploring careers in virtual reality?
Join our webinar on March 16, 2022, to learn more about exploring career options using 360° VR videos.
Here is an overview of our blog:
1. Why is Career Exploration Important for Students?
2. How Virtual Reality Can Help in Career Exploration
3. What are the Benefits of Adopting Virtual Reality for Career Exploration?
a) Immersive Learning Experience
b) Enhanced Engagement
c) Confidence Booster
d) Eliminates Geographical Boundaries
4. Shape Your Future with VR
Why is Career Exploration Important for Students?
Comprehensive career exploration provides students an opportunity to consider a wide range of careers and clear up any misconceptions they may have about a particular field of work.
Often students’ decision-making is influenced by external factors such as family, friends, or popular media. Sadly, some career choices are over hyped by the media, such as being a software engineer in the TV series "Mr. Robot" or being a lawyer in "Law and Order." Immersive career exploration 360° VR content assists students to be better informed and to gain a greater understanding of multiple career opportunities – even some they may not have considered previously.
How Virtual Reality Can Help in Career Exploration
Wouldn't it be better if you could experience a "day in the life" of the profession you aspire to pursue? That's exactly what virtual reality enables you to do. VR-based simulations help students get first-hand experience and evaluate the pros and cons of various occupations. Virtual reality simulations allow students to discover those areas that most interest them and help them to identify the career they want to pursue.
VR is not an alternative to real-life work experience, rather it is an instrument that offers an engaging high-level overview of employment options. From operating heavy machinery to practicing welding or conducting chemistry experiments or simulated medical surgeries, students can gain practical knowledge in these fields.
What are the Benefits of Adopting Virtual Reality for Career Exploration?
1. Immersive Learning Experience
When students are placed in a simulated atmosphere, it enables them to stand in the shoes of a professional, visualize the workplace, and understand a profession. VR videos will help students experience what a job would be like; therefore, ensuring it is the right choice for them.
2. Enhanced Engagement
New-gen children are exposed to and attracted by cutting-edge technology. The immersive nature of virtual reality makes the learning process more fun and engaging, as VR reduces distraction and helps learners become active participants in activities. In fact, a study shows students are more engaged in active learning methods like VR-based learning compared to other modes such as watching 2D videos or reading textbooks.
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3. Confidence Booster
Taking part in VR-based simulations instills confidence in students to take further steps towards exploring a career option. Building a network, communicating with customers, attending interviews, etc., can be a stressful experience, especially for the first time. People usually prefer to practice these situations beforehand. VR can help enhance soft skills like communication skills, interpersonal skills, etc. With VR, students can hone their skills in a virtual environment and receive feedback and suggestions for improvement. Gaining practice in the virtual world helps learners perform better during real-life scenarios.
4. Eliminates Geographical Boundaries
Sometimes, students want to explore employment opportunities in foreign countries, but they may lack the financial means to travel abroad, and the information available in blogs/videos can be misleading. VR experiences eliminate geographical boundaries, helping students explore different opportunities without having to leave the classroom.
Further, VR negates the language barrier as multiple languages can be embedded in the software, creating a seamless platform for career exploration.
Shape Your Future with VR
Today, we cannot imagine a world without smartphones and high-speed internet, soon it will be hard to picture a world without virtual reality. A report predicts spend in virtual reality in the global education market to reach $32.9 billion in 2026, growing at a CAGR of 39.7%. The COVID-19 pandemic and increasing internet usage are driving factors in the exponential VR demand growth. Not surprising, major employment agencies and high schools are starting to consider the use of virtual reality for career exploration. VR will improve the job-seeking experience by assisting students to identify careers that not only offer financial stability but also happiness.
Do you want to incorporate VR in your school? XR Guru is an immersive learning hub that enhances education through immersive experiences. XR Guru brings learning, content creation, and distribution together into one easy-to-use platform. Choose XR Guru for a learning experience in the metaverse. Contact us for a free consultation.
Join Us for Our Next Webinar
Title: Launching career exploration 360-videos soon!
Explore Jobs through 360° Videos!
As we near the launch of our career exploration 360-video content, learn about how virtual reality content can help students and prospective employees understand a ‘day in the life’ of various careers.
Career exploration topics include: construction skills, auto mechanic skills, nursing aid, vet tech, pharmacy tech, cosmetology, welding and CNG, robotics, and more.
We have created immersive 360° video experiences to show what a job really looks like in virtual reality (VR) before starting a career path.
Join our live webinar to learn more about exploring careers with virtual reality.
If you cannot attend, register anyway and we will send you the recording.
Host: Doug Smith
When and Where:
1:30 p.m. EST, Wednesday, March 16, 2022
25 Minutes
Zoom Link for Registration
Goal: To help educators understand how virtual reality can help students & job seekers choose a career path that suits them.
Who Should Join:
- Subject Matter Experts
- Content Creators
- Educators
- Administrators, and
- Those aspiring to adopt VR in classrooms.
Highlights of the Webinar:
- Learn how immersive 360° video content can help students explore jobs
- Learn the benefits of adopting VR for career exploration
- View samples of immersive content
- Learn how to access our free Authoring Tool
- View samples of content you can create in our Authoring Tool
Outcome: Attending this webinar can help you understand how adopting virtual reality in schools can aid in career exploration.