Jade Pearson

Core 4 Reflections

Core 4: CAREER DEVELOPMENT

a. theories and models of career development, counseling, and decision making

Understanding theory is paramount to the development of the counseling professional

because it is foundational to understanding the client. Theory underpins the intentions that the

counselor has when working with clients. Personally, the theory allows me to introduce a context

to help me understand the client more and thus become more efficient in my counseling skills.

Some examples of the theory include Bandura’s (1982) Social Cognitive Career Theory, which

focuses on the individual’s self-efficacy; Super’s (1963) Developmental Self-Concept Theory in

which focuses on stages of an individual’s career growth; and Holland’s (1959) Theory of

Vocational Types which identifies an individual’s occupational themes. These theories give a

framework for the counselor to work with the client and properly address presented issues.

As part of the first semester in my counseling program, I was assigned to be a mentee for

a first year experience class called University 100 (U-100). This mentoring experience exposed

me to the unique experiences and challenges that first-year students experience. When working

with the mentees I was able to utilize Holland’s theory to help students identify their interests.

Holland describes people fitting into two or three of six categories: Realistic, Investigative,

Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. Based on how the person assesses, they will be

able to see which categories they score highest in and subsequently which type of work

environment they would enjoy. I was able to help one particular student identify their strong

artistic and social interests which led them to become interested in making an appointment with a

career counselor in the CSUN Career Center. I was able to further help this mentee take into

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consideration their values as well which includes family time, compensation, and freedom to

make decisions and be a leader within their position.

Overall, I was able to help this particular student and others identify a career path as part

of understanding themselves within the context of career options. Holland’s theory was

extremely useful in helping me guide the student to the career pathway highly suited for them. I

would like to state that it is important to give the information and to not coax or persuade a

student to make one decision on another. As a counselor, my purpose is to lead the student to

answers that they have within themselves by providing information and support.

b. approaches for conceptualizing the interrelationships among and between work, mental

wellbeing, relationships, and other life roles and factors

In order to take a holistic approach to counseling, the counselor must be aware of the

importance of understanding the interrelationships among a client’s many life roles. Albert

Bandura (1997) said that according to the Social Learning Theory, behavior is learned from the

environment through the process of observational learning. When working with students, it is

important to understand that there are factors outside of the self that influence self-concept and

thus mental well-being. For example, a student’s close relationships could be an encouraging

force in their lives in reaching their personal goals, or hinder them from goals that they have set

for themselves.

The Social Learning Theory Lifeline assignment (Minor Artifact) was an exercise in

which we reflected on our environment and our behavior and how that ultimately affects our

decision-making. I was able to see how factors such as socioeconomic status, my relationships,

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and my decision to attend college affected the interactions I had and ultimately, my career path.

When working with mentees assigned to me through a first year experience class during my first

year of my counseling program, I was able to apply this concept to my counseling strategies. For

example, I had a mentee who was not only transitioning into their freshman year in college, but

was also trying to transition jobs. This affected their sleep and consequently their mental

well-being. We were able to see how his relationship with his parents and self-concept of not

wanting to be lazy led to burnout and subsequently come up with a plan to balance work and

school efficiently. This student was able to apply what he learned in his sessions with me to his

life-planning and when I ran into him a few months later, he shared with me that he was doing

much better with balancing his many responsibilities.

I learned that facets of a clients’ life roles such as their relationships, jobs, and

socioeconomic status are relevant to understanding their decision-making matrix. I was able to

first apply the Social Learning Theory to myself in class and then translate that experience to my

counseling work with my mentee who was struggling to balance their life responsibilities.

Overall, I am thankful to have strategies to approach counseling from a holistic framework

which integrates the client’s many factors including life roles, relationships, and work. This

ultimately has helped the mentees I worked with persist though their first semester of college

which will ultimately increase their chances of persisting through all four years.

c. processes for identifying and using career, avocational, educational, occupational and labor

market information resources, technology, and information systems

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Understanding the world of work via research helps to clarify options and

decision-making. It is important for counselors to ensure that clients are well-informed on

options available to ultimately lead to the development of the client’s wellbeing and

self-actualization. I once heard that the more information you have, the more control you have

over your life decisions, and I believe this to be true. For example, a student deciding to pursue a

career based on limited information from family, friends, or the media could lead them down a

road of regret. Conversely, exploring options and personal values could lead to a

well-thought-out decision that could lead to fulfillment. Research and be tedious, albeit

rewarding. It is important for counselors to be aware that some clients come into session with

limited or inaccurate information, but educating and empowering the client to explore by giving

them reliable resources can help resolve this.

