Report on the U.S. Higher Education Guidance Counselor Training Session held in Kathmandu
Overview
The U.S. Higher Education Guidance Counselor Training Sessions took place on April 5-6, 2024 and April 7-8, 2024 at USEF Nepal, Kathmandu. The session started from 09:30am to 04:30pm and breakfast, lunch and hi-tea were provided to the participants by the organizer. Along with the trainers from SEBS, the representative from USEF, Priyani Shah was physically present at the session.
Participants
For the first session, there were 26 participants (15 male, 11 female) on April 5, 2024 and 25 participants (14 male, 11 female) on April 6, 2024. For the second session, there were 27 participants (18 male, 9 female) on April 7, 2024 and 26 participants (17 male, 9 female) on April 8, 2024. After reaching out to 56 high schools in Kathmandu through emails, phone calls, messages through WhatsApp and Viber, ads on Kantipur (national newspaper) and Facebook, there were registrations from 54 different schools (82 participants) and participation from 40 different schools (53 participants). Through a community on WhatsApp, the participants and facilitators are maintaining contact with each other.
Evaluation
Through the pre-test and post-test of 10 marks, which the participants gave before the training and after the completion of the training, this training program’s impact is evaluated. For the first session, there has been a 45% increase in the mean score from 3.1 on the pre-test to 4.5 on the post-test. For the second session, there has been an 18% increase in the mean score from 4.4 on the pre-test to 5.2 on the post-test. Overall, there has been a 29% increase in the mean score from 3.8 on the pre-test to 4.9 on the post-test.
Feedback
The participants filled out a feedback form at the end of the training session for the facilitators to reflect upon. Many participants were very satisfied with the program and found it to be highly relevant to their needs. They commended the organization and logistics of the program. The trainers were also rated on different categories: trainer Srijana Chettri received a mean rating of 4.66 out of 5 (first session-4.81 and second session-4.51), trainer Hemendra Bohra received a mean rating of 4.25 out of 5 (first session-4.26 and second session-4.24), and trainer Abbal Dhakal received a mean rating of 4.43 out of 5 (first session-4.42 and second session-4.44).
Photos of the Program
