September 29, 2023

YouScience – the What and the Why 

Making the Connection

Schools across the United States use YouScience to help students discover their natural aptitudes and where those aptitudes intersect with their passions. The result helps students explore career choices and make the connection to what they’re learning with career and educational aspirations of tomorrow. YouScience is used in all 50 states by more than 7,000 schools and utilizes real-time data and analytics that empowers data-driven decision-making. 

Employers from across the country and in Stark County support students’ career exploration by sharing information about their industry and the specific occupations for which they hire. Many invest even further by providing students with work-based learning opportunities. Over 100 Stark County employers are in the YouScience System, while 40 local companies are actively engaged in creating work-based experiences such as company tours, job shadowing, mock interviews, classroom speakers, and internship experiences.  

Survey Reveals Key Data

To get the pulse of post-graduation pathway planning, YouScience surveyed more than 500 students from the classes of 2020-2023 as they developed their Post-Graduation Readiness Report. Some key highlights of this report showed that when students understand what makes them unique, what they’re naturally good at, and what career opportunities are open to them, they become more active in the planning of their future and can make personalized and intentional decisions about their post-graduation pathways. The data showed that 64% of students who graduated from high school from 2020-2023 reported changing their college major since their initial selection, and 45% reported changing their major two or more times. 

If students were aware of their aptitudes, they could make more educated and effective decisions about their college major. Additionally, 83% of 2023 graduates said they would have been more engaged in learning had they understood their aptitudes and opportunities. Additional key findings of the report are demonstrated in the chart below. 

Finding the Right Career Pathway Earlier Saves Students Money

Stark Education Partnership chose YouScience as a foundational aspect of its partnership with schools and businesses to minimize unnecessary college costs by getting students into the right college major or career pathway earlier. It is a benefit to individual students to get them into a fulfilling career, and a benefit to businesses by identifying young people who have both aptitude and interest in their chosen career field. 

20 Stark County Schools Participating in YouScience This Year