Career Assessments
Encyclopedia
Career assessments are tools that are designed to help individuals understand how a variety of personal attributes (i.e., interests, values, preferences, motivations, aptitudes and skills), impact their potential success and satisfaction with different career options and work environments. Assessments of some or all of these attributes are often used by individuals or organizations, such as university career service centers, career counselors, outplacement
companies, corporate human resources staff, executive coaches, vocational rehabilitation counselors, and guidance counselors to help individuals make more informed career decisions.
On average, a professional changes career paths 4-5 times in a lifetime. Such career changes may occur because the candidates are unable to choose the best career path in regard to their aptitude, skills and personal values. Or because the career path they chose is no longer viable (to wit, buggy whip makers are no longer in high demand). Or because as people mature throughout the lifespan their interests evolve. The biggest benefit of career assessments, therefore, is that it enables candidates to make the best career decision to grow both personally and professionally.
To make an assessment of their skills, candidates can either take a career aptitude test or conduct a self-assessment. There are a myriad of helpful books, the most famous of which is, Richard Bolles, What Color is Your Parachute. In addition, they can seek expert help from career counselors, or when warranted, psychologists or other mental health professionals. These professionals use a variety of techniques to determine the talents of candidates. Also, career counselors can guide candidates on how to go about planning their career to achieve professional success.
The current trend of consulting career coaches can be useful in some cases. However, not all individuals with workplace unhappiness, or unemployment truly have a, "career" problem. For some uncertainty about career goals or workplace difficulties is indicative of a psychological conflict. For these individuals, career testing and career counseling are often of little value. Instead, these individuals should seek a consultation from a psychologist or a psychoanalyst with a specialty in work-life (career) concerns. How does one know whether on needs career coaching (or counseling) or psychotherapy? To answer this question, Lynn Friedman, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist, psychoanalyst who specializes in work-life and relationship concerns developed a psychoanalytically-informed, career assessment..
Outplacement
Outplacement is a term used to describe efforts made by a downsizing company to help former employees through the transition to new jobs and help them re-orientate to the job market...
companies, corporate human resources staff, executive coaches, vocational rehabilitation counselors, and guidance counselors to help individuals make more informed career decisions.
Types of career assessments
Career assessments come in many forms and vary along several dimensions. The assessments selected by individuals or administrators vary depending on their personal beliefs regarding the most important criteria when considering career choices, as well as the unique needs of the individual considering a career decision. Some common points of variance are:- Methodology - Some assessments are quantitative in nature and precisely measure key attributes believed to influence an individuals potential success and satisfaction with a career. Others are qualitative exercises designed to help individuals clarify their goals and preferences, which can then be used to make more informed career decisions.
- Measured attributes - Assessments vary with regard to the specific personality attributes measured. Some assessments focus on an individual's interests, and perhaps aptitudeAptitudeAn aptitude is an innate component of a competency to do a certain kind of work at a certain level. Aptitudes may be physical or mental...
, while others focus on skills or values.
- Validity - Many assessments, particularly those offered on the internet, lack evidence for "validity," which is the degree to which interpretation of the results of the assessment or decisions made from the results are useful. Typical evidence of validity is validated empirically. Users should evaluate any tests psychometric properties when assessing whether to use it for a particular purpose, and how much weight to give to the results. When the validity of the assessment for it's intended purpose cannot be evaluated, results should be interpreted with appropriate caution.
- Target customer profile - Some assessments, such as the Strong Interest InventoryStrong Interest InventoryThe Strong Interest Inventory is an interest inventory used in career assessment. The goal of this test is to give insight into a person's interests, so that they may have less difficulty in deciding on an appropriate career choice for themselves. It is also frequently used for educational...
