The Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) will now offer Career Development Services (CDS) to young and old people entering post-school education and training.
People can now approach the department directly about career development. The CDS provides information, guidance and advice to help people choose a career that is in line with their development and the prosperity of the country.
“Our approach is to nurture their individual competence within their chosen field of interest, regardless of their circumstance. The goal is to ensure that through these career development services, people have access to information that will help them through their lives,” says Deputy Director in the DHET, Xola Mpengesi.
The CDS includes a multi-platform information service, guidance and counselling service comprising a range of services from face-to-face to online services.
Targeting rural areas
The CDS, which will be provided in partnership with different stakeholders, will target pupils in rural areas.
“The department also offers training and support services through proactive engagements with learners, teachers, students and lecturers across the board, especially in rural communities”.
The department is working closely with Technical Vocational Education and Training colleges, labour centres and correctional facilities in providing a coordinated service to the public.
The services further include outreach programmes through the Apply Now! and “Take 5” campaigns. The Apply Now! campaign targets learners from Grade 9 to Grade 12 and aims to create awareness of the range of post school education and training opportunities available and the importance to apply on time for admission into those programmes.
The “Take 5” initiative targets government officials, their families and friends. Five career development information cards are distributed to an official to share with family and friends. The information on the cards includes the CDS helpline contact information. Government officials are encouraged to spread the information on CDS offered by the department.
Central Applications Clearing House
The DHET also provides a Central Applications Clearing House (CACH) service to assist prospective students in late applications to post-school education and training opportunities. It also offers free career advice where needed. The CACH service can be reached by calling 0800 356 635 or sending an SMS with the name and identity number to 49200 of the prospective student and someone from the department will call back. A prospective student can also record his/her own information directly by going to cach.dhet.gov.za.
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