In Wyoming, planning for life after high school starts early and runs through the Hathaway Scholarship Program. State law requires school districts to provide a one-week unit of instruction in eighth grade on preparation for postsecondary education, and it provides for counseling services to students in grades eight through twelve. The Hathaway Success Curriculum then sets out the high school coursework tied to each scholarship level.

The challenge: a plan without exploration

A course plan built around the Success Curriculum tells a student which classes to take. It does not tell them why. When students have not explored what they might do after high school, the eighth grade unit and the yearly counseling review can turn into a checklist of courses instead of a path toward a goal.

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

Dual enrollment

Dual enrollment in Wyoming

Wyoming's Dual and Concurrent Enrollment options are offered under the Postsecondary Education Options Program in W.S. 21-20-201, through which school districts partner with Wyoming's seven community colleges and the University of Wyoming. The Wyoming Community College Commission reports on the program each year. The Wyoming Department of Education states that these college classes for eligible students are free of charge.

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: Wyoming Community College Commission and Wyoming Department of 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

  • Give the eighth grade unit a destination. Wyoming's eighth grade unit of study covers the high school curriculum needed for postsecondary work and the requirements of the Hathaway Scholarship. Early exploration gives eighth graders a goal to connect to that unit.
  • Add the why to the course plan. The Hathaway Success Curriculum gives students a course map. Pair it with exploration of colleges, skilled trades, military service and careers, so students know what the courses are for.
  • Bring more to the counseling review. State law provides for counseling services in grades eight through twelve. Students who have explored on their own arrive at those conversations with questions and options to discuss.
  • 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 can connect the courses in a Hathaway Success Curriculum plan to a goal they chose for themselves. It supports, and does not replace, the Hathaway unit of study, 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 Wyoming high schools, or request a kiosk for your school.