With changes in the labor market and the demand for skills essential to successful employment, preparing for higher education and careers has become the focus of education reform. Research shows that the recent high school graduates and graduates are not fully prepared for post-secondary education and work after that. Employer surveys confirm these trends because many people believe that newly hired graduates lack the basic knowledge of 21st century careers. The structure of the workplace changes the demand for workers with specific knowledge and skills. These changes in the labor market force educators to reconsider the types of skills developed in primary and secondary education to better prepare students for the challenges of the 21st century. 

The ever changing world has impacted the Skills that are needed for Career Readiness. These major changes are mentioned here-

Globalization- The expansion of communication technology and the recent increase in the labor force in different parts of the world have made workers more competitive in today’s scenario. For this, they need special knowledge and to be able to work well together with other people from different cultures and backgrounds.

Automation- Computers have replaced many labor-intensive tasks. In fact, “any job that can digitize information and break down key tasks into predictable rules is vulnerable to automation.” As computers become more and more common in all industries, workers need good computer skills. An "unconventional" job requires personnel with strong skills to deal with emergencies and communication difficulties.

Personal Risk and Responsibility- Work is more about productivity than about company loyalty. Compared with previous jobs, pensions are rarely provided today, and health insurance is no longer as transparent as when employers provided it. Navigate in a world where personal choices face high risks. At the very least, they need good reading skills and strong math to understand the information they need to understand your choice.

Demographic Change - Research shows that today’s young people can rely on living in communities and working in companies that are much more diverse than in the past. With the addition of virtual interactions, employers surveyed in a recent study managed to handle diversity among the top five work-related skills. It’s no surprise that the difference between core professional competencies will become more and more important in the next five years.

Workplace Change- Many jobs have less control on their employees; they have greater autonomy and responsibility, more collaboration, and poor predictability and stability. Therefore, students must have strong self-management skills in order to be able to control their work progress. You also need to be able to have good interactions with others and learn to take on new responsibilities and tasks.

Career Readiness Skills to be acquired by students in the Middle Grades.

Although there is little literature on the relationship between early skills development and long-term college admissions and career preparation, more and more researchers and education professionals associate high school skills development with university preparation and later development and success. They believe that without adequate preparation for high school and beyond, students may find it difficult to find a clear way to achieve sustained success in these courses. 8th grade students who are preparing for high school are less likely to graduate from high school than other students. In order to prepare students for college and their careers, six core competencies need to be strengthened to prepare for a successful high school graduation. 

These skills include:

• Creative thinking
• Decision making
• organization
• Communication and collaboration
• Critical thinking and problem solving
• Evaluation and argument making

However, in addition to this basic knowledge, middle school students also need to know how to enter university and choose career paths, and appropriately plan post-secondary education and work to improve career preparation.

Various types of college and career planning skills for middle schools include:

Academic planning- Mapping and demonstrating the skills and knowledge required for academic courses necessary to achieve higher education goals.

Post-secondary Aspirations- Career research focuses on students' enthusiasm, interest, dreams and beliefs about their future self and plan choices.

Career Awareness- Understand the difference between job, occupations and career. Considering the influence of economy, culture and stereotypes on career choices, understand a wide range of local, regional, national and global career paths and opportunities.

Post-secondary Options- Use tools such as career clusters, personality assessments, and learning style checklists to learn about various post-secondary, career, and career opportunities to highlight personal strengths and skills.

Employ-ability Skills- Identify, develop and improve skills, which will increase the likelihood of becoming an employed, responsible citizen and remaining successful employees.

Environmental Expectations- An ecosystem in which schools, families, communities, culture and worldview affect career development and post-secondary education programs.

Financial Literacy- To be aware and pay attention to the cost of various university options so that you can fully participate in future career and study plans.

Career Readiness skills are required in the high or senior secondary grades

The college and career preparation dialogue focuses on the development of skills at the high school stage, especially when the students in these classes are closer to graduation from high school. By the end of high school, students should show higher-order "expanded thinking" skills and other important abilities in them. Skills in the 21st century include cognitive skills, interpersonal skills and interpersonal skills to ensure that students have a common pattern of skills. The list of basic knowledge of college and career preparation includes four key "outcomes for 21st century students":

Key Subjects in 21st century- Mastering the main subjects and themes of the 21st century is essential for student success. The main subjects include English, reading or language arts, world languages, art, mathematics, economics, science, geography, history, civics and government. In addition, schools should promote mutual understanding about academic content. The higher-level content integrates the interdisciplinary issues of the 21st century into the key subjects like:

• Global awareness
• Financial, Economic, and business literacy
• Health literacy
• Civic literacy
• Environmental literacy

Information, Media and Technology Skills- Today, we live in a technology- and media-driven environment characterized by access to large amounts of information, rapid changes in technical tools, and the ability to collaborate and provide personal contributions on an unprecedented scale. Multiple critical and functional thinking skills are required by effective and responsible citizens. these skills are-

• Media Literacy
• ICT (Information, Communications and Technology) Literacy
• Information Literacy

Learning and Innovation Skills- Learning and innovation skills distinguish students who are prepared for the complexities of life and work in today's world from those who are not. These include: 

• Creativity and innovation 
• Critical thinking and problem solving 
• Communication
• Cooperation

Life and Career Skills-  future citizens that is today’s students need to develop thinking skills, content knowledge, and social and emotional skills in order to find their way out in a challenging work and life environment. The most important life and professional skills are: 

• flexibility and adaptability 
• independent initiative
• Social and cross-cultural skills 
• Productivity and responsibility 
• Leadership and responsibility

What is Career Cluster ?

Career Clusters determine the knowledge and skills students need to achieve their career goals. These are the means to explore various career opportunities. Each component is a different trajectory. These paths are grouped according to the knowledge and skills required to practice these career areas. Each path provides training as a basis for successful development of various vocational and educational activities. The professional groups of Education allow schools to organize the education and training of students into 16 broad categories, covering almost all occupations from elementary school to professional levels:

The 16 major clusters along with sample occupations and pathways to entry are:

• Agricultural & Natural Resources
• Architecture & Construction
• Arts, A/V Technology & Communications
• Business, Management & Administration
• Education & Training
• Finance
• Government & Public Administration
• Health Science
• Hospitality & Tourism
• Human Services
• Information Technology
• Law & Public Safety
• Manufacturing
• Marketing, Sales & Service
• Scientific Research/Engineering
• Transportation, Distribution & Logistics

For More details on the following points, subscribe to “College and career Readiness Course”

• Basic Skills Required For Career Readiness (21st century skills) 
• Career Ready Practices
• Career readiness Checklist (Activity)
• Scope and Sequence of your career readiness