‘It’s so hard’: how the pandemic upended young people’s career paths

Remote learning and its detrimental effect on their study have forced many teenagers to rethink tertiary education.

Morgan Vella and his friends used to hold high ambitions for what life would look like after graduating high school: leaving their regional Victorian town for university in the city, enjoying a world of busy dormitories, student bars and lecture theatres.

But two years and seven lockdowns later, the Kyabram P-12 College year 12 student says a lot of his friends have simply “given up” and plan to complete their Victorian College of Education (VCE) certificate without an Atar.

“I’m still aiming to get to university but a few of my friends aren’t going at all any more. The pandemic has totally changed their career options because they see them as unachievable,” he says.

Year 12 students struggling through extended periods of remote learning are rethinking career paths due to ongoing uncertainty about how the pandemic will continue to disrupt their lives.

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