, the Myers Briggs Type Indicator, and CareerscopeCareerscopeCareerScope is a standardized and timed interest and aptitude assessment for career guidance. The system is widely used in schools, job training programs and in rehabilitation agencies and has been validated against widely recognized criteria. CareerScope delivers an objective assessment that is...
are designed to serve broad markets (i.e., virtually any individual choosing a vocational program or Career ClustersCareer ClustersCareer Clusters provide students with a context for studying traditional academics and learning the skills specific to a career, and provide U.S. schools with a structure for organizing or restructuring curriculum offerings and focusing class make-up by a common theme such as interest.In the U.S...
, starting their career or considering a career change).
Benefits
Career assessments are designed to discover the skills, aptitude and talents of candidates. Today, a self-assessment can be helpful to find assess the areas in which a candidate has strengths and where they are weak. Assessment results can be useful in helping candidates to choose a career that is in tune with their goals.On average, a professional changes career paths 4-5 times in a lifetime. Such career changes may occur because the candidates are unable to choose the best career path in regard to their aptitude, skills and personal values. Or because the career path they chose is no longer viable (to wit, buggy whip makers are no longer in high demand). Or because as people mature throughout the lifespan their interests evolve. The biggest benefit of career assessments, therefore, is that it enables candidates to make the best career decision to grow both personally and professionally.
To make an assessment of their skills, candidates can either take a career aptitude test or conduct a self-assessment. There are a myriad of helpful books, the most famous of which is, Richard Bolles, What Color is Your Parachute. In addition, they can seek expert help from career counselors, or when warranted, psychologists or other mental health professionals. These professionals use a variety of techniques to determine the talents of candidates. Also, career counselors can guide candidates on how to go about planning their career to achieve professional success.
Drawbacks
Career assessment, in the form of tests and other structured and unstructured tools, can be very useful for those who are uncertain about the array of career possibilities. However, there are some drawbacks to each. At best, the results of individual career assessments provide targeted information that may not address a particular individual's needs. In addition, some of the best individual assessment tools require the help of a qualified professional to ensure the results are interpreted correctly and usefully.The current trend of consulting career coaches can be useful in some cases. However, not all individuals with workplace unhappiness, or unemployment truly have a, "career" problem. For some uncertainty about career goals or workplace difficulties is indicative of a psychological conflict. For these individuals, career testing and career counseling are often of little value. Instead, these individuals should seek a consultation from a psychologist or a psychoanalyst with a specialty in work-life (career) concerns. How does one know whether on needs career coaching (or counseling) or psychotherapy? To answer this question, Lynn Friedman, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist, psychoanalyst who specializes in work-life and relationship concerns developed a psychoanalytically-informed, career assessment.
See also
- CareerCareerCareer is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as a person's "course or progress through life ". It is usually considered to pertain to remunerative work ....
- Career developmentCareer developmentIn organizational development , the study of career development looks at:*how individuals manage their careers within and between organizations and,...
- Holland CodesHolland CodesThe Holland Codes or the Holland Occupational Themes represents a set of personality types described in a theory of careers and vocational choice formulated by psychologist John L. Holland...
- Myers-Briggs Type IndicatorMyers-Briggs Type IndicatorThe Myers-Briggs Type Indicator assessment is a psychometric questionnaire designed to measure psychological preferences in how people perceive the world and make decisions...
- Occupational Outlook HandbookOccupational Outlook HandbookThe Occupational Outlook Handbook is a publication of the United States Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics that includes information about the nature of work, working conditions, training and education, earnings, and job outlook for hundreds of different occupations. The Handbook is...
- Personality psychologyPersonality psychologyPersonality psychology is a branch of psychology that studies personality and individual differences. Its areas of focus include:* Constructing a coherent picture of the individual and his or her major psychological processes...
- Standard Occupational Classification SystemStandard Occupational Classification SystemThe Standard Occupational Classification System is a United States government system of classifying occupations. It was developed in response to a growing need for a universal occupational classification system. Such a classification system would allow government agencies and private industry to...
- Enneagram of PersonalityEnneagram of PersonalityThe Enneagram of Personality is a model of human personality which is principally used as a typology. Principally developed by Oscar Ichazo and Claudio Naranjo, it is also partly based on earlier teachings of G. I. Gurdjieff...