Over the summer of my first year in my counseling program, we did an Occupational

Research Assignment (Minor Artifact) . This activity challenged us to develop a

comprehensive description of an occupation including labor market information. We utilized

websites such as PCC.edu, Onetonline.org, and BLS.gov to obtain useful information such as

projected job growth, salary in three different states, local training programs, Linkedin groups,

and more! I was able to research the Occupational Therapy Assistant career pathway and not

only become well versed with its requirements, but knowledgeable on how to do comprehensive

research on any career pathway utilizing the same resources.

This research method proved to be a beneficial tool in identifying a process to help

mentees assigned to me in a first-year experience class. One mentee in particular wanted to

become a theater teacher and wasn’t exactly sure on the process. I was able to refer the client to

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BLS.gov and other helpful sites to ultimately identify a credentialing program to help her

become a theater teacher. The mentee was also able to view professional associations to help her

decide if she sees herself pursuing this career pathway long-term.

Being knowledgeable of career and labor market information sites has proved helpful in

my work counseling diverse student populations. When working with my mentees, it was helpful

to know sources and strategies to give to the mentee. Not only was I able to empower them to

search for labor market information, but to also be self-sufficient in making informed life

decisions. Moving forward, I will be able to use these research tools to glean knowledge on the

process for my students and clients as well as model for them how it looks to find accurate

information on a desired subject.

d. approaches for assessing the conditions of the work environment on clients’ life experiences

As work consumes a sizable amount of our lives, it is important to identify a career

pathway that is suitable for each individual. Otherwise, an individual who is in a career path

that’s not suited to their strengths, values and interests, there is a chance of burnout and

dissatisfaction. Ultimately, the individual may spend time and energy looking for a new position

that is more suited to them, when this could have been avoided by searching for a suitable career

path before committing to one. Finding a career path that is a good fit is imperative to mental

well-being and to identifying a conducive environment to the individual's personal and

professional growth. The counseling program that I am a part of emphasizes this topic and trains

us as budding professionals to assess how the work environment can impact one’s life

experiences. One approach to assessing a client’s work condition is to ask questions about their

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personal values and overall feelings of well-being and how their current work environment

contributes to these factors.

Over the summer of my first year in the counseling program, we were able to identify our

own values that influence where we would find optimal work. Additionally, we used Holland’s

occupational scales which gave us a three-letter code to identify how the type of work

environment and people we would find optimal and likely thrive in. When working with mentees

assigned to me through a first year experience class, I was able to utilize values assessments and

occupational scales to help the mentee identify where they would thrive.

One mentee in particular was not happy with her job working at Office Max. Upon

working with this student I was able to utilize these assessment skills and we discovered that her

values of being creative, making a difference, and helping others were not being met in her

position at Office Max. Ultimately this understanding took her from the cusp of leaving her job

to actually following through and taking a new paid internship as a children’s leader at her

church. When meeting with this student later on in the semester, she verbalized how happy and

fulfilled she felt after taking the new position. We were able to reflect on how work truly

influenced her sense of accomplishment and well-being.

Overall, being able to assess how the work environment interacts with and affects the

client’s life experiences is an important tool as a counselor. I was able to explore my own values

and preferred job environment in class using the Holland Occupational Scales and the Values

Inventory Assessment. I was then able to apply these same tools and counseling skills when

working with a client to help them to make the tough decision to transition from a stagnant job

into a new career path. Being able to identify the mentee’s values and use that information to

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counsel the mentee to make the best decision based on their situation was a profound experience

for both the mentee and myself.

e. strategies for assessing abilities, interests, values, personality and other factors that contribute

to career development

When working with clients, it is important to assess characteristics such as abilities,

interests, values, and personality that contribute to career development. This knowledge can be

used to highlight which career pathways would be best suited to the client, and is a strong

predictor of not only where they would most likely succeed, but also where they may not be

fulfilled in their work. An example of a career development strategy for assessing abilities,

interests, strengths and values include using assessment tools such as the Clifton Strengths

assessment, the Myers-Briggs assessment (MBTI), the Holland assessment (RIASEC), and the

Work Values Inventory assessment.

