Program Officer - Career Development
About this opportunity
Post School Pathways Program Program Officer - CareerDevelopment
Reports to: Program Manager - PSP
Key working relationships: Students and alumni, parents and caregivers, school and curriculum teams, facilitators and mentors, the Program Officer - PSP, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL), wellbeing and safeguarding teams, Communications, institutions and employers.
School for Life – Mission
Educating poverty out of existence
About School for Life
School for Life Foundation Uganda (SFLU) is transforming lives in rural Uganda by providing high-quality education, vocational training and essential services such as clean water, healthcare, agricultural training and economic uplift for families. Founded in 2008 by Annabelle Chauncy OAM and David Everett OAM together with local leaders in Mpigi District, SFLU today runs three schools across the Katuuso and Mbazzi Riverside campuses, serving more than 1,700 students.
We don’t just educate. We nourish, support, equip and empower the whole child through our Holistic QualityEducation Model, so that every learner can become a Prosperity Maker: a young leader with the education, skills and character to find meaningful work and lift their family and community out of poverty, for good.
We are entering an exciting phase of growth. Across the School for Life network we reach around 4,500 students a year today, and by 2030 we aim to reach 25,000 vulnerable children in last-mile communities, through our own schools and alongside partners. Our five-year strategy focuses on:
● Quality Education & Learning Outcomes
● Community Empowerment & Livelihoods
● Sustainable Organisational Growth & Partnerships
● Institutional Excellence & Systems Strengthening
● Advocacy, Influence & Research for Impact
Role purpose
The Program Officer - Career Development equips students and alumni with the self-awareness, career direction, practical capabilities and readiness to progress into suitable tertiary education, vocational training, employment, enterprise and other post-school pathways.
The Officer leads individual and group career guidance, ethical assessment and pathway planning; coordinates the development, delivery and improvement of the career-readiness curriculum; and manages the day-to-day implementation of the Prosperity Maker Academy (PMA).
Working with learners, families, schools, programme colleagues and external contributors, the Officer prepareslearners for transition, coordinates appropriate support and referrals, and
monitors participation, learning and progression. The role uses evidence to improve programme delivery while upholding safeguarding, inclusion, confidentiality and learner dignity.
Key responsibilities
1. Career guidance, assessment and individual pathway planning
● Provide structured, age-appropriate individual and group career guidance that considers learners’ interests, strengths, abilities, values, aspirations, academic performance, circumstances and readiness.
● Develop or adapt, administer and interpret approved assessment tools covering interests, strengths, values, aptitude, subject choices, career readiness and employability.
● Explain assessment findings clearly and constructively, recognising their limitations and avoiding labels or interpretations that restrict learners’ potential.
● Support learners to develop, document and regularly review individual career development plans containing preferred pathways, realistic alternatives, milestones, actions, deadlines and support needs.
● Use current course, institution and labour-market information to support informed and realistic decisions.
● Maintain secure, accurate records of assessments, guidance sessions, career plans, referrals and follow-up actions, and help learners and teachers use approved pathway handbooks and resources effectively.
2. Subject, course and pathway decision support across schools and PSP
● Advise learners on subject combinations and academic choices that align with their strengths, pathway goals and realistic entry requirements.
● Help learners compare university, TVET, diploma, certificate, professional, short-course, apprenticeship, employment, enterprise and blended or stackable pathways, including their costs, requirements and progression opportunities.
● Help learners and families recognise the value of diverse pathways and respectfully address choices driven primarily by prestige or external pressure.
● Strengthen application readiness through informed decision-making, motivation, personal statements, supporting narratives and interview preparation.
● Coordinate handovers to the Program Officer - PSP for application administration, document
verification, institution follow-up and scholarship processes.
● Support course-information sessions, education fairs, institution visits and transition workshops, helping learners and families apply the information to their decisions.
3. Career-readiness curriculum development and improvement
● Work with the Head of Education and Learning, schools teams, curriculum team and PSP team to map existing materials, identify gaps, adapt relevant resources and sequence learning by learner age and stage.
● Translate approved Prosperity Maker competencies into learning outcomes, facilitator guides, learner materials, practical activities and assessments for PSP and learners in Primary Five to Senior Six.
● Incorporate relevant labour-market, industry, education and training information, drawing on input from the Program Officer - PSP and other contributors.
● Prepare curriculum pilot plans, cohort-selection inputs, delivery calendars, facilitator-support arrangements and approved learning resources.
● Recruit, orient, train and support teacher-facilitators through approved selection, certification, observation and refresher processes.
● Coordinate delivery-quality reviews, baseline, midline and endline assessments, learner and facilitator feedback,and quarterly improvement cycles with MEL and the Program Manager - PSP.
