An employment counsellor, also known as a career development professional, advises, coaches, provides information to, and supports people who are planning, seeking and managing their life/work direction.

Duties

Career

Career

Career 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 ....

 development professionals help clients of all ages:

• select education
  Education
  Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
  
   and training programs
• balance work and other life roles
• navigate career transitions and stages
• enhance career satisfaction
• find employment
  Employment
  Employment is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. An employee may be defined as:- Employee :...
  
   or self-employment opportunities, write résumé
  Résumé
  A résumé is a document used by individuals to present their background and skillsets. Résumés can be used for a variety of reasons but most often to secure new employment. A typical résumé contains a summary of relevant job experience and education...
  
  s, develop portfolio
  Career portfolio
  Career portfolios are used to plan, organize and document education, work samples and skills. People use career portfolios to apply to jobs, apply to college or training programs, get a higher salary, show transferable skills, and to track personal development. They are more in-depth than a resume,...
  
  s and prepare for interview
  Interview
  An interview is a conversation between two people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee.- Interview as a Method for Qualitative Research:"Definition" -...
  
  s.

Working with clients individually or in groups, career development professionals may:

• help people develop a better appreciation of their unique characteristics and how those characteristics relate to career choices
• use various assessment tools to help clients identify their interests, values, beliefs, lifestyle preferences, aptitudes and abilities, and relate them to the world of work
• help clients identify educational requirements and develop training plans
• facilitate career management and career decision-making workshops
• work with clients who have disabilities, language
  Language
  Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
  
   and cultural
  Culture
  Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
  
   differences, or other special needs that affect their employment prospects
• help clients deal with barriers to achieving their career plans
• help employed clients plan career laddering within organizations, cope successfully with job dissatisfaction, or make occupational or job changes
• provide current labour market information to help clients make realistic occupational or employment decisions
• market clients to potential employers and help clients find job or work experience placements
• assist clients with implementing effective employment search strategies, writing résumés, and developing career portfolios and interview skills
• plan and implement career and employment-related programs
• refer clients to appropriate services to address their particular needs
• work co-operatively with community group
  Community Group
  Community Group are a British political party in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, founded in 2001. The Community Group has four councillors serving on Doncaster Metropolitan Borough council....
  
  s and agencies, businesses and other organizations involved in providing career planning resources
• use computer
  Computer
  A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
  
  s to write reports and proposals
  Research proposal
  A research proposal is a document written by a researcher that describes in details the program for a proposed. It is like an outline of the entire research process that gives a reader a summary of the information discussed in a project....
  
  , and research information on the Internet
• perform related administrative tasks such as keeping records.

Working conditions

Career development professionals may work in a variety of settings but usually work in offices where they can conduct private interviews with clients and in classrooms or boardrooms where they conduct group sessions. Depending on the organization, their hours of work may include some evening and weekend work.

Personal characteristics

Career development professionals need the following characteristics:

• a genuine interest in and respect for people from all walks of life
• patience, understanding and the ability to listen non-judgementally
• excellent oral and written communication skills and presentation skills
• objectivity and tact
  Tact
  Tact may refer to:* Tact , a term used by B. F. Skinner for a type of verbal operant* TACT * TACT * TACT Records, a record label* Tact Meyers, a Galaxy Angel character...
  
  
• the ability to motivate and inspire clients
• the ability to facilitate communication in groups of eight to 20 people
• good organizational and planning skills
• the ability to work effectively with other professionals and community agencies.

They should enjoy consulting with people, compiling information and working with clients to develop innovative solutions to problems.

Educational requirements

Most career development professionals have post-secondary education in a related discipline such as psychology

Psychology

Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...

, education

Education

Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...

, social work

Social work

Social Work is a professional and academic discipline that seeks to improve the quality of life and wellbeing of an individual, group, or community by intervening through research, policy, community organizing, direct practice, and teaching on behalf of those afflicted with poverty or any real or...

 or human resources development. Increasingly, employers are looking for applicants who have a certificate, diploma

Diploma

A diploma is a certificate or deed issued by an educational institution, such as a university, that testifies that the recipient has successfully completed a particular course of study or confers an academic degree. In countries such as the United Kingdom and Australia, the word diploma refers to...

 or degree

Academic degree

An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...

 in career development

Career development

In organizational development , the study of career development looks at:*how individuals manage their careers within and between organizations and,...

, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

See also

• Career development
  Career development
  In organizational development , the study of career development looks at:*how individuals manage their careers within and between organizations and,...
  
  
• Job hunting
  Job hunting
  Job hunting, job seeking, or job searching is the act of looking for employment, due to unemployment or discontent with a current position. The immediate goal of job seeking is usually to obtain a job interview with an employer which may lead to getting hired...
  
  
• Career Guide
  Career Guide
  A career guide is an individual or publication that provides guidance to people facing a variety of career challenges. These challenges may include dealing with redundancy; seeking a new job; changing careers; returning to work after a career break; building new skills; personal and professional...
  
  
• Holland Codes
  Holland Codes
  The 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 Indicator
  Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
  The 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 Handbook
  Occupational Outlook Handbook
  The 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 psychology
  Personality psychology
  Personality 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 System
  Standard Occupational Classification System
  The 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 Personality
  Enneagram of Personality
  The 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...
  
  

External links

• National Employment Counseling Association (U.S.A.)
• National Career Development Association (U.S.A.)