Exploring options: Students at a recent Schola career exploration fair.
INDUSTRIES and businesses can inspire students and create impact without needing to make huge investments in grand, resource-heavy programmes, says Mahalatchmi Subramaniam, vice president of the Creador Foundation and head of Schola.
“Start small. Look at your immediate community — your zip code, your school district. Schools are eager for partnerships, but often don’t know where to look.
“Simply reaching out to offer a career talk or a short programme already builds a bridge,” she said.
She encourages professionals to keep three guiding questions in mind when engaging with students: “What information do I want to share? When is the right time for them to hear it? How do I want them to feel after?”
In April this year, Schola hosted its first on-ground event, “Apa Kata Pakar” booths with professionals from over 40 careers in diverse industries.
The event included career personality quizzes, financial reality games, and photo booths — all designed to spark curiosity and confidence.
Held in KL, students arrived with “career coupons” in hand — a creative tool to engage directly with professionals and explore pathways they might never have considered.
Mahalatchmi said the event exceeded expectations, as students actively asked questions, discovered new career paths, and gained a fresh perspective on what their futures could look like.
Many adults assume that students do not know how to engage with professionals but Schola proves otherwise, she said.
“We don’t give young people enough credit.
“I’ve seen lightbulb moments when students engage with professionals and those who had never even heard of consulting as a career were suddenly saying, ‘That’s what I want to do,’” Mahalatchmi shared.
Launched in 2024, Schola is a nonprofit platform designed to guide students through the school-to-career transition.
Through in-depth interviews with 230 professionals across various industries, Schola has developed over 150 job guides that provide students with real-life career insights.
Users can take a simple and fun career personality quiz that matches them to a diverse list of jobs, match their favourite subjects to potential career options, and filter pathways to explore science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and technical and vocational education training (TVET) fields.
By prioritising practical engagement, Schola aims to turn abstract career advice into tangible experiences that students can relate to and learn from.
“Schola’s approach draws from international research, including Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Gatsby benchmarks, which highlight the importance of real-world exposure through job shadowing, career talks, and hands-on experiences, in preparing young people for life beyond school,” she said.
