In, “Aptitude Tests: Are They Effective in Opening Students’ Minds to More Career Paths?, “published on Education Week on Apr. 27, 2021, Education Writer Alyson Klein looks at the value of aptitude assessments for matching students to better-fit careers.
Klein refers to research from the University of Missouri that compared “high school students’ natural aptitudes with their self-reported interests in four areas: manufacturing, computer technology, construction, and health care.”
The researchers used the YouScience Discovery aptitude assessment and its included interest inventory to examine the gap between self-reported interests and innate aptitudes or talents. Results shows, that particularly for female students, there was a wide gap between personal interests and aptitudes.
Results found that female students had significantly higher aptitudes for the studied fields than they expressed interest in. It also found that male students were 1.6 times more talented at patient care positions that those that showed interest in such careers.