What is Pathfinder?
Pathfinder is a career exploration tool designed to provide real-time, value-added information for users to make more informed decisions on education and career opportunities.
Frequently Asked Questions
A list of common questions and answers regarding Pathfinder.
How does Pathfinder assist in Educational Development Plan development?
Pathfinder provides career development education for all grades. As a State of Michigan product, Pathfinder offers wage outcomes specific to Michigan postsecondary schools as well as state occupational information. School districts can customize student dashboards, so they might choose to include a link to Pathfinder to encourage students to explore state information. Educators could instruct students to research Pathfinder for additional information.
Where does this information come from?
CTE information is provided by the Michigan Department of Education's Office of Career and Technical Education Information System (CTEIS) with details added by individual area school directors and (Classification of Instructional Programs) CIP code descriptions provided by the National Center for Education Statistics Public high school and post-secondary college information is provided by the Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI) which houses information entered by the schools. Occupation wage data, projections and job growth data are provided by the Michigan Bureau of Labor Market information and Strategic Initiatives (LMI) . Wage data is provided by the State of Michigan's Unemployment Insurance wage record system from data submitted by employers. For more information please refer Data Documentation.
How current is the information?
The individual databases are downloaded after their yearly updates from the sources, such as high schools, colleges and training providers, College Scorecard, etc.
How do I know a Hot Job will still be needed after I get training?
The Hot 50 is assembled every two years and contains projections for annual openings, hourly wage range and job growth seven years into the future.
How do I find schools outside of Michigan?
Visit the Department of Education's College Scorecard website which provides information for colleges around the nation. You can also use online search platforms (such as Google) and type the name of the state’s college, for example: Colleges in Missouri.