In my work as an Outreach Advisor with students transitioning into College of the

Canyons, I helped students to identify and understand their strengths and interests using MBTI

and RIASEC which is imperative for identifying a career track. For abilities, I looked at grades,

physical abilities, linguistic abilities, and self-efficacy. With one student in particular, I was able

to help them identify a major by looking at their RIASEC which indicated that they would be

interested in hands-on work, thinking creatively and helping others. They were not sure if they

wanted to go into medicine or engineering. At the end of our fifth meeting, they were able to

identify that they would go into biomedical engineering and possibly pursue an M.D. as well.

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Looking back, I now see how imperative it is to assess abilities, interests, values,

personality and other factors that contribute to career development. I was able to help a student

with feelings of uncertainty identify a career path which no doubt helped to motivate the student

toward their ultimate career goal which increases their likelihood of persistence to see their goal

through. In my work with students as an Outreach Advisor for College of the Canyons, I have

seen how essential assessment strategies are in clarifying a career and educational pathway that

will lead to motivation, success, and persistence. It has been wonderful to witness how an

understanding of oneself as a multifaceted being with many characteristics contributes clarity in

defining a career path that is fit for one’s unique abilities.

f. strategies for career development program planning, organization, implementation,

administration, and evaluation

Program planning and implementation is an important role of the counseling professional

within the higher education framework. This is because programs implemented such as support

services offered to the student can be a transformative experience that can ultimately help the

student persist through college. According to Astin’s (1984) Theory of Involvement, the more

involved the student is with the college, the higher likelihood of student retention. Additionally,

program planning and implementation contributes to the professional development of the

counseling professional, enhancing the professional’s skills in working with diverse student

populations.

As Vice President of the Career Development Association (CCDA) - CSUN Chapter, I

was able to help organize a graduate student mixer. This event was a networking event to expand

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our connections with other career development professionals. The planning phase consisted of

meetings with the other chair members of the event planning committee to outline where, when,

and with what purpose we would be holding this event.

I was then able to help organize who would oversee the facility, food, marketing,

decorations, activities, administration, and clean-up. I had the privilege to market to the two

cohorts in the College Counseling and Student Services Master’s Program, and advertise the

flyer we created on Linkedin. I was also able to organize and oversee activities that would be

provided at the mixer. Afterward, we were able to evaluate the effectiveness by utilizing a

survey. For future events, we were able to implement the feedback which influenced our

marketing and organization of our upcoming events.

Upon reflection on this experience, I realize how much thoughtful planning goes into

implementing a program. Although I have natural strengths in seeing the “big picture” of ideas, I

struggle in the logistics of seeing those ideas through to reality. This experience taught me how

important collaboration is with other professionals who may see things with a different

perspective than my own. Ultimately, this collaboration leads to an event or program that is well

rounded and suitable to the needs of a diverse population.

Although the program planning and implementation was primarily for career

development professionals, the skills that I learned organizing this event are transferable to the

student affairs profession. Being able to strategize career development program planning within a

professional framework gave me the skills to plan, organize, implement, and evaluate career

development program planning. Additionally, I learned the skill of collaboration and its

importance within this capacity.

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g. strategies for advocating for diverse clients’ career and educational development and

employment opportunities in a global economy

As a student affairs professional, it is important to advocate for students because many of

them may not know how to advocate for themselves. Advocacy is closely related to social justice

and multiculturalism (Ratts, 2017). Ethically, counselors are called to address issues of power,

privilege, and discrimination when these topics arise for the client. Additionally, many students

may come from backgrounds where they don’t have a support system which makes it all the

more important for the counselor to assist their client in these circumstances. Student populations

with unique needs include students with disabilities, ethnic minority student populations,

first-generation students, low-income students, and student-athletes.

