A survey on the occupational interests of grade 7 students: a basis for designing the senior high school curriculum framework of spup

The study sought to determine the level of occupational interests and preferences of the first batch of Grade 7 students of SPUP who will then be the pioneer graduates of the Senior High School Program with the intent of coming up with the Senior High School Curriculum Framework for SPUP for its implementation during the academic years 2016-2017 and AY 2017-2018. Findings revealed that among the given occupations, high level of occupational interest was manifested by participants along Health Services, Mathematics and Science, Social Sciences, Educational Services, and Management. With respect to the participants’ extent to which they liked the subject areas associated with the given occupations, those that were liked very much were related to Computer Technology, Health Care, Mathematics and Science, Business/Law/Management. A matching was evident between the participants’ level of occupational interests and the extent to which they liked the subject areas related to the given occupations in the following occupational groups: Health Services, Mathematics and Science, Educational Services, Legal Services, Customer Services, Management, Fine Arts, and Machine Operation. The participants’ first and second course preferences in terms of the occupational groups were along Health Services, Mathematics and Science. Based from the findings of the study, the career path of the first batch of Grade 7 students of St. Paul University Philippines who will then be the pioneer batch of graduates of the Senior High School Program, had inclinations to the academic track, particularly along Health Care; Science, Technology and Mathematics; Business and Management; Education and Social Sciences. It is in this regard that the SPUP Senior High School Program will take on the academic track to include the three strands – Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM); Accountancy, Business and Management (ABM); and Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS). The results of this study are therefore significant as they served as basis for designing the Senior High School Curriculum Framework for SPUP, with the program’s pioneer batch to graduate on June 2018.