Students underrepresented in higher education often require unique support throughout their career and college planning. Rural Appalachian youth characterize a large population of underrepresented students. This article describes a theory-based multiweek career education curriculum aimed at increasing career and college readiness that was…

As economic, technological, and social changes transform rural areas, female youth face particular challenges in making educational/career decisions. Relationships within the community enhance and constrain future paths. Building on an earlier research study (Shepard, 2004), the co-construction of a community-based workshop with research…

As part of the Federally sponsored School Program Advancing Career Education (SPACE) in the schools of Greeneville and Greene County, Tennessee, a student interest inventory was conducted to aid in assessing a 45 percent dropout rate in the county. A 25-statement questionnaire (concerning occupational/career interests, communication skills, and…

Examination of the impact of gender and academic-risk behavior on the career maturity and competence of 110 rural youth revealed that females were more involved and independent in their career development and that high-risk students were less able to solve career-related problems. Addresses implications for rural career education and vocational…

A survey of rural secondary school students examined the formation of adolescent occupational identity by identifying predictors of students' ideal jobs. Data were collected from 612 of the approximately 750 students in grades 7-12 in a rural Pennsylvania school district. Predictors of choice of ideal job, by descending influence, were gender,…

The DILENOWISCO Educational Cooperative designed the Four I's Project (intervention, introduction, investigation, and involvement) and the K-12 Career Education Program for Norton City in an effort to assist in solving some of the educational problems existing in this isolated central Appalachian area of Virginia. The two projects are discussed…

Using two panel studies which collectively covered the preadolescent-to-young adulthood period in the life cycle, the study focused on the issues of level of aspiration formation, stability, and race-sex subgroup invariance. The panel studies collected data from youths from (1) rural areas with towns of 2,500 or less and urban areas with cities of…

Because stability in career choice for agricultural occupations is desirable, vocational guidance and orientations which make children and adolescents theoretically and practically familiar with agricultural production must be increased and improved. Data from East Germany indicate that the influence of parents and friends is of major importance…

To measure urban-rural differences in types of career counseling received by students and perceptions held by students regarding career planning activities, research was conducted to extend the 1975 study by Noeth, Roth, and Prediger, which used the same career questions and resulting data, but did not include the urban-rural comparison. The…