Montana gives schools a set of structures for student planning. The Montana Board of Public Education sets minimum graduation requirements, and each district adopts its own graduate profile as part of its accreditation planning. The Office of Public Instruction has also developed updated Montana Career Pathways, with formal implementation set for the 2026-2027 school year.

The challenge: a plan without exploration

A pathway or a four-year course plan is only as good as what the student has had a chance to see. A pathway chosen before a student has explored colleges, skilled trades, military service and careers can become a schedule and nothing more. In a state where districts shape much of the planning process, exploration is what turns course selection into a plan.

What students tell us

Across the 13th Year™ network, students are most open early, and their options narrow as graduation gets closer:

  • 32%of 9th graders are weighing more than one path after high school. By 12th grade, 16% are.
  • 53%of 9th graders are interested in more than one career field, compared with 33% of seniors.
  • 11%of 9th graders say they are not sure yet what comes next. Only 2% of seniors say so.
  • 23%of students planning on college are also considering another path, such as the skilled trades, the military, work or a business of their own.

For planning, that means the most valuable exploration happens in the first years of high school, while students are still open to what they find.

Figures come from more than 3,800 responses students submitted at 13th Year™ kiosks and school links across the 13th Year™ network in 2026, not only Montana schools. Students could choose more than one answer, and some responded more than once.

Dual enrollment

Dual enrollment in Montana

The Montana University System (MUS) offers Dual Enrollment to Montana high school and homeschool students. Through the One-Two-Free program, students may take their first two dual enrollment courses, or up to six credits, tuition free at participating MUS campuses, and each additional course is charged the dual enrollment tuition rate of 50% of resident two-year tuition. MUS waives fees for dual enrollment students, although course fees may apply for particular courses, and students who demonstrate hardship may apply for a scholarship to cover tuition for additional courses. Community colleges and tribal colleges are not part of One-Two-Free, though MUS notes they offer similar free or reduced dual enrollment tuition programs.

Students who explore career interests early, for example through daily exploration on a 13th Year™ kiosk, can use their two tuition free courses on classes that point toward a credential or degree they actually want.

Official program information: Montana University System (Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education) →

What students need before the planning meeting

The most productive planning conversations happen when a student walks in with something to talk about: a career they read about, a program that surprised them, a question about the military or an apprenticeship. That kind of curiosity comes from exposure, and exposure works best when it is frequent, self-directed and part of the school day.

Practical ways to build exploration into the year

  • Introduce pathways through exploration. As schools work with the updated Montana Career Pathways, let students explore careers first so a pathway choice reflects real interest.
  • Connect exploration to the graduate profile. Each Montana district adopts a graduate profile. Ask students which options they explored fit the attributes that profile describes.
  • Use the state's free tools alongside it. The Office of Public Instruction has announced free access to Level All's digital platform for Montana schools, educators and families. Students who explore on their own first get more from those resources.
  • Make exploration self-serve. Let students explore on their own time, so counselor time goes to the conversations that need it.

Where the Student Pathway System™ goes

13th Year™ places an interactive college and career kiosk in a school's hallway, a modern guidance resource students use before, during and after school. That steady exploration gives students something concrete to bring to pathway and course planning conversations. It supports, and does not replace, a district's own planning process and school counselors.

For administrators, the questions are usually privacy and workload. The 13th Year™ platform is FERPA aligned and designed with student privacy considerations in mind. It does not access the high school's student information system, and no student data is sold. Kiosks come at no cost to the school, and 13th Year™ delivers, installs and supports every kiosk, so it is built to support your counselors, not burden them.

See how 13th Year™ supports Montana high schools, or request a kiosk for your school.