Career Counseling

What is Career Counseling?

Career counseling helps people to figure out what career path is right for them. The field of career counseling is based on the principle that people spend much of their lives working and that the work they do should be enjoyable and also fit with who they are as a person. A person’s career should not be something they dread. A career should match with their personal values and goals.

What Does a Career Counselor Do?

Career counseling is a form of counseling in which a counselor would meet with people to discuss their career interests and possibilities for what career path they might want to take. To do this, a career counselor completes certain types of personality tests, such as the Myers-Briggs test, to help the client to have a better picture of who that person is. Career counselors learn about their client’s natural tendencies, their values, what is important to them, their temperament, and their interests.

Career counselors meet with clients usually on a one-on-one basis to talk about these topics. Sometimes they might work with people who have been employed at an agency for many years and who are just not satisfied and really want a change in life. They might also work with people who are in college or even high school that have not had much work experience. These people might come to them to get a better sense of what direction they should take.

A career counselor’s client base can be very diverse. They work at various agencies, as well. Some might work at high schools, colleges or universities. Some might work in private practice. Some might work for social services offices or employment agencies, as well.

Why Do We Need Career Counselors?

Career counselors perform many important functions for many people. For high school and college students, career counselors offer assistance in narrowing down one’s areas of interest such that post-secondary education can be molded to fit those goals. As a result of working with a career counselor, these students can take the college courses or pursue technical training that will allow them to achieve their career goals.

People that have been fired or have quit their job can also benefit from the services of a career counselor. Career counselors provide guidance in finding the resources people need to retrain for a new job. This might include providing assessments to help job seekers determine where their occupational interest are at, and helping those people find classes or training that will help them transition into a new job.

Workers that have stable employment but might have lost some of their enthusiasm for their job can also reap benefits from working with a career counselor. Career counselors help workers develop an improved attitude toward work, help them achieve a better work/life balance, and get workers back to enjoying their careers through career counseling.