An information portal for career guidance: the case of Ordinary Level in Uganda

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to develop an Information portal for career guidance to provide expert advice to Uganda Ordinary Level secondary school students. This report describes the developed information portal providing career guidance for Ordinary Level students. Not infrequently students are confused on which career choice they should undertake, basing on their ability, interest, values, etc. Unfortunately there are very few career guidance experts to provide such advice and even then they do not have comprehensive information. The information portal advises the student on a number of the professional options that may be suitable for them basing on their abilities and interests. It contains an expert system module that helps in guiding towards conclusion. Simultaneously, it offers web pages that give additional information, from which decisions can be based. This information portal contains a knowledge base with information gathered from human experts on career guidance. The information contained in this portal provides typical questions asked by students while seeking career guidance and those asked by the career experts in order to determine a suitable placement for the student. The findings of the study may be generalised so as to cater for more advanced problems and thus help a broader audience. Thus the portal can be expanded to put into consideration all factors that determine a career choice i.e student personality, socio-economic status of the family, sex, Religion. It can also be broadened to cater for Students completing Advanced Level and those opting for particular specialisations in a profession.