CareersPortal.ie is a “one stop shop” for those needing or providing career guidance in Ireland. The site is freely available and integrates up-to-date occupational and course information with advanced search and career self-assessment tools. Results of self-assessments can be used to help the user research the world of work and the world of education. This is supported with information on career sectors, apprenticeships, labour market information, scholarships, and work experience opportunities along with daily career news and events. The site incorporates accessibility tools which integrate many features including language translations, dyslexia support, the visually impaired and spoken text. The portal has become an integral tool for guidance professionals and their clients. It is supported by both public and private organisations which collaborate to disseminate the most useful and up-to-date information about careers and courses across all sectors of the economy.
Our mission To top
Our mission is to provide the most up-to-date career information supporting career and educational research in an integrated, innovative, supportive and engaging manner.
Who this website is for To top
The site was launched in 2008 and is a service to the following communities:
- 2nd Level Students
- 3rd Level Students
- Adult Learners
- Jobseekers
- Parents and Guardians
- Career Guidance Professionals/Providers
Over 1 million people have created their own Career Portfolio on the site and over 3.3 million visitors a year use the site to undertake career and educational research.
Our History To top
CareersPortal.ie was developed by Durrow Communications Ltd as a direct response to a report generated by the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN) in 2007, which recommended that Ireland develop a central career guidance portal. The site was officially launched by the Minister for Education and Science in April 2008.
The site has become an integral tool for guidance professionals throughout the country. It is supported by both public and private organisations, who partner with us to help disseminate the most useful and up-to-date information about careers and courses across all sectors of the economy. The CareersPortal.ie website and guidance resources have grown hugely, both in content and in its user base since its launch in 2008 and are now receiving over 45 million page impressions a month.
Who We Are To top
The company is based in Blackrock, Co. Dublin.
The team come from a broad range of educational and industry backgrounds. Experience in areas such as psychology, guidance counselling at both 2nd level and in the adult guidance services, human resources, educational and IT professionals with many years of experience working in schools, career services, IT and education.
Company Directors: Eimear Sinnott, John Carton
We greatly value the many contributions made from our REACH+ and MyFuture+ Advisory Group Members who are second-level and adult guidance counsellors and educators from all around the country. These expert groups meet regularly to shape the ongoing developments on the site and our bespoke second-level and adult guidance programmes.
What we do To top
The site provides up-to-date and relevant careers information and guidance materials to:
- 2nd Level School Students
- Early School Leavers
- College Students and Graduates
- Adult Learners
- Parents and Guardians
- Guidance Professionals
- Teachers and Tutors in Education
- Jobseekers and their support services
- Information Providers
Some of the main areas of the site which are all freely available and support career research across all our communities include.
- Career File - Users of CareersPortal.ie are encouraged to create a personal Career File to assist in planning and managing their Career Development. Users 'sign up' (on the top left on the homepage) to create their file and are provided with:
- Self-Assessment Tools - enabling a user to find out how their interests, personality, skills etc. can tie-in with various different courses and careers. A free 8 page Career Report, which includes job and course matching, can be generated and printed.
- Course and Career tagging – users can create shortlists of courses and occupations which are stored for further exploration.
- Career ‘NotePad’ – an online notepad can be used to store up to twenty documents. Useful information for career research or planning a job search can be saved e.g. cover letters, CVs and contacts information.
- Employment Sectors - 33 career sectors are reviewed and analysed, highlighting the skills shortages in the individual sector, the occupation types employed, associated educational courses and sector news. It is even possible to search for live job vacancies on in each sector on a daily basis. All this information is supported by engaging video material where available.
- Occupational Database - approximately1000 occupations across all career sectors are profiled; information is provided on typical tasks and activities undertaken in the position, skills required, salary information, various entry routes and the educational qualifications and pathways are outlined. Users can search directly for jobs in these occupations. Video profiles of individuals working in a wide range of occupations and sectors are available.
- Employer Profiles - are presented within the various career sectors; their employment policies and procedures are outlined, how they recruit for their organisation is explained and what they look for in new employees revealed.
- Jobholder Interviews - hundreds of people employed in Ireland are interviewed about the choices they have made in their careers, the education they have received, their current job, what it involves and their advice to others interested in this area. CareersPortal.ie also links to another 1000+ career interviews across the internet.
- Education and Training - opportunities are outlined along with details on where to find courses that match a user’s interests and career aspirations. A searchable database of Further Education and PLC (Post Leaving Cert) courses and Higher Education and CAO courses is available with links to detailed course information on individual college websites.
- Progression Routes - detailed information is available on available QQI progression routes from Further Education and Training courses to Higher Education and CAO courses along with a Plc Points Calculator to assist in determining eligibility for individual courses.
- Apprenticeships - a section is available with full details on what is involved in each apprenticeship and where to go for further information and application details
- Labour Market Statistics - the most up-to-date Labour Market Information is provided and integrated across all sectors and occupations, clearly indicating where the jobs in demand are now or are likely to be in the future.
- Jobs/Current Vacancies - within the occupational database we link to current job vacancies across 4 popular job sites. We also carry daily news stories on any new job announcement and provide links directly to those vacancies where available.
- Parents and Guardians we have produced a comprehensive section for parents and guardians to support their students in making informed career and college decisions including a section which answers all the most commonly asked questions.
- Guidance Professionals - comprehensive support resources and lesson plans are provided in the guidance section of the site which are entirely free for the guidance community to use.
- Teaching Resources for Career Guidance Professionals include a range of worksheets designed for use in the classroom/consultation room and with our senior cycle guidance programme (the REACH+ Career and College Preparation Programme)
- Subject Choice - a comprehensive section is available on the site on choosing subjects both at the Junior and Senior Cycles.
- WorkXperience – a free service that allows employers throughout Ireland to advertise work placements to Transition Year, LCVP, LCA, Leaving Cert and FET students. It includes a range of resources for Students, Teachers, Parents, and Employers.
- National Career Skills Competition - where students at the 2nd level complete a career investigation which is linked to their work experience placement.
Who do we work with? To top
Since 2008, CareersPortal.ie has been working closely with guidance counsellors to provide the most up-to-date careers, education and labour market information, tools and resources. CareersPortal also partners with key stakeholders including employers, state bodies and education providers to ensure information is current and reflects emerging employment and educational opportunities for people of all ages.
CareersPortal partners with over 250 sector experts, organisations and educational providers who work with us directly to you keep the imformation up to date and relevant. Our partners range from national advisory bodies and authorities to professional membership or representative bodies, government agencies, key public and private organisations, educational providers and government departments.
Each partner provides valuable information for anyone interested in exploring the various career and educational opportunities in a particular career area. They help to raise awareness of opportunities within the sector for students, career seekers, guidance counsellors and parents, who may not otherwise have access to, or knowledge of, the full extent of opportunities in that sector.
Our partners outline educational pathways and provide occupational videos and interviews. They highlight skills shortages and jobs in demand in their areas and also keep you up to date with relevant, up-to-the-minute news items and details of important career events..