JIVA is a career guidance program created for India by a team of internationally acclaimed career psychologists. The JIVA program is based on extensive research. It emerged from a large national survey of Indian young people’s orientations to work and career and national consultation on career psychology that was attended by scholars, teachers, and counselors, officials from the NCERT and UNICEF and heads of schools.

JIVA means life, in most Indian languages. The JIVA career guidance system shows the young person that a career can be happy and healthy when it becomes an extension of his/her life.

JIVA Career Discovery Workshop for Students

Standardized and Validated: All tests and techniques used in the workshop are culturally validated and statistically standardized for the Indian context.

Activity based and Student Led. The JIVA career counselor facilitates the workshop through a series of activities supported by worksheets. Students engage in personal introspective activities .

1. Self- Discovery: The programme uses quantitative devise such as standardized aptitude tests and interest inventories. We also use qualitative method such as identification of student’s accomplishment, hobbies, marks and grades. This data is combined to generate the student’s potential profile which is a combination of the student’s interest and aptitudes.
2. World of Work : Students are introduced to a wide range of careers, courses and institutions, entrance procedures and eligibility criteria. They also learn about educational milestones qualifications and subject streams. Attitude towards work and career beliefs are also discussed.
3. Career Alternatives: Students learn to combine information about themselves and the world of work and identify a specific set of careers to explore further.
4. Career Preparation: The workshop culminates with the student learning to generate and develop educational path ways and career plans.
5. Career report: We prepare a career report for each student, with details about personal interest and aptitudes, career alternatives, career paths, with information about institutions for further and higher education. These reports are sent to the students approximately 6 weeks after the workshop.

Many parents are uncertain about how to guide their children and may impose their own preferences. Included in the Jiva programme is a 2 to 3 hour group workshop for parents. The workshop informs parents about what was done in the student sessions and also gives them ideas and tips on how they can be effective forces in their child’s career development. Ideally, this session should be held on the evening of the day on which the student workshop is conducted.