WHY STUDENTS SHOULD DO MORE JOB SHADOWS

Job shadows are a great opportunity for students to explore possible career paths to take, get a better understanding of what working in a field is really like and how to enter, and are great experiences to add to resumes. Plus, opportunities also tend to lead to more opportunities. Yet, not nearly enough students at Clear Creek Amana High School are taking the free and accessible opportunity to do job shadows through Workplace Learning Connection at Kirkwood Community College.

Workplace Learning Connection (WLC) began in 1998 as a non-profit and became its own department at Kirkwood in 2011. The program gives high school students in Benton, Cedar, Iowa, Johnson, Jones, Linn, and Washington Counties the chance to explore careers through fairs, job shadows, and internships. 

“We would love it if more students participated. We see that these experiences have a valuable impact on students and we want more students to be involved,” Kristine Bullock, the Director of WLC at Kirkwood, told The Anchor. “We know these experiences help students explore potential career plans and the steps they need to reach their career goals.” 

Job shadows give students further insight as to what training or education they will need to go into a specific field and experience first-hand what a typical day of work is like in a two to four hour visit. High schoolers get to network with businesses they may not have otherwise heard of. Many students have gone on to later be hired by the businesses they had done job shadows at. 

94% of students who completed a job shadow through WLC said they got an increased awareness of local career opportunities and 89% say the job shadow influenced their selection of a career field and helped them decide according to WLC. 

Each year the program continues to grow. In the 2024-2025 school year, over 4,500 students participated in job shadows. This school year, over 4,700 students have completed a job shadow. WLC was recognized as a Top 10 work-based learning program in the Career Z Challenge by the Department of Education in 2025. 

Corie Williams is the secretary at CCAHS, she oversees attendance and knows how many and how often students are called out to attend job shadows. She believes that job shadows are a great way students can learn what job opportunities are out there for them post high school graduation.

“I don’t think enough students take advantage of the opportunities of job shadows,” Williams said. “The kids who do take advantage of it do tend to go on job shadows frequently but for the number of kids in our school who have the opportunity available to them, not enough participate.”

Bailey Anderson is a sophomore at CCAHS and her job shadowing experiences have given her the opportunity to explore what it would be like to be a first responder. Last October at the North Liberty Police Department, she learned about the process of becoming a police officer, what they do on an everyday basis, and the kinds of technology they use. She also recently went on a job shadow to learn more about EMS.

BAILEY ANDERSON AMONG OTHER STUDENTS AT A JOB SHADOW LEARNING ABOUT EMS; PHOTO PROVIDED BY BAILEY ANDERSON

“I really enjoyed the job shadow. Because of it, I took classes through Kirkwood this year more about education to make sure that this is something I want to go into after high school,” Robinson said. “It was a great opportunity to see what my future could look like and understand what a school day looks like from a teacher's perspective and not a student’s.” 

She enjoyed the chance to ask an experienced teacher questions about what the job is like. Another student accompanied Robinson and asked questions she hadn’t thought of, which she appreciated because she got to learn more. 

Her job shadow experience helped her find a career she can continue to explore and so she recommends that other students try a job shadow to help them find what field they want to go into.

“Whether you know what you want to do with your future or you don't, this opportunity is incredible for anyone. Being able to learn about different careers that you might have never had an interest in before could help you find what you're actually interested in,” Robinson says. “Even if you do a job shadow and end up hating it, at least you know what not to do, and you don't have to worry about the cost of figuring that out later down the road.” 

The next opportunity for students to apply for a job shadow will be in August 2026. There are three application openings a year. Sophomores, juniors, and seniors can apply up to all three portal openings.