Department of Education ‘Life Launcher’ Digital Experience

The Department of Industry engaged The Customer Experience Company as the NSW Government aspired to increase enrolments in Vocational Education and Training (VET). Generations of entrenched negative perceptions of VET from students, parents and teachers have resulted in many students going to university, when they would get better outcomes from VET. Good design and behavioural insights techniques were needed to overcome the lack of quality information available and large cognitive barriers that stopped students from exploring VET as a viable first choice option. (Note: LifeLauncher now resides within the Department of Education)

CEC designed and tested LifeLauncher - a personalised digital experience that enabled students to make informed decisions about career choices: www.lifelauncher.nsw.gov.au By conducting empathetic research, we identified school-leavers: - Found it difficult to manage overwhelming amounts of information. - Found available career resources were disjointed and ad hoc. - Procrastinated in their decision making due to fear of the future. LifeLauncher addressed these insights by providing a single source of truth for tertiary education and a way for students to manage their research in one place. In doing so, it has prompted more students to explore and consider VET options.

Today, with over 93,000 unique users, LifeLauncher has become the "go-to" for high school Career Advisors as a starting point for career exploration. In a survey, 56% of students used LifeLauncher to find a post-school option. The Educational Pathways for the Future Reform Project shows that while students are increasingly likely to go to university, they are more likely to drop out due to choosing non-optimal post-secondary options. LifeLauncher helps advisors facilitate discussions on this topic by focusing on both careers and courses, helping students make more informed choices about their future occupation.

To support prospective students in their study and career search, LifeLauncher includes the following features: - Personality and subject quizzes - The quizzes help prospective students unpack their strengths with a simple set of questions to understand their skills, capabilities and interests. Students receive a recommended list of study/career options to explore further at the end of each quiz. - Statistics and career outcomes - Career outcomes are a significant decision making factor for students. LifeLauncher displays this information in an easy to digest way and enables students to filter by role or industry sector. - Pinboard - Students can pin career/course options when browsing. Within the pinboard, students can set goals and categorise their career/course shortlist into their custom set goals.