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Senior STEM Career Exploration - GSOC Inspire

Complete the following steps to earn the STEM Career Exploration Badge:

1. What She Does: Watch the Planet, World, or Story video on the GSOC Inspire site. Choose which path to take based on the interest in the careers listed. 

Optional: You are more than welcome to watch more than one!

2. Learn About a STEM Career: Watch at least 2-3 videos about specific career women. Choose two women to explore in depth from your video, or check out the Career Women Library. 

3. STEM Careers Activity: Window to Your Future

Materials Required: blank index cards or cut white cardstock, crayons/markers, pencils

• To do this activity, you will need blank index cards (no lines), or cut cardstock, pencils and crayons/markers for additional creativity. On one side of this card, you will draw a rectangle, leaving a little room around the edges. 

• This is a “window into your future”. Think about what you see yourself doing in the future.  How will you change the world? Ask yourself, what bothers me? What problems do I want to solve? What communities am I a part of, and how do I support them? Knowing what you care about can help you find a job both that you like and that you can use to help others. 

• Draw your future in the window being as detailed as you would like. 

• If you are working with other Girl Scouts, share your window with them!

• Instruct Girl Scouts to turn over their card and draw one line down the center and one line on either side of that. 

• On the far right column, write “today”. On the far left column, write “my goal”. The column next to today will say “after high school”. The final column is for you to pick a number of years to check in before you reach your goal. You will write “in # of years” replacing the # symbol with a year that you choose. 

  • For example, if I graduate HS in 3 years, and I may write “in 7 years”, as there is a milestone I complete by graduating college. 

• Share with others if you are working in a group!

4. Take it further! Choose one of the following activities to take your goals and plans a step further. 

Option A: Vision Board

Materials Required: cardstock, magazines or other photos, tape/glue, additional as needed OR digital resources to make a digital board. 

Create a vision board. Create a space to organize different steps to reach your goals. What are the skills you need to learn? What training will you need? What resources are available to you? Use your card as an inspiration for the vision board. You can add images, quotes to inspire you, articles, or anything that supports you reaching your goal. If you can, share your vision board with people who can help you reach your goals, including family members, teachers, and/or mentors. 

Option B: Write a Letter to Future You

Materials Required: paper, other chosen materials.

Create a time capsule for your future self about your career plan. Where do you hope to be in 15 years? What will you do to get there? How do you hope and plan to make a difference? You might include pictures, a dream timeline, related badge activities, or other tokens of inspiration.

5. Now What? Ask your Girl Scouts “How did you feel about that?” & “What did you learn”. Then ask, “How can you apply this learning?”. Thank your Girl Scouts for their participation! Remind them that they can do anything they set their mind to! This is a great spot to provide motivation and support for their hopes and dreams. This activity was developed to show them they can start working towards their goals TODAY! They have a long way away from picking a career, but they always have the chance to follow their dreams and learn new things!

Girl Scouts also now have a map they can use to remind them of their goal and what they need to do to achieve it. Encourage them to share it with others such as their family, teachers, or other mentors who can help support you on your way to career success!

Click here to download a PDF of the activity.