Published research study findings suggest growth in students’ experience and knowledge related to health care careers before and after participation in California’s Health Science Capacity Building (HSCB) career academies.

“Growth in Career Academy Students’ Experience, Knowledge, and Self-Confidence Related to Health Care Careers,” written by WestEd and external researchers, is featured in the April 2016 issue of Career and Technical Education Research.

WestEd’s Jonathan Nakamoto, Ashley Boal, and Staci Wendt, along with fellow external researchers, developed a survey measure to assess high school students’ experience, knowledge, and self-confidence related to health care careers. Specifically, the study investigated students enrolled in career academies funded by the HSCB Project.

In addition to growth in health care experience and knowledge for students who participated in HSCB career academies, “future research could examine whether the impact of the HSCB career academies varies across different demographic subgroups (e.g., racial/ethnic groups),” states the article.

Given the level of investment that California makes in the HSCB career academies, the authors recommend future research that uses a control or comparison group of students who did not participate in the academies so that stronger conclusions can be drawn about the impact of the academies.

Visit this Career and Technical Education Research web page to read the abstract and purchase the full article.