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Project Case

Wayfinder - strengthening career prospects for young people

  • Academic Programs
  • Design Thinking

Intro

In Germany, many early school leavers have difficulties finding their way into the world of work. It is often not a lack of motivation, but a lack of guidance and support. A team from the HPI d-school developed “Wayfinder” with the Federal Employment Agency – a program with workshops, excursions and a playful app that helps young people discover their strengths and develop new career prospects.

Content

Challenge

How can early school leavers be better reached and integrated into new forms of learning and professional orientation? The aim of the Design Thinking project was to find ways to provide targeted support to young people without a school-leaving certificate, to recognize their skills and to develop prospects for the future.

The challenge: Design new ways of integrating early school leavers with the help of empowerment and new forms of learning.

Starting point

In Germany, around 6% of young people have no school-leaving qualifications. Many of them have lost contact with the education system, often due to difficult personal or school circumstances. At the same time, they often lack orientation, self-confidence and access to relevant support services.

The Federal Employment Agency already offers numerous programs to support this target group, but many young people are unaware of their existence or do not feel that they are being addressed. The Federal Employment Agency therefore commissioned a team from the HPI d-school to find new ways to reach school dropouts and show them meaningful career prospects.

  • Team Picture

Aha-moments

During the research phase in the Design Thinking process, the student team quickly realized that there are very different reasons why young people drop out of school or have difficulties finding a job. Young people often have little confidence in their abilities and do not know exactly what kind of job they are looking for.

Many young people find the measures offered by the Federal Employment Agency unhelpful. What they lack is not necessarily the motivation to learn something or to work, but a supportive environment that accompanies them on their way.

To help the young people develop a vision for their future and an awareness of their own abilities, the student team developed a 4-stage program with a duration of 6 to 12 months. Part of this program included workshops with mentors, excursions to potential employers, internships and a playful app to support the learning process between workshops.

Impact

The kick-off for the “Wayfinder” pilot project took place on June 13, 2019 at the Berlin North Employment Agency.

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