The Foreign Service Journal, December 2021

98 DECEMBER 2021 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL EDUCATION SUPPLEMENT FROM THE JUNE 2018 FSJ EDUCATION SUPPLEMENT The Vocational Education Option: A Student’s Search for Meaning in Today’s Economy BYMARYBETH HUNTER A head start on career training might be just the ticket for the curious Foreign Service student. Many public high schools in the United States offer academies or specialized programs that feature courses for students interested in preparing themselves (both aca- demically and through hands-on training) for their career of choice. Enrolling in specialized classes gives students a chance to learn from business leaders while exploring firsthand all of what a career entails. Students might also consider apprenticeship programs for highly skilled occupations that combine supervised, paid on-the-job training with class- room instruction. … In the past, conventional thinking separated education and career into either blue-collar or white-collar tracks. This model may be increasingly obsolete. In the future, the more appropriate model may be a trichotomy: jobs that can exist solely on the internet, those that require a physi- cal presence and those blending both. (To quote Princeton economist Alan Blinder: One “can’t hammer a nail through the internet.”) At any rate, students need instruction beyond what the curriculum of either academic or vocational education offers. Solid character, interpersonal skills, spiritual wis- dom and community involvement complete the package in the young adult on the road to personal and professional fulfillment. … Why not merge together a keen understanding of the significance and context of work and valued technical skills? Such a blend can build confidence in the student so that he or she feels well prepared to contribute meaning- fully in the modern world. Marybeth Hunter is the education and youth officer in the State Department’s Global Community Liaison Office. She traveled over- seas with her Foreign Service family for more than 21 years, and has worked as a teacher and a community liaison office coordinator abroad. The complete article appeared in the June 2018 FSJ .