NCE Prep, Ch. 4: Career Assessment

A list of common labor market terms

--Employment rate. The number of currently employed individuals divided by the total number of individuals who are of working age (i.e., 16 years of age and older). --Unemployment rate. The level of unemployment (i.e., workforce minus the number of currently employed individuals) divided by the workforce. --Nonlabor force. The number of individuals who are not actively seeking employment. This includes institutionalized individuals (those in prisons or psychiatric hospitals) stay-at-home spouses, children, and those serving in the military

Three common methods are used in career assessment

1. Interviewing-- can uncover career-related information that concerns a client's employment history, academic back- ground, career goals, interests, and perceived employment barriers. 2. Formal testing-- refers to the use of standardized career-related assessments to evaluate a client's vocational situation. 3. Self-assessments--on the other hand, involve the use of nonstandardized inventories and facilitate career exploration and self-discovery

Career Cruising

Career Cruising is a CACG system designed to be used by students at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. The system provides users with a variety of assessment tools designed to match user interests and skills with a variety of occupational options. It also allows students to create a portfolio that offers many helpful functions. These include helping students trans- late their career aspirations into manageable, concrete action plans, keep track of important college planning deadlines (e.g., college application deadlines, scholarship due dates), and create/store career-related documents such as a résumé. An unique feature of Career Cruising is that it provides students with the option to share their portfolio with teachers, counselors, and parents, who can assist in the career planning process.

Choices (computer guided system)

Choicesisacomputer-guidedsystemthatprovidescareer assistance to high school and postsecondary individuals. The system offers a variety of inventories (Basic Skills Survey, Interest Profiler, and Work Importance Locator) and information on colleges, technical schools, graduate schools, and occupations. It also provides a financial aid search, electronic portfolio, and job search information. A middle school version, Choices Explorer, is available

job shadowing

Job shadowing is another informal source of occupational information and involves observing a work environment. By shadowing a competent worker, clients can decide whether they might enjoy a certain job. Typically, a job shadowing experience is temporary and unpaid.

Commonly used Career Development Inventories

My Vocational Situation (MVS) Career Thoughts Inventory (CTI) Career Beliefs Inventory (CBI) Career Transitions Inventory Career Development Theory Career Matrurity Iventory-Revised (CMI-R)

Occupational Information

Occupational information refers to facts about a position, job task, career field, or industry and is used to assist clients in making decisions regarding future employment. Occupational information commonly includes, but is not limited to, duties and nature of work, work settings and conditions, education and training, methods of entry, salary and benefits, advance- ment opportunities, and employment outlook. Sources for occupational information can be formal (e.g., literature, electronic resources and databases, computer-based systems, audio/ videotapes, webinars, professional associations, career centers) or informal (e.g., direct observation, parents and advisors, employers). Exploring, gathering, and analyzing occupational information is a critical component of the career planning process. Therefore, professional counselors must be familiar with a variety of occupational sources.

NCDA guidelines concerning the evaluation of career and occupational info in literature

Occupational information should be accurate, current, and free from self-serving biases and sex stereotyping. This information should be revised at least every 3 to 4 years. Resources 5 years and older should be avoided. The name of the publisher, consultants, sponsors, and sources of any statistical data should be credited in sources of occupational information. Occupationalinformationshouldspecifytheintendedpur- pose, target audience, and potential use of the information. The information included in the occupational source should be clear, consistent, and organized. It should also be presented in a concise and interesting manner. Bias and stereotyping against the gender, race, ethnicity, religion, age, social status, sexual orientation, or disabil- ity status of a person should be eliminated from sources of occupational information.

