Career guidance with AI: Innovative approaches to student streamlining

Applying artificial intelligence (AI) to personalize learning and career paths is considered a solution in line with technology trends.

Students of Mien Dong College (Binh Phuoc ward) during practice. Photo: Contributor

This initiative also represents a new approach to achieving the goals of student streaming and developing high-quality human resources, in line with the Draft Resolution of the 1st Provincial Party Congress for the term 2025-2030.

Expectations from the Party's policies

The Draft Resolution of the 1st Provincial Party Congress, term 2025-2030, has identified the goals for education and training as: Continuing to fundamentally and comprehensively innovate education and training, linked to the requirements of socio-economic development and the labor market. Building a team of education managers suitable for the 2-level local government model. Building an open, interconnected education system that promotes lifelong learning and fosters a learning society.

A key highlight is the commitment to comprehensive digital transformation. This endeavor involves the widespread adoption and robust application of digital technology and artificial intelligence (AI) in education and training, with the goal of creating intelligent learning environments and fostering lifelong learning. It can be said that this serves as the "compass" guiding educational institutions in modernizing teaching methods and career orientation efforts.

According to a representative of the Board of Rectors of Binh Phuoc College (Binh Phuoc Ward), in reality, student "streaming" after general education still faces numerous challenges, particularly in shifting public perceptions. This further underscores the need for effective and practical communication and career counseling efforts from the lower secondary level to be truly effective.

In particular, career guidance and "streaming" have been elevated to a strategic priority. This reality means promoting the training of a workforce aligned with emerging industries, with a focus on vocational training for rural laborers and workers in ethnic minority areas. It also involves strengthening student "streaming" in general education and effectively organizing career guidance and job counseling activities. The ultimate goal is to develop a workforce "with qualifications, skills, thinking, and scientific working methods, capable of meeting the demands of the scientific and technological revolution and digital transformation."

The Draft Resolution of the 1st Dong Nai Provincial Party Congress for the 2025–2030 term, along with Resolution 71-NQ/TW dated August 22, 2025 of the Politburo on breakthrough development in education and training, and the amended Draft Law on Vocational Education, which includes provisions on the vocational secondary school model, serve as solid foundations and key premises for shifting social perceptions of vocational and general education. These documents help parents and students develop a more accurate understanding of the value of Vocational Education.

The implementation of these policies and regulations is expected to have a positive impact on student "streaming," particularly after lower secondary school. It will open up a wider range of learning and employment opportunities for students, while diversifying educational pathways. This endeavor marks a strategic shift, making student "streaming" more practical, flexible, and humane, in alignment with the goal of developing a high-quality workforce in the new era.

Currently, Dong Nai has a total of 76 vocational education facilities, including 12 colleges, 7 intermediate schools, 18 vocational education - continuing education centers, 14 vocational education centers, 11 enterprises participating in vocational education activities, and 14 joint training schools.

AI applications in career guidance

Student "streaming" is no longer viewed as a matter of simply "taking a turn," but rather as "opening a suitable path for development," as education administrators describe it. High schools and vocational institutions in Dong Nai province have been implementing a range of positive solutions, with a strong focus on personalization and technology.

At Nguyen Cong Tru Secondary School (Hung Thinh Commune), career guidance is identified as a key task. Than Truc Diep, Vice Principal of the school, shared: “The post-secondary education orientation is not only a learning orientation but also the first step in the career journey. Because, when each student chooses a path that suits their abilities and interests, linked to the practical needs of society, success will come naturally and last longer.”

Nguyen Cong Tru Secondary School has implemented a range of activities to support career guidance, including integrating career-related content into lessons, conducting surveys on the interests and abilities of grade 9 students at the beginning of the school year, and organizing field trips to factories and enterprises. The school has also gradually adopted information technology and AI tools in its teaching to create a digital learning environment, enabling students to be proactive, creative, and develop digital skills, serving as a key factor in future career orientation.

Technology factors, especially AI applications, have been introduced by vocational training institutions as a breakthrough solution.

Le Thuan, Head of Training at FPT Polytechnic College, Dong Nai campus, affirmed that AI is an indispensable tool in career guidance in the digital age. In the context of digital transformation and the rapid growth of AI, the education and training sector can utilize AI to analyze learners' personal data, including interests, skills, academic performance, and personality, in order to recommend data-driven learning pathways.

Thuan explained that deployable AI solutions include personalized recommendations for courses and certifications aligned with career goals, 24/7 consulting chatbots that provide instant career guidance information, employment trend forecasting, comprehensive skill assessments through digital platforms, and the use of AI in career communication, such as creating career simulation videos.

“These solutions help learners access suitable career paths, save time for consulting, and better prepare for the labor market,” Thuan affirmed.

The application of AI and digital transformation in career guidance and streaming is the clearest evidence that Dong Nai educational institutions are gradually concretizing Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW. At the same time, this is also a good way to achieve the goals of education and training, including the goal of streamlining students, as stated in the Draft Resolution of the Provincial Party Congress.

By Hai Yen - Translated by Quoc Dung, Minho