career special settings and future possibilities

CAREER SPECIAL SETTINGS AND FUTURE POSSIBILITIESReport by: Ms. Lovely Joy B. Bustos

Trends and Issues in Career Information

A. CHANGING DEMOGRAPHICS

Key trends in our changing demographic picture that will involve career planning professionals include:-- A significantly smaller number of 18-to 24-year-old students than in years past.-- A growth of some racial minorities into majorities in many sections of the country.-- More than half of all jobs will be held by women.-- Significant numbers of people will be working part-time (Kauffman, 1988).

B. THE INCREASING ROLE OF COMPUTERS IN CAREER PLANNING

Computer Networking. The advent of a personal computer and a modem allow career planning professionals to tap into employment opportunities for their students from around the nation.

Database Applications. Colleges and universities across the country are using databases for the listing, storage, and retrieval of career information. Whether on a mainframe, mini-, or micro-computer, colleges are turning to database software systems to store and automate every aspect of their career planning operations.

B. THE INCREASING ROLE OF COMPUTERS IN CAREER PLANNING

Desktop Publishing. Another major revolution computers have brought to career planning is the near typeset quality of documents that can be produced with a computer, a laser printer, and a desktop publishing software package. Career centers are now designing their own brochures, forms, stationery, and publications such as job vacancy bulletins, job hunting guides, and employment preparation handouts. Written communications of all sorts are being transformed through the use of this new technology.

C. A NEW ORIENTATION TO INTERNATIONAL EMPLOYMENT

The international status of our economy requires that career planning professionals expand their counseling orientation beyond regional, state, and national boundaries. In 1987 and 1988 a career fair, organized by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry of Japan and Boston University, brought together Japanese and American firms operating in Japan with graduating college students from around the United States. The career fair drew students with Japanese language skills from colleges and universities all over the United States (Oishi, 1988).

D. VIDEO TAPE TECHNOLOGY

Most colleges offer some form of videotaped "mock interview program" to assist students in refining their interviewing skills. However, the uses of video technology have grown far beyond this application. Most career planning centers now have a comprehensive videotape library. Libraries contain tapes on employer organizations to assist students in preparing for employment interviews, self-help tapes on job search strategy, resume and cover-letter writing, and interviewing techniques. Most students, having grown up with the television, are accustomed to acquiring new information through the television.

E. INCREASED EMPHASIS ON MARKETING

Marketing can be an effective method to stay in touch with the changing needs of students and employers and allow career planning professionals to design and offer programs and services that meet user needs. This is especially significant in light of the nation's changing demographic picture, and our evolving national economic outlook. Mergers, down-sizing, and economic shifts are causing employers to reassess their human resources needs on a regular basis. A comprehensive view of marketing can allow career planning professionals to remain in touch with the changing needs of the employers and students they serve (Kotler & Fox, 1986).

II. Career Counseling and Career

Development Program

CAREER COUNSELING AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

Your career development is a lifelong process that, whether you know it or not, actually started when you were born! There are a number of factors that influence your career development, including your interests, abilities, values, personality, background, and circumstances. Career Counseling is a process that will help you to know and understand yourself and the world of work in order to make career, educational, and life decisions.

CAREER COUNSELING AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

Career development is more than just deciding on a major and what job you want to get when you graduate. It really is a lifelong process, meaning that throughout your life you will change, situations will change, and you will continually have to make career and life decisions. The goal of Career Counseling is to not only help you make the decisions you need to make now, but to give you the knowledge and skills you need to make future career and life decisions.

Help you figure out who you are and what you want out of your education, your career, and your life.

Be someone for you to talk to about your thoughts, ideas, feelings, and concerns about your career and educational choices, who will help you sort out, organize, and make sense of your thoughts and feelings.

Help you identify the factors influencing your career development, and help you assess your interests, abilities, and values.

Help you locate resources and sources of career information. Help you to determine next steps and develop a plan to achieve your

goals.

YOUR CAREER COUNSELOR WILL:

YOUR CAREER COUNSELOR WON’T:

Tell you what to do, or tell you what you should major in or what career you should pursue.

CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

In all settings, career development programs have some things in common. In each, the program has unique goals and requires specific organizational capabilities, program structure and processes, and staff expertise. In addition, a career development program:

• Is identifiable but integrated with other programs within the institution.

•Enhances the career development knowledge, skills and attitudes of individuals by establishing program standards.


• Uses coordinated activities designed to support individual achievement of the standards.

• Supports the delivery of services through qualified leadership; diversified staffing; adequate facilities, materials and financial resources; and effective management.

• Is accountable, with evaluation that is based on program effectiveness in promoting individual achievement of the career development standards.

PROGRAM PROCESSES

Outreach—provides ongoing information to individuals about the career development services and resources available to them.

Counselling—focuses on the interaction between an individual or a small group and a professional counsellor; helps students and adults explore personal issues related to life/work decisions; examines how to apply information and skills learned to personal plans; and facilitates the building of individualized career plans.

PROGRAM PROCESSES

Assessment—involves the administration and interpretation of a variety of formal and informal measures and techniques to help individuals gain an understanding of their skills, abilities, attitudes, interests, achievements, prior learning experiences, personal style, learning style, work values and lifestyle needs.

Instruction—includes group activities, career-related curricula and peer support groups that help students and adults acquire the knowledge, skills and attitudes outlined in the career development competencies.

PROGRAM PROCESSES

Career Information—encompasses a variety of resources that provide current, unbiased information about work roles, educational programs and work opportunities. Such resources include computer-based career information delivery systems, the Internet, print and media materials, informational interviews, workplace speakers and more.

Work Experience—provides opportunities for students and adults in actual work settings to test life/work decisions and develop effective work attitudes and behaviors. Internships, youth apprenticeships, co-op programs, service projects, volunteerism and paid work are some examples.

PROGRAM PROCESSES

Consultation—assists staff, administrators, trainers, employers and others in areas of needed expertise related to career development.

Referral—develops a network of outside educational institutions, agencies and other organizations to offer additional services needed by students and adults.

Placement—organizes resources and offers assistance so that individuals can make successful transitions from the program to work or further education and training.

Follow-up—establishes and maintains long-term contact with individuals who have made transitions to determine effectiveness of life/work decisions.

PROGRAM STRUCTURE

A solid organizational structure enables successful delivery of the program processes. It is the framework that supports the program’s activities and includes:

Leadership—a program management team usually led by a counsellor or career professional who assumes the role of program coordinator.

Management—a process for organizing program planning, clarifying staff roles and responsibilities, securing resources, monitoring program delivery and revising the program.

PROGRAM STRUCTURE

Personnel—other staff, community resource persons, para-professionals and volunteers who can help serve the wide range of individual career development needs through direct involvement or linkages with other organizations.

Facilities—adequate space, materials and equipment which ensure the delivery of high quality career development services.

Resources—sufficient funds to purchase materials, equipment and other items required to implement a career development program.

CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY

The strategy includes three steps—planning, development/redesign and implementation. The length of the process varies, but to establish a comprehensive career development program typically requires at least a two-year commitment. If you choose to focus on a limited number of competencies through some targeted interventions, your start-up time may be significantly reduced.


Planning requires forming committees and subcommittees, conducting needs assessments, establishing program standards and planning for evaluation.

Development/Redesign includes effective use of committees, reviewing the current career development program, developing a revised program plan, defining staff development needs and designing the evaluation.

Implementation focuses on continued use of committees and subcommittees, conducting staff development, performing the processes and activities outlined in the revised career development program, conducting evaluation and using evaluation results to improve the program.

career special settings and future possibilities

Education