Blog 10: Career

I find career and employment assessments to be vital for all ages.  It aids an individual in the exploration process in finding a career that would match their interest.  Drummond and Jones (2010), state that it is the foundation of career planning.  I believe that when pursuing a job or career it is important to be aware of your interests as well as knowledgeable of what types of careers are out there that may fulfill your calling in life.  Even though the interest assessments are more prominent in high school, they can be given at anytime.  Other situations that these inventories could be useful are when someone is unhappy with their career path or they are going through midlife crisis.

Due to many of us pursuing high school counseling, these inventories educates students  of their options after high school and allows them to discover what their interests are by having them respond to various questions.  It is extensive in the sense that it explores all careers in order to determine the best fit for them.  There was an important component that was mentioned when Drummond and Jones (2010), discussed the Self-directed search online element.  It not only gave the individual a list of possible careers but it included brief descriptions of the career and the education required.  There are various career options that may fit within your interest but a factor that people need to keep in mind is their ability. Career surveys can be an excellent tool; however, some people fail to realize that even though it catches their interest they are not mentally or physically capable of maintaining this job.  The Campbell Interest and Skill Survey caught my eye for this very reason.  This survey not only measures the interest but also self-estimates of skills.  This allows the individual to make smart decisions when pursuing a career.  All jobs require a particular set of skills and abilities.  The skills that an individual acquires can come from educational, word, or personal life experiences. 

Another area of this survey that I liked was the breakdown of the four patterns.  Therefore, if a person takes the assessment the results can be analyzed in order to find the perfect fit.  There are many inventories that are available but all districts use their own.  For example, in the school district of Lancaster they have the strong interest inventory but they tend to use career cruising with the 11^th graders at the high school.  The career cruising allows the students to look at skills, abilities, and their learning styles.  They are also able to research jobs where the tasks, earnings, general information about the workplace, education, training, attributes, and abilities are broken down.  As a school counselor it is important for us to guide students and educate them on careers.  Even though the inventories are geared towards high school students there is many teachable moments throughout elementary and middle school that a counselor could instruct them on careers in general.  In conclusion, I believe that it is never too early to begin informing the youth of today in terms of career. 

Drummond, R. J. and Jones, K. (2010). Assessment procedures for counselors and helping professionals. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.