Education and Role of Foreign Languages

The Educational Structure Primary and Secondary School
Prior to higher education, American students attend primary and secondary school for a combined total of 12 years. These years are referred to as the first through twelfth grades. Around age six, U.S. children begin primary school, which is most commonly called “elementary school.” They attend five or six years and then go onto secondary school.
Secondary school consists of two programs: the first is “middle school” or “junior high school” and the second program is “high school.” A diploma or certificate is awarded upon graduation from high school. After graduating high school (12th grade), U.S. students may go on to college or university. College or university study is known as “higher education.”
Just like American students, you will have to submit your academic transcripts as part of your application for admission to university or college. Academic transcripts are official copies of your academic work. In the U.S. this includes your “grades” and “grade point average” (GPA), which are measurements of your academic achievement. Courses are commonly graded using percentages, which are converted into letter grades.
Your educational advisor or guidance counselor will be able to advise you on whether or not you must spend an extra year or two preparing for U.S. university admission. If an international student entered a U.S. university or college prior to being eligible to attend university in their own country, some countries’ governments and employers may not recognize the students’ U.S. education.

Choosing a Career
A career plan is a strategy you'll continuously develop to manage your learning and progression throughout your working life. Consisting of four stages, its purpose is to help you visualise the actions you need to take to achieve your career goals, and how to put these actions into practice.
The four stages of a career plan are: identify your skills and interests explore career ideas make a decision set achievable goals.
Career planning is important for a number of reasons - having a career development plan in place reduces the risk of you making impulsive decisions, and it helps you to recognise when you're ready to look for new opportunities and develop new skills.
This model can be used by anyone - from school leavers to students, graduates and career changers.Learn more about what the process involves and how to map out your career journey.
Choosing a career is a big deal. You'll spend a significant amount of your life at work and so in order to enjoy your job, remain motivated and fulfil your potential, you need to make your career choices wisely.
You first need to know yourself. This means taking stock of your skills and assessing your interests and values.
It's important to understand your range of skills and knowledge, so you can see if they're a good fit for the job you'd like to do. Being aware of the skills you have also helps to highlight any gaps that may need to be filled to achieve your goals.
Make a list of all your transferable and specialist skills, with examples of when you've demonstrated each. An honest assessment of your skills, values and interests will prove useful when narrowing down your options in the next step. You can also see where you measure up in terms of the skills employers are looking for.