The possession of a high school diploma is a well-known indicator of income, quality of work life, social support, mental and physical health. The Quebec state, with its lifelong learning policy (Gouvernement du Québec, 2002), has adopted diverse measures in support of the acquisition of a first diploma by adults (18 to 64). More than 10 % of adults in Quebec do not have a secondary diploma. In continuity of that policy, we have documented the specific needs for lifelong guidance services of adults without a diploma. Even if they receive services, this specific population is understudied by the research communities of lifelong guidance, vocational guidance, career counselling and career development. They are present in studies about low-educated and/or low-skilled adults (e.g. special issue of the British Journal of Guidance & Counselling), adults in a situation of precarity or far from the job market (e.g. Michaud, Bélisle, Bourdon, Garon & Dionne, 2012) but rarely with specific analyses.
The goal of this mixed-method research was to document the lifelong guidance (orientation professionnelle) needs of adults without a diploma. Combining group and individual interviews (n=135) and a Quebec-wide telephone survey (n=450), this communication will focus on characteristics and lifelong guidance social representation of adults without a diploma and give a portrait of their limited access to lifelong, vocational or career guidance services (Bélisle et Bourdon, 2015, in French). We also want to open a dialogue on the contribution of research and practice in lifelong guidance to social justice and the emancipation of adults without a first diploma or low skilled adults (CEDEFOP, 2016).