During my counseling program, I had the chance to research a special student population

and interventions to address unique needs and help them succeed in a chosen career field. One

example of non-traditional college students are women of color in STEM. During my time in the

counseling program, I was able to write a research paper on this population (Major Artifact,

“Women of Color in STEM”). Women of color in science, technology, engineering, and

mathematics arenas face special barriers that White men do not face. As a double minority,

women of color statistically attend and graduate college at a rate that is significantly lower than

their White counterparts. For example, many women may work full-time jobs in order to support

their families and are relied upon as the main source of income. This can lead to feelings of

isolation as well as a lack of social and cultural capital. I found that it’s important to promote

community and provide individualized support to increase retention and persistence for this

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population in addition the framework such as Social Cognitive Career Theory (Bandura, 1982)

can promote this culturally supportive environment for women of color in STEM.

As part of my placement as an Outreach Advisor at COC, I was able to work with

educationally disadvantaged students and help them matriculate into the college and gain access

to other resources such as Department of Rehabilitation, Disabled Student Programs and

Services, Financial Aid, and Career Services. One student in particular was deaf and wasn’t sure

how to access accommodation services at the college. Additionally, she wasn’t sure if she could

afford the books needed for her class. I was able to connect the student with Disability Student

Programs and Services which provided a note-taking tool as well as an interpreter. Additionally, I

was able to help the student enroll in a zero-cost textbook class to help save her money. Overall,

the student decided to stay enrolled in the class which contributed to their associates degree and

high school credit.

I thoroughly enjoyed helping my student address and overcome barriers that would have

kept her from reaching her educational goals by advocating for her. I see how important it is for

students to have an advocate that gives them a voice when they have not yet found their own.

Advocating for diverse student populations and their unique needs in educational development

and employment attainment has been a rewarding part of my work at College of the Canyons as

well as in my studies. I have been able to help many other students in identifying a career

pathway, identifying an educational goal, and referring them to services that contribute to

employment development.

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h. strategies for facilitating client skill development for career, educational, and life-work

planning and management

Skill development is important to client success as it can be a tool to overcoming

obstacles and improving self-efficacy. Self-efficacy refers to an individual's belief in his or her

capacity to execute behaviors necessary to produce specific performance attainments (Bandura,

1982). Some examples to facilitate client skill development can include hosting workshops

around resume writing, goal-setting, information-gathering, self-advocacy, and more.

My position as an Outreach Advisor for College of the Canyons allows me to work at two

different high schools to bridge the gap for high school students who want to attend college. This

can include help with matriculation, receiving special support from student support programs on

campus, making an appointment with a career counselor, and more. This unique role has allowed

me to utilize an assignment we worked on in Practicum called MO SMART goals. MO SMART

goals should be meaningful, outcome-oriented, specific, measurable, realistic, and time-bound.

Because I was able to use this framework to identify goals of my own, I was able to apply this to

my interactions with students as a tool for career and personal development. This included

helping students matriculate into COC’s early college program and take classes such as those in

career technical education in connecting the student with their long-term career and educational

goals.

It is important for students to develop skills to increase their sense of self-efficacy which

will ultimately help them persist through college. Working in my role as an Outreach Advisor

allowed me to implement a career, educational, and personal development aspect in the process

of academic planning. I have been able to help students culminate self-advocacy skills, time

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management skills, critical thinking skills, and long-term planning skills. Utilizing Bandura’s

Self-Efficacy Theory (1997) has helped me conceptualize that it is important for me to encourage

and help students to increase skill development and ultimately, a belief in their own abilities.

i. methods of identifying and using assessment tools and techniques relevant to career planning

and decision making

Assessment tools can help the student affairs professional be more intentional when

helping the student identify a career and academic plan. Some assessment tools include Strengths

Quest, Strong Interest Inventory, Myers-Briggs Typology Assessment, and Values Inventory.

Assessment tools are instrumental in identifying client’s strengths, interests and values.

Identifying assessment tools can also be informal such as asking questions relating to the

student’s interests, strengths and values or more formal such as using a counseling intake form.

When working with students, there will likely need to be a slightly different approach for each

individual student.

In our Career Development Class as part of my counseling program, I learned to ask the

client questions such as their values and relationships as well as personal and career interests in

order to decide which assessment tool to use. Additionally, we learned to look at the student as a

whole and ask questions that will help them clarify how they feel about relevant decisions with

regards to their career path.

