New research defines youth career success in Windsor-Essex to support ProsperUs initiatives
Workforce WindsorEssex, in partnership with ProsperUs, launched their new report, Defining Career Success in Windsor-Essex.
The ProsperUS Project aims to create a directional plan for the community of Windsor-Essex that will help support individuals making life-changing decisions. The project’s vision aims to provide children of all ages within the region the opportunity to unlock possibilities for a positive future, giving them the support necessary to succeed in their career/education.
From October 2019 to March 2020, Workforce WindsorEssex has been collecting data in the Windsor-Essex region to develop a definition for youth career success. This brand-new research fills a gap in the region, as a definition of this measure did not previously exist for Windsor-Essex.
Upon completion of this data collection, Workforce WindsorEssex developed the following definition of career success in Windsor-Essex: having a stable job that is enjoyable and provides opportunities for growth, while also being financially stable.
Other important questions in the data collection process were:
- Is career success connected to the occupation/sector an individual is employed in?
- Is career success related to education or skill level?
- Does career success look different for those within different demographic groups (gender, race, immigration status)?
- What is the relationship between finding employment in a field of choice after graduation and career success?
More detailed survey, focus group, and consultation analysis can be found in the full report. This report also includes an analysis of proposed data collection methods and costing, with recommendations moving forward, so that future tracking of youth career success in Windsor-Essex can be done to support the initiatives of the ProsperUs Cradle to Career Initiative. The Cradle to Career initiative aims to support Windsor-Essex children and youth from a pre-natal stage, all the way through to landing their first job as an adult.
Where no research existed before, Workforce WindsorEssex has now developed a career success definition and measurement for the region of Windsor-Essex in order to support the initiatives of the ProsperUS project.