Under West Virginia Board of Education Policy 2510, each student in grades 8 through 12 must have a Personalized Education Plan (PEP). The plan is developed collaboratively by the student, their guardians and their education team. In 8th grade, the first phase of the PEP identifies a career cluster and the student's course selections for grades 9 and 10.

The challenge: a plan without exploration

The PEP asks an 8th grader to identify a career cluster, and that choice helps shape the courses a student takes in high school. A student who has seen only a few careers will choose from a short list. Without exploration, the plan can record a guess instead of a real interest.

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 West Virginia schools. Students could choose more than one answer, and some responded more than once.

Dual enrollment

Dual enrollment in West Virginia

West Virginia's LevelUpWV dual enrollment pilot program, created by the Legislature in 2023 at W. Va. Code 18B-14-4, is administered by the Higher Education Policy Commission and the Council for Community and Technical College Education. It lets high school juniors and seniors earn college credit tuition-free in pathways leading to careers in high-demand fields. The Commission's rule provides that participation in the pilot shall be at no cost to the participating student. The program is a four-year pilot, and Commission materials describe 2026-27 as its concluding year.

Students who explore careers and majors early, for example through daily exploration on a 13th Year™ kiosk, can pick dual enrollment courses that build toward a specific goal instead of collecting unrelated credits.

Official program information: West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission and Council for Community and Technical College 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

  • Explore before choosing a cluster. The first phase of the PEP identifies a career cluster in 8th grade. Give students time to explore colleges, skilled trades, military service and careers before they make that choice.
  • Tie exploration to personalized credits. Policy 2510 divides graduation credits between prescribed credits and personalized credits that are individualized to each student. Students who have explored their options can explain why a course belongs in their plan.
  • Bring guardians into the conversation. The PEP is developed by the student, their guardians and their education team. Encourage students to share what they explored, so the family conversation starts with the student's own interests.
  • 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. Students who have explored their options bring real interests to the career cluster and course choices in their Personalized Education Plan. It supports, and does not replace, West Virginia's Personalized Education Plan 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 West Virginia high schools, or request a kiosk for your school.