4. Prosperity Maker Academy planning and delivery
● Translate approved PMA objectives and programme design into annual and cohort workplans, timetables, session plans, facilitator briefs, materials, logistics and participant communications.
● Coordinate learner recruitment, eligibility verification, registration, orientation, attendance, participation, safeguarding arrangements, completion, feedback and alumni follow-up.
● Organise venues, materials, learning technology, facilitators, mentors, coaches, guest speakers, assessments and industry visits with the responsible programme colleagues.
● Deliver or coordinate participatory learning in personal effectiveness, communication,
leadership, critical thinking, problem-solving, teamwork, workplace readiness, digital and financial capability, entrepreneurship and labour-market literacy.
● Use PMA to pilot and refine the career-readiness curriculum, test delivery approaches and capture evidence of learner progress.
● Monitor session quality, learner engagement, facilitator performance, delivery schedules,
participant experience and completion, resolving routine issues and escalating significant concerns.
● Maintain an organised repository of approved session plans, presentations, workbooks, learner outputs, attendance records, assessments, evaluations and improvement actions.
5. Career exposure, mentoring and employability preparation
● Assess learner exposure and readiness needs and develop an annual plan for career talks, role-model sessions, mentoring, workplace visits, career fairs and industry exchanges.
● Work with PSP team and other teams to secure education and training contributors, employers, industry speakers and opportunities for workplace exposure.
● Prepare learners for mentoring, workplace visits, internships, recruitment and tertiary study through clear expectations, practical exercises, professional conduct, reflection and follow-up.
● Deliver practical preparation in goal setting, communication, teamwork, CV and personal-statement writing, interviews, networking, personal branding, presentations, professional etiquette and workplace behaviour.
● Work with Communications Team to develop accessible information on TVET and diverse pathways, complementing approved guidance resources and handbooks.
● Brief external contributors and ensure learner-facing activities are inclusive, relevant to learning objectives and consistent with safeguarding and quality standards.
6. Transition support, family engagement and referrals
● Prepare learners for transitions into tertiary education, training, work-based learning, employment, enterprise and increasingly independent learning and living.
● Lead termly parent and caregiver engagement on subject choices, pathway options, entry
requirements, costs, expectations, alternative routes and effective learner support.
● Work with teachers and school teams on early career awareness, subject decisions, pathway resources, learner readiness and identification of learners requiring additional support.
● Monitor learner actions and transition milestones, follow up emerging barriers and refer
application, scholarship, institutional-placement, employer and financial matters to the responsible Officer.
● Coordinate approved mentoring, learner check-ins and referral arrangements within the PSP student-support approach.
● Identify and document wellbeing, disability, family-pressure and safeguarding concerns,
refer them promptly to qualified personnel and coordinate follow-up within professional competence.
7. Monitoring, evaluation, reporting and learning
● Maintain complete and timely records of guidance, assessments, career plans, curriculum delivery, PMA participation, attendance, completion, mentoring, transition support, referrals and alumni follow-up.
● Track agreed indicators for career readiness, learner confidence, competency development, pathway decisions, participation, completion, transition, employment, entrepreneurship and progression.
● Prepare concise operational updates and periodic reports covering delivery, learner progress, outcomes, feedback, risks, challenges, success stories, decisions required and recommended actions.
● Coordinate baselines, assessments, surveys, destination tracking, outcome verification and data-quality checks with M&E and relevant programme colleagues.
● Use evidence from learners, families, facilitators, mentors, institutions and employers to improve delivery and recommend curriculum, PMA and learner-support improvements to the PSP Manager.
8. Team contribution, professional practice and safeguarding
● Participate in work planning, learner-case reviews, staff learning, programme reviews and coordinated delivery across the PSP team.
● Maintain professional boundaries, confidentiality and secure records in guidance, assessment, mentoring, coaching and referrals.
● Model respectful, inclusive, strengths-based and learner-centred practice, complying with
organisational requirements on safeguarding, consent, professional conduct and data protection.
● Immediately report safeguarding concerns and serious learner-welfare, delivery, compliance or reputational risks through approved channels.
● Undertake other reasonable duties assigned by the PSP Manager that are consistent with
the purpose and level of the role.
Key deliverables
● Current learner profiles, assessment records, individual career development plans and documented guidance and follow-up actions for priority learners.
● An approved, sequenced career-readiness curriculum package containing facilitator guides, learner materials, practical activities and assessments.
● Curriculum pilot plans, trained facilitators, delivery and observation records, assessment evidence, feedback reports and documented improvement actions.
● Approved PMA calendars, cohort registers, attendance records, session materials,
completion records and cohort learning reports.
