TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post

Youthmanual offers future planning to senior high school students

Youthmanual offers future planning to senior high school students Future generations should be confident to compete in a global labor market, forward thinking, and fast learners as there will be new opportunities that come up that need to be catered for. (Shutterstock/-)
Intan Tanjung (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta   ●   Sat, June 4, 2016

Deciding what to do with your future after high school can be challenging, especially if you are not sure of your potential or still have no clue what your interests are.

Fortunately, in this digital era, inspiration can easily be found online, including for such matters. Youthmanual, for instance, is a platform aimed at senior high school students and provides a guide to designing their future. After registering on the website, users will be presented with a series of questions looking to reveal insights on their personality, background, interests and style of study.

“In a nutshell, our mission is to empower Indonesian youth through education, to help them discover their potential and plan their future, so they can positively contribute to the improvement of Indonesia's economy,” Youthmanual founder Rizky Muhammad told The Jakarta Post during an email interview.

Rizky said the world’s economy was changing fast, moving from a traditional economy into a broader digital economy driven by the internet and connectivity. A lot of tech-based companies are now on the rise, taking opportunities to answer unique social problems that are happening in this country. These companies, such as Gojek, Qlue and Tokopedia, have radically transformed the workforce and human resources, which require a totally different mindset and competencies.

“Unfortunately, many young Indonesians are clueless about this new workforce and the opportunities. There's a huge gap in what they know and what is actually happening in the real world,” Rizky said.

(Read also: Indonesian youth encouraged to become innovative entrepreneurs)

The homepage of Youthmanual.com.(The Jakarta Post/Intan Tanjung)

With today’s fast changing world, he underlines the fact that a career can no longer be chosen by using conventional ways or wisdom. To face the fast-changing world, Indonesia needs a generation that has certain characteristics.

Future generations should be confident in competing in a global labor market, forward thinking, and fast learners as there will be new opportunities that come up that need to be catered for. They also need to be opportunists, able to identify new opportunities and not afraid to take or create new things and adaptive to change.

But it will not be possible to develop these characteristics if future generations choose the wrong career. To avoid this, the younger generation needs to understand its strengths and passions from an early stage, and this is what Rizky wants to achieve through Youthmanual.

“We understand that planning for college and career is a difficult process that could have a profound impact on not only their lives, but also on society as a whole,” said Rizky.

Rizky puts the emphasis on individual self-discovery, where each person has a different career path and interests, so he and his in-house psychologist team have designed a module using Mark Savickas' Life Design approach, which is more relevant in today’s world. The module starts with self-discovery using Jung’s neurosis theory, continued by a series of tests that discover career interests using Holland’s theory of career choice.

Aside from the psychology and career-choice modules, Youthmanual also offers a variety of information about universities and their programs, and continues to update the database on career choices and informative content developed by its editorial team. It also regularly hosts conferences, workshops and talk shows for students through the Youthmanual Rise Up Series.  

“We focus on career exploration to encourage students to understand various career options so they can continuously learn and improve their skills to always be relevant in these volatile work conditions.”

The platform's assessment is available for free and can be accessed by everyone.

“We believe all Indonesian youth should have free access to accurate and comprehensive college- and career-readiness tools so they can make informed life decisions and plan for their future. Our goal is to have as many students using our platform as possible," said Rizky. (kes)