Commonly used Interest inventroies

Strong Interest Inventory (SII) Campbell Interest and Skill Survey (CISS) COP System Career Ability Placement Survey (CAPS) Career Orientation Placement and Evaluation Survey (COPES) Self-Directed Search (SDS) Transition-to-Work Inventory Kuder Career Search (KCS)

The U.S. Labor Market and its two main groups

The U.S. labor market comprises two main groups: the employer and worker. The worker group, which is commonly referred to as the workforce, includes employed individuals and those seeking gainful employment. Labor markets function through the interactions of the employer and worker. Specifically, the employers and workers negotiate fair wages and employment rates

Occupational Projections

To effectively assist clients in making informed career decisions, professional counselors must be future-oriented with regard to the labor market. In other words, they must have knowledge about pro- jections concerning the growth and availability of specific occupations. Occupational projections are usually obtained by examining growth and replacement needs. Growth needs occur when the demand for workers exceeds the number of existing workers and requires more workers to be added to the workforce. Replacement needs occur when workers are needed to replace those who have left the workforce due to retirement, returning to school, assuming household and child- raising duties, or choosing not to work. It is estimated that the replacement rate for all job openings will be 23.6% between 2010 and 2020 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2012a)—meaning that for most occupations, replacement needs account for more job openings than growth needs. Table 4.11 presents an over- view of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2012b) occupational and industry projections through the year 2020.

Factors Influencing Occupational Projections

To understand and provide occupational projections, professional counselors must be familiar with the factors that affect employment. The U.S. Department of Labor recognizes three factors that impact employment: 1. Population Factors--Changes in population influence the size and demographic composition of the workforce. Population growth generates the need for more goods and services, which in turn creates the need for more workers. A decline in population growth leads to a decrease in the workforce; there will be fewer people to employ and fewer people in need of goods and services. 2. • Economic factors--The United States is involved in the global economy, which means its economy is both affected and influenced by other countries. As a result, the need for unskilled laborers in the United States is rap- idly declining. This has resulted in the need for a better- educated and -skilled workforce.

Commonly Used Personality Inventories

Vocational Preference Inventory (VPI) Keirsey Temperament Sorter II (KTS-II) Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

Commonly Used Values Inventories

Work Vallues Inventory Work Orientation and Values Survey (WOVS) Career Orientation Placement and Evaluation Survey (COPES)

System of Interactive Guidance and Information (SIGI PLUS)

a CACG system that integrates self-assessment information with in-depth and current occupational infor- mation. Recently, SIGI PLUS was replaced by a new version, SIGI 3. This system can be used to assist high school students, college students, and adults with voca- tional decision making and career planning. SIGI 3 assists individuals in evaluating their skills, interests, and work values, acquiring up-to-date information on hun- dreds of occupations, determining the education and training requirements needed for each occupation, and putting a career plan into action.

Informational Interviewing

an informal method of obtaining occupational information that affords a client the opportunity to interview people who are currently employed in a career field of interest. Informational interviewing is not a job interview. Whereas the goal of a job interview is to obtain a position, an informational interview occurs prior to the job search process and is a tool used to assist clients in exploring occupations. By conducting an informational interview, a client can gain a better under- standing of an occupation and access up-to-date career infor- mation. Specifically, the client may obtain the information needed to choose or refine a career path, to learn how to break into the field, and to understand what it takes to succeed in a given occupation. In addition, informational interviews help clients to build their confidence and identify their professional strengths and weaknesses.

Values Inventories

assist individuals in identifying what they value in a career or specific job. In addition to values clarification, these inventories are usually designed to help individuals prioritize their work values. Values inventories can serve as a blueprint for the career decision-making process.

Personality Inventories

identify a person's unique characteristics and styles of relating to others, tasks, and situations. They are frequently administered in career counseling to facilitate the vocational decision-making process. Similar to interest inventories, measures of personality are concerned with a person's preferences and have no right or wrong answers

Interest Inventories

identify an individual' s work-related interests. Interest inventories often reveal what an individual finds enjoyable and motivating but do not necessarily correlate with ability or job success. Interest inventories solicit an individual's preferences and have no right or wrong answers

Career development inventories

identify personal factors that may impede an individual's career development process. Typically these inventories measure factors related to faulty career beliefs, anxiety, career maturity, and career barriers.

