School Career Guidance in Greece was first implemented in 1978 (Law 307/76). This first implementation was experimental and carried out only in a few schools in the two largest cities of Greece, Athens and Thessaloniki, and only in the third grade of the lower Secondary Education schools which are called Gymnasiums (see Figure 1.).

Law 1566/85 constituted the legislative framework for the implementation of the institution in its present-day form. According to the above law, School Career Guidance is compulsory and is implemented in Secondary Education school units by teachers of various disciplines. More particularly, the main target of School Career Guidance is " to develop the students’ personality, as well as inform them about career choices available, and transitional stages in establishing a career and that will introduce them into life and society1”.

From 1985 until 1997 the institution of School Career Guidance was generalized and applied to various grades of the Gymnasium, and the upper Secondary Education schools, while from 1997 until today School Career Guidance has been applied to the 3rd grade of the Gymnasium and to the 1st grade of the Unified Upper Secondary School (Unified Lyceum).

Under a new law passed in 1997 (Law 2525/97) a number of innovations have been introduced into School Career Guidance.  More specifically the following centers have been established

• the National Center for Vocational Orientation,
• sixty eight (68) Guidance and Counselling Centers (Career Centers) at the headquarters of each prefecture, in addition to one at the Ministry of National Education and Religious Affairs and one at the Pedagogical Institute as co-ordinating agent ,
• two hundred (200) pilot School Career Guidance Offices in 200 Secondary Education school units.

The objective of career guidance in secondary education schools is to provide students with the necessary knowledge and appropriate experience in order to be able to:

• attain realistic self-understanding (achieve personal development and self-knowledge and make accurate estimates of personal traits and achievements)
• use information effectively
• develop skills pertinent to effective enquiry, critical processing and exploitation of information,
• develop problem solving and decision making skills
• identify the steps required to gain admission after secondary school  including whom to contact, how  to apply, what capital investment is necessary and the like.

Due to the diversity of its goals Career Guidance became part of the curriculum, while its aims fundamentally prescribe the role of Career Guidance officials in the school.

For a fuller account please read the attached description below.

Career Guidance System in Greece

Preview Info - Greek guidance system.pdf - 28.16 Kb

An overview of the Career Guidance system in Greece, written by by Despina Sidiropoulou-Dimakakou Psychology Department, University of Athens - GREECE

Map of the Greek educational system