● Career-exposure, mentoring, application-readiness and transition-preparation plans and materials aligned with learner needs.
● Parent and caregiver engagement records, learner-support plans, referral records and transition follow-up documentation.
● Accurate learner-development data and timely reports supporting management decisions, programme review and future model development.
Measures of success in this role
Specific targets will be agreed annually through work planning and performance management.
● Target learners receive documented career guidance and maintain practical, regularly reviewed career development plans.
● Assessments and learner information are used ethically, interpreted accurately and translated into useful actions.
● Subject, course, institution and pathway guidance improves learner readiness and the alignment of applications and transitions with individual goals and circumstances.
● Career talks, mentoring, exposure, family engagement and employability activities are delivered to plan and appropriately documented.
● PMA enrolment, schedules, sessions, attendance, learner experience, completion and
records meet agreed quality and timeliness standards.
● Learners demonstrate progress against agreed career-readiness, personal-effectiveness, employability, enterprise and transition indicators.
● Learner-support cases and safeguarding or wellbeing concerns are recorded, referred, escalated and followed through appropriately.
● Reports, destination data, feedback and learning are timely, accurate and used to improve delivery and inform the PSP Manager’s strategic decisions.
Core competencies and attributes
1. Provide empathetic, strengths-based career guidance that connects learners’ interests, abilities and circumstances with suitable education, TVET, employment and enterprise pathways through practical individual plans.
2. Apply sound safeguarding and ethical assessment practices, recognise assessment limitations, maintain confidentiality and professional boundaries, and coordinate timely support and referrals while protecting learner dignity.
3. Develop and deliver engaging, inclusive career-readiness curricula, learning materials and assessments adapted to learners’ ages, abilities, languages and diverse learning needs.
4. Equip learners with practical employability, entrepreneurship, digital and financial literacy skills that support workplace readiness, independent living and diverse pathways to prosperity.
5. Coordinate PMA schedules, logistics, resources, facilitators and mentors, managing competing priorities and approved expenditure with attention to detail and reliable follow-through within delegated authority.
6. Communicate verified pathway and labour-market information clearly to learners and families, address misconceptions respectfully and collaborate effectively across school teams, programme colleagues and external partners.
7. Maintain accurate, secure learner records, analyse progress and feedback, and produce concise reports that support accountability, timely problem-solving and continuous programme improvement.
Qualifications and experience
● A bachelor’s degree in Education, Career Guidance and Counselling, Psychology, Social Work or a related field from a recognised university.
● At least two years of relevant experience in career guidance, youth development, employability, education or skills-development programme delivery in a busy and complex environment.
● Demonstrated experience facilitating learning, supporting young people’s career decisions and coordinating workshops, training programmes or learner-support activities.
● Practical knowledge of Uganda’s education and training pathways, including university,
TVET, apprenticeships, employment and enterprise opportunities.
● Additional training in career guidance, coaching, curriculum development, safeguarding or monitoring and evaluation will be an advantage.
Skills and competencies
● Ability to provide empathetic, strengths-based career guidance and help learners develop realistic individual pathway plans.
● Ability to administer and interpret approved career and readiness assessments ethically, recognising their limitations and explaining results clearly.
● Ability to develop and adapt learning materials and facilitate engaging sessions for learners
with diverse abilities, backgrounds and support needs.
● Ability to deliver or coordinate practical learning in employability, entrepreneurship, digital capability, financial literacy and workplace readiness.
● Strong programme coordination skills, including scheduling, logistics, resource management and coordination of facilitators, mentors and speakers.
● Clear written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain pathway information and engage constructively with learners, families, colleagues and external contributors.
● Proficiency in spreadsheets and digital record keeping, with the ability to analyse learner progress, prepare concise reports and use feedback to improve delivery.
● Sound safeguarding and referral judgement, including maintaining confidentiality,
professional boundaries and secure learner records.
Personal qualities and professional attributes
The officer:
● Demonstrates empathy, integrity and respect for learner dignity, with a strong commitment to safeguarding, inclusion and equity.
● Is organised, dependable and attentive to detail, with consistent follow-through on commitments and learner-support actions.
● Shows initiative, adaptability and practical problem-solving skills while managing competing
priorities and working independently within delegated authority.
● Works collaboratively, welcomes feedback, takes responsibility for results and escalates concerns promptly.
Send your CV and cover letter:
By: 1st November, 2026
Safeguarding
We’re committed to ensuring all candidates are screened for child and youth safety. As part of the process, candidates must successfully complete our standard background verification and safeguarding review in accordance with local legal standards. School for Life Foundation reserves the right to withdraw an offer of employment if any screening results indicate potential risks to youth.