Career assessments commonly assess the following domains:

interests, achievement, aptitude, values, personality, and career development stages. In this section, we discuss frequently used formal career assessments that measure interests, personality, values, and career development stages.

Computer-Assisted career Guidance (CAVG) systems

offer individuals the opportunity to move through the basic steps of the vocational decision-making process using a computer. Such systems provide assessments that foster an individual's self-awareness, occupational and educational information, and career-planning tools. CACG systems are frequently used for student career planning in elementary, middle, and high schools. Commonly used CACG systems include DISCOVER, SIGI PLUS, Choices, Career Cruising, and Guidance Information Service

Guidance Information Service (GIS)

provides information regarding occupations, military careers, higher education, and financial aid to high school and college students.

DISCOVER

published by ACT. This system employs a trait and factor method, matching an individual's self- assessment results to occupational information. It is avail- able in two versions: a middle school version (Grades 5-9) and an adult version (Grades 9-adult). DISCOVER includes research-based assessments that measure an indi- vidual's interests, abilities, and work values and databases that offer information on occupations, college majors, higher education and training institutions, financial aid/ scholarships, and military options. The system also includes information pertaining to job search strategies (e.g., résumé and cover letter writing, interviewing skills).

Career Assessment

refers to a broad process of systematically collecting career-related information using multiple methods. Career assessment results can provide an individual with information concerning career options, career-planning courses, personality type, aptitudes, career-related beliefs, interests, work values, career development stage, and career barriers.

Print and Electronic Sources of Occupational Information

• Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH) is a nationally recognized source of career information. It is published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a division of the U.S. Department of Labor, and revised every two years. The OOH is available in print or electronically (www.bls. gov/ooh/home.htm). It provides occupational informa- tion on 300 broad occupations grouped into 25 different occupational categories. For each occupation, the OOH provides information regarding the nature of the work, working conditions, employment, training, other qualifi- cations, advancement, job outlook, earnings, related occupations, and sources of additional information. It also offers job search tips and links to state-specific job market information. Occupational Information Network (O*NET) is an electronic source for occupational information published by the U.S. Department of Labor and updated semiannu- ally. It was developed to replace its predecessor, the Dic- tionary of Occupational Titles. The O*NET database provides one of the most comprehensive occupational listings, housing current information and skill require- ments for 1,170 occupations. Specifically, the O*NET supplies information regarding the tasks, knowledge, skills, abilities, work activities, work context, job zone, interests, work values, work needs, related occupations, and wages for each occupation listed in the database. Occupational titles are organized and classified using the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) System. The SOC system uses a six-digit code to classify occupations into four levels: major group, minor group, broad occupation, and detailed occupation. For example, a postsecondary computer science teacher has a code of 25-1021: The first and second digits indicate the major group. In our example, 25 indicates that the occupation falls under the major group Education, Training, and Library. The third digit indicates the minor group. Therefore, 1 indicates that the occupation falls under the minor group of Postsecondary Teachers. The fourth and fifth digits indicate the broad occupation. As a result, 02 indicates that the example occupation falls under the broad occupation of Math and Computer Teachers. The sixth digit indicates the detailed occupation. The 1 indicates that the occupation is a computer teacher instead of a math teacher. In addition to the occupational database, the O*NET system provides O*NET OnLine, which provides easy access to information contained in the database (www.onetonline.org), and the O*NET Career Exploration Tools. • The Guide for Occupational Exploration (GOE) is cur- rently published by JIST Works, though it was originally issued by the U.S. Department of Labor. The GOE, now in its fourth edition, is only available in print and is titled New Guide for Occupational Exploration. This occupational resource offers information regarding compensation, projected growth rate, education and/or training needed, values, skills, and working conditions on over 900 occupations. Occupations are classified using the 16 U.S. Department of Education clusters that connect to a variety of careers.