Intro to MyCAP
Boston Public Schools
MyCAP
My Career & Academic Plan
A multi-year planning process that engages students in authentic postsecondary planning through a continuum of experiences focused on the individual student’s interests, skills, and talents.
Every young person will have the opportunity, resources, and support they need to achieve their definition of success
BOSTON GRADUATES WILL..
BUILD KNOWLEDGE TO BE READY FOR COLLEGE, CAREER, & LIFE
UNDERSTAND SELF AND OTHERS TO NURTURE RELATIONSHIPS
VALUE DIVERSITY TO HARNESS THE STRENGTHS OF CULTURES AND COMMUNITIES
ADAPT THROUGH CHANGES AND CHALLENGES TO THRIVE
ARE LIFELONG LEARNERS WHO CONTINUE TO GROW AND EXPLORE
Domains
1
2
3
4
Personal / Social
Career Development
Where am I going?
Career exploration
Work-based learning
Career skills and knowledge
Academic / Post-secondary Planning
How do I get there?
Course planning
Post-secondary options
Applications based on post-secondary pathway
Financial Literacy*
What will I need?
Basics, budgeting, banking, credit, loans
FAFSA/MASFA
Who am I?
SEL
Identity exploration and development
Social capital
Durable/human skills
In Action
Experience +
Workshops
Advisory
Embedded in a class
Designated class
One-on-one
Tool
Naviance
Many other helpful tools such as EVERFI, Mass CIS, MEFA Pathways
Product
Goals
Resume
Reflections
Self-Discovery Assessment Results
Course Plan
Portfolio
When can this take place?
Who leads these experiences?
What is best for the students I support?
What content/information needs to be part of these experiences?
What resources have we used before?
Do we need support using any of these resources?
How do we capture all experiences for both our needs and the student?
What additional products do our students create?
How can our students share out their MyCAP?
How can we ensure all students are engaging in the same content?
MyCAP at Dearborn STEM Academy
MyCAP Research - Individualized Learning Plans
Solberg, Wills, Redmond & Skaff, 2014
“Students who become more competent in self-exploration, career exploration, and career planning and management are more motivated and confident learners, actively set goals, and record better academic outcomes.”
Why MyCAP?
Domains
School Culture
Pathways
Partnerships
Build skills across personal/social, career development, academic & postsecondary planning, financial literacy
Guides the larger school culture around future planning to be inclusive of all postsecondary options and provides support for adult learning
Support student and family understanding of key transition points and pathways programming, requirement for state designation
Connecting service providers around common goals and coordinating partners to ensure all students are served
Naviance
Naviance
Role based platform: Different across staff
Key Tools: “Demo Naviance Student”, “Students” - Looking up specific student information, “Analytics” - Reporting on different student data
Careers : Demo -> Careers -> Explore Careers -> Wages
Naviance Self-Discovery Assessments
MyCAP Grades 6-8
MyCAP Grades 9-12
Watch a video through Find your Road with Roadtrip Nation
Complete a Self-Discovery Assessment
Favorite 2 Careers
Naviance Exploration Pt 1
Careers -> Explore Roadtrip Nation Videos -> Find your road
Self-Discovery -> Select any assessment except for Strengths Explorer
Careers -> Explore Careers
Use Colleges section to favorite 1 college
Create a Goal
Draft a Resume
Naviance Exploration Pt 2
Planner -> Goals
About me -> Resume
Data Monitoring
Questions?
ejaques2@bostonpublicschools.org
Key Actions to Shift Mindsets
19
“Our focus is on 12th graders and college applications”
03
“We don’t have the time/capacity/a counselor
02
“We just need to check the box and get it done” “Is this required by the state?”
01
MyCAP Profiles
Role | Connection |
Counselor | MA College and Career Advising framework, key approach from MASCA. Typically lead MyCAP and connect other roles to the MyCAP process to create cohesive teams that align to college timelines, course planning, and other important aspects of the student experience in preparation for their futures. |
Teacher | MyCAP provides a structured approach to future planning conversations that already occur. Many opportunities to connect to content and standards. |
Special education staff | Connection to IEP goals, transition planning. See this resource from outside of MA for examples of the connecting points (Note: MyCAP = ICAP). |
Administrator | Can create a truly whole school approach and culture shift around supporting through future planning and career development. Integral in providing space and support to staff. |
Early College, Innovation Pathways, CTE | Aligned career and college counseling is a designation requirement including the guided use of Individualized Learning Plans (MyCAP) and supports pathway and CTE selection and exploration for the duration of programming |
AP/IB | Preparing students for their futures includes ensuring all students are prepared for and have access to high quality advanced learning opportunities that connect with their future college & career goals and utilizes course planning. |
Social workers, family liaisons, student supports staff | College, career, and life readiness are all central components of the MyCAP. It’s important that student support staff are connected to the MyCAP process and able to assist if students experience barriers to engaging in MyCAP experiences (ex. work-based learning or out-of-school opportunities) and support family and community members as part of the students network. See family scope & sequence. |
External partners | Support various MyCAP tasks and experiences such as resume building, financial literacy, and out-of-school time learning. Enhance the experience with additional support. |
Research
For young people…we identify economic benefits relating to higher levels of initial aspiration…teenage occupational “expectations had a similar magnitude of association as did academic achievement” on adult outcomes.
Young people from OECD countries who had not talked about their imagined working lives were 71% more likely to be planning on pursuing education insufficient to meet their career goals.
Source: OECD (2021), "Career conversations: Why it is important for students to talk about their futures in work with teachers, family and friends", OECD Education Policy Perspectives, No. 42, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/15b83760-en.