I was able to put these tools to use when working with mentees assigned to me as a

freshman experience class mentor. In this experience, I worked with over 25 students

individually and in group settings. In the freshman experience course, students were able to take

the Strengths Quest assessment and identify their top five strengths. I was able to counsel one

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student in particular who had the strength of harmony, which leads the individual to be adept at

facilitating harmonious exchanges with and among others. This student had a group project and I

was able to coach her in how to use the strength to communicate with all group members, assert

her opinion when necessary and be the buffer between two of her group members that did not get

along when she felt comfortable. Overall, the student was satisfied with how the project turned

out and the group earned an A.

Learning how to identify which assessment tools to utilize with clients can help

clarify strengths, interests and values that are important to career and life decisions. I was able to

utilize an assessment that my mentees took in their freshman experience class to glean some

insight into how they can use the knowledge from the assessment results for their benefit.

Informally asking certain questions relating to concerns such as the one my mentee had and

combining that knowledge with formal assessment tools such as the Strengths Quest assessment

can lead to positive and powerful outcomes.

j. ethical and culturally relevant strategies for addressing career development

Ethical interaction as a counselor is of the utmost importance to avoid harming the client.

Ethics are a guideline that counselors should follow when interacting with the client to ensure

that they are providing competent and culturally relevant services. Ethics is a discipline within

philosophy that is concerned with human conduct and moral decision making; multicultural

competence is the ability to work effectively with clients from diverse cultures within the United

States (Remley & Herlihy, 2019). Taken together, the counselor can use these principles to

safeguard against harming the client.

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As part of the CCSS program, I took an Ethics class in the summer which emphasized

ethical and cultural competency. I was able to use this knowledge in working work at two

different high school sites, helping students with career development and educational attainment

— one in an affluent white, high socioeconomic status (SES) area, and one in a lower SES area

with educationally disadvantaged students. I learned to ask open-ended questions when working

with students from different backgrounds such as individualistic or collectivistic culture. I used

my counseling skills such as empathetic listening, attending, and reflection of feelings and

meaning to develop a strong alliance with each student; this included using culturally sensitive

language and not having biases when working with educationally disadvantaged students versus

those from a higher SES.

I was able to work with one student in particular who expressed her concerns around

changing her career path. I learned that this student identifies with a Pilipino cultural

background, and described that her parents were urging her to pursue a career in health sciences.

However, this student demonstrated excellent abilities in the fine arts. After developing rapport

and a strong alliance, I was able to work with this student using a culturally sensitive framework,

guiding the student to advocate for themselves while honoring their family’s wishes. This student

was very pleased by the end of our meetings and declared that she would pursue a career in the

arts and felt comfortable having the discussion with her family. She went on to college, majored

in fine arts with a minor in business and was happy that her parents were in full support.

I have been able to utilize ethical and culturally relevant strategies in counseling students

at two different high school sites. These strategies have proven to be efficient in my work with

students from diverse cultural backgrounds. I have been able to help guide one student in

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particular in making career decisions that are in line with her values). Being culturally competent

is an ethical part the counseling practice for as helpers should be prepared to work with a variety

of different clients. Because of my training, I have been able to work at two demographically

different high schools, counseling students who have unique needs to help them create and

educational and career plan. Using counseling skills such as empathetic listening and using

culturally sensitive language has been key in developing a strong alliance with each student I

work with.

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References

Astin, A. W. (1984). Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher education. Journal
of College Student Personnel, 25(4), 297–308.

Bandura, A. (1982). Self-efficacy mechanism in human agency. American Psychologist, 37(2),

122–147. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.37.2.122

Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W H Freeman/Times Books/ Henry

Holt & Co.

Holland, J. L. (1959). A theory of vocational choice. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 6(1),

35–45. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0040767

Ratts, M. J., & Greenleaf, A. T. (2017). Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling
Competencies: A Leadership Framework for Professional School Counselors.
Professional School Counseling. https://doi.org/10.1177/2156759X18773582

Remley, Theodore P. Jr. and Herlihy, Barbara P., "Ethical, Legal, and Professional Issues in
Counseling (6th Edition)" (2019). Counseling & Human Services Faculty Books. 26.

Super, D. E., Starishevsky, R., Matlin, N., & Jordaan, J. P. (1963). Career development;
Self-concept theory. College Entrance Examination Board.

Minor Artifact, “Social Learning Theory Lifeline”

Minor Artifact, “Occupational Research: OT”
Major Artifact, “Women of Color in STEM”

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