Day 5: Career/ Future

So.... this day took place a week and a half ago but after the camp ended I was too tired to post for awhile...

The last day of the camp was about career exploration and goal setting. If you ask an average a Kenyan student- girl or boy- what they want to be when they grow up you will invariably get doctor or nurse with the occasional teacher or accountant thrown in. While an overwhelming number of students wanting to be a medical professional is generally present in any country, what makes it more difficult in Kenya is that the kids really don't get to choose what they will study in college/university. You take a standardized test (similar to the Regents for my New York readers) and your scores on that test determine what, if any, major university program you qualify for. If you score high enough for the medical track, you can study medicine. If not, you won't be becoming a doctor unless you have a ton of money. In other words, my gameplan of choosing a major senior year of college would not have gone over nicely here...

Since they don't really get to choose what they want to do, I mostly wanted them to know about other careers that are out there and how to set realistic goals. If you don't qualify for one of the major tracks, all hope is not lost. There are hundreds of diploma and certificate programs someone can get in all sorts of subjects. I can't tell you how well these are regarded but at least they are out there. We had two women come and talk about their respective careers- one is a social worker and the other a youth officer. Then an education officer came to talk to them about how to choose a career path. After lunch we played two games to demonstrate the importance of realistic goal setting and networking (thanks Antony and PEPFAR!). Before the last session started, it was time for the question cup. At the beginning of the week, I put a question cup in the house and told the girls they could put any questions in there that they were too shy to ask in front of the gang. On the last day I answered all of the questions they had placed in the cup. Here are a few highlights from the cup:

--How do I stop having a boyfriend after having one for a long time?
--I hate my big pot belly and always worry my shirt won't cover it. How can I reduce?
--I like a boy but he never pays attention to me more than a friend, how can I get him to be my boyfriend?


It was a fun conversation to have with them and hopefully I gave them decent answers!

The last activity of the week was to make a vision board. Major shout out to all of you who have sent me magazines the past six months, they not only gave reading pleasure to the Peace Corps Kenya community but also were great resources for the girls to make their vision boards with. Essence and Ebony were naturally great hits!

So, with the camp over I retired to my room to relax and enjoy a (few) glass (es) of wine :-)

Bad internet today so pictures to come another day!