EduPath: Disha
Every student deserves a direction — reaching students before they choose a stream, not after.
Choosing a stream is one of the first major decisions in a student's academic journey. Yet for many students in government schools, that choice is often made before they truly understand what Science, Commerce, Humanities or vocational education can actually offer.
Through EduPath: Disha, students are introduced to career possibilities before they make that decision. Designed for Classes IX and X, the programme combines interactive counselling, career awareness and expert guidance to help students choose based on their interests, abilities and aspirations.
Every EduPath Disha session began with the same question: "What do you want to become?" A few students confidently answered doctor or teacher. Many paused before quietly saying, "I don't know." While most had heard of Science, Commerce and Humanities, very few understood what each stream actually offered, or the opportunities that could follow.
Students were not short of ambition. They simply needed the information and confidence to see beyond the familiar.
students counselled across Classes IX and X in three government schools
Five sessions at Sanskriti Senior Secondary School, Sector 20
This school hosted five interactive sessions that gradually revealed how career awareness grows when students are given room to ask questions, challenge assumptions and explore possibilities. Career planning was introduced through conversation rather than instruction — and for many, it was the first time a classroom subject connected to a future. As one student asked, "Can we have more sessions like this?"
By the later sessions, the conversation moved beyond the three familiar streams. Vocational education — animation, design, hospitality, healthcare support and defence services — was a new concept for most, and interest ran highest in animation and defence services. Across all five sessions, 146+ students took part, and the same request kept surfacing: more sessions, and deeper, stream-specific guidance.
When awareness became interest
At the start of Session 4, vocational education attracted little interest among Class IX students. By the end, 27 of 57 students said they would explore vocational pathways — the clearest single-session outcome across the entire programme, and proof that one well-run conversation can reshape how a student sees their own future.
of 57 students chose to explore vocational careers after a single session
Session 5 was smaller — just 39 Class IX students — and the conversation turned more personal. Students who had stayed quiet in larger sessions began speaking openly about their interests. Sometimes impact comes not from reaching more students, but from listening more closely to each one.
At Government Senior Secondary School, Thandog, a pre-session survey revealed a striking pattern: most students associated success with only two careers — doctor and teacher — and viewed Science as the only meaningful stream. By the end of the session, they were confidently discussing Science, Commerce, Humanities and vocational education alike. The biggest shift wasn't knowledge. It was confidence.
Before → after. A Science-only mindset became equal awareness of all three streams; parent-driven decisions became students asking informed questions; and vocational careers, once unknown, were finally recognised.
Government Senior Secondary School, Billa
Fifty-two Class IX students entered the classroom with limited awareness of career opportunities beyond a handful of familiar professions. By the end of the session, they were asking specific questions about Army recruitment, engineering pathways, teacher education and vocational qualifications.
Students hadn't changed their dreams. They had gained the clarity to pursue them.
What the programme taught us
- Awareness comes before ambition — students are ready to dream once they understand the opportunities actually available to them.
- One conversation can change direction — a single session was enough to turn uncertainty into curiosity, and curiosity into informed decision-making.
- Vocational education deserves visibility — awareness of it was low everywhere before the sessions, and quickly recognised as meaningful once introduced.
- Students want continued guidance — the strongest request wasn't another presentation, but ongoing mentorship and stream-specific counselling.
EduPath Disha is built on a simple belief: career guidance should reach students before they make life-changing academic decisions, not after. As Venus Foundation continues expanding the programme to more government schools across Haryana, the goal remains unchanged — to help every student step into the future with confidence. Because every student deserves the chance to discover possibilities. Every student deserves a direction.
🌱 Key takeaways
- Career guidance matters most before the stream-selection decision — not after it.
- The biggest shift across every school wasn't knowledge; it was confidence.
- One well-run conversation moved 27 of 57 students to explore vocational careers they'd never considered.
Aarti Singh
Supports the Venus Foundation team in shaping initiatives that make a real difference, while gaining valuable hands-on experience in the field.
