Sustainable Career Development: A new challenge in career counselling in the modern era

Sustainable Career Development constitutes an interdisciplinary research area in the field of counseling and career guidance that is based on Sustainable Development. In this context, the aim of the manuscript is to report the importance of providing career counselling to manage one's personal and professional growth and development in a sustainable approach. In the framework of this effort, we are presenting the Sustainable Career Development Scale and putting forward a number of implications for career intervention, which relate to sustainability in career.

Motivational Essay - A Useful Tool in Career Choice?

The proposed study is based on a double causality, such as: the need to improve the counselling tools for high school students for the appropriate choice of a career development path; the existence of the category of disadvantaged students from an economic perspective, whose difficulties in choosing a training path for their career have been augmented during the pandemic. Our research provides an analysis of how the motivational essay can be substantiated as a useful tool in career counselling activities, as well as how it can be integrated into counselling approaches for the economically disadvantaged teenagers to choose the academic development path. We have used a mixed research methodology, which complements the peer review approach with the qualitative analysis of a set of motivation essays developed by the 11th and 12th Grade students. The research aims to identify the level of development of self-analysis, self-reflection and self-assessment of motivational factors, which may be decisive in choosing a future career. The essay analysis highlights a series of elements, which reflects the dynamics of the change of motivational resources in the context of the digitalisation acceleration, of the upheavals on the labour market generated by the new social and economic context. The obtained results allow the formulation of conclusions: confirming the need for such an approach; certifying the possibility and usefulness of integrating the motivational essay into the career counsellor’s methodological portfolio and professional counselling approaches; illustrating useful effects and limits of the reflective effort generated during the essay.

The Relationship between Soft Skills, Self-Efficacy, and Career Development among Malaysian Generation Z

Generation Z is the new generation that is entering the workforce in Malaysia. This generation will be the new major working people in Malaysia, which makes their career development an important topic. From the literature review, it was shown through many studies that Generation Z is aware of soft skills but lacks the practice of the said skills. However, they have remarkably high self-efficacy. Both soft skills and self-efficacy might influence Generation Z’s career development. This leads to the aim of this study on identifying the relationship between soft skills, self-efficacy, and career development among Generation Z in Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia. This study involved a total of 384 Generation Z in Shah Alam. This research employed a quantitative correlational and descriptive research design. Soft Skill Questionnaire was used to identify the respondents’ equipped soft skills and which soft skills they deemed important. Meanwhile, the self-efficacy variable was measured by using the General Self-Efficacy Scale. Lastly, career development was assessed using Career Development Assessment. Correlation analysis was used to test the relationship of variables involved. The results of the study showed that there was a relationship between soft skills, self-efficacy, and career development among Generation Z in Shah Alam. This study has implications for career counselling, counsellors, and Generation Z. Both soft skills and self-efficacy have influence on Generation Z’s career development massively.

Relationship between Career Decision, Self Efficacy and Vocational Identity among UiTM Shah Alam Generation Z

The concept of career decision self-efficacy has been a topic of discussion for a long time and remains an important concept up to this day. Career counselling is effective in helping students in their career development. The current study examined the relationship between career decision self-efficacy and vocational identity. We followed the expectations of the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) and hypothesized that there is a significant relationship between career decision self-efficacy and vocational identity. We also studied the differences between genders on the two variables and the effect of career decision self-efficacy on vocational identity. The sample of the study comprised of 243 Generation Z participants from UiTM Shah Alam. The finding shows that there are no differences between genders on the career decision self-efficacy and female and vocational identity and female, which finding is in contrast to previous findings. The result of the study also shows that there is a significant relationship between career decision self-efficacy and vocational identity. The last finding shows a statistically significant result where career decision self-efficacy contributes significantly to vocational identity and career decision-making self-efficacy explains 13 % of the variance in Vocational Identity. Therefore, this research provides information that can help to enhance students in the context of career counselling.

Undergraduate Students’ Perceptions of Tourism and Hospitality Career Education in Ghana

The purpose of this study was to explore students’ perceptions of tourism and hospitality career education in three universities that run undergraduate programmes in Ghana, namely: the University of Cape Coast (UCC), University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) and the University for Development Studies (UDS). Final year students totaling 128 students were contacted through questionnaire and results analyzed employing SPSS. The study revealed that 45% respondents from the UCC did not want to work in the industry after graduation. A greater number of respondents, 85% in UCC, 90% in UENR and 92% in UDS believed a decision to invest in tourism and hospitality education career was worthwhile. Contrary to the above 50% of all respondents surveyed in the three institutions did not believe one could make good income whilst working in the industry. It is suggested that career counselling sessions be organized by tourism and hospitality industry players in the universities to woo students’ interest in the sector.

Trauma-informed career counselling to address work traumas resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic

Background: Sudden work traumas as a result of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have left thousands displaced from their current jobs and occupations. Traditional career counselling approaches that overlook the role of emotion are not adequate to address the numerous emotional difficulties that arise after a sudden unexpected job loss.Objectives: The objective of this research is to examine to what extent career counselling theories and interventions incorporate a trauma-informed career counselling approach and are prepared to address the emotional, psychological, and career counselling concerns that arise from work traumas as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: A qualitative systematic literature review of all career-related journals that have trauma-informed career counselling in the title or body of the manuscript was conducted. Additionally, career related articles, books, and book chapters specifically mentioning work traumas and interventions to address these issues were also examined.Results: Only one article on trauma-informed career counselling was found given the parameters of the literature review. Currently, no articles outline how to integrate career counselling and emotion-focused therapy for trauma in order to address work traumas related to COVID-19.Conclusion: A trauma-informed career counselling approach that integrates career construction counselling and emotion-focused trauma therapy is needed to address the emotional, psychological, and career counselling concerns that arise from a work trauma as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. An integrated approach to provide trauma-informed career counselling has been provided.

Impact of information on secondary school students’ knowledge, perception and attitude towards agricultural career in Ogun State, Nigeria

Youths’ interest in Agriculture is daily declining due to lack of awareness and information about the prospects in agriculture, leaving the nation’s agricultural sector in the hands of the ageing population. This study examined the impact of agricultural career information on the knowledge, perception and attitudes of secondary school students towards taking agriculture, as a career choice. A purposive sampling technique was used to select 136 school science students in senior secondary schools and structured questionnaire was used to elicit information on their knowledge, perception and attitudes with respect to career in agriculture. Data was collected for pre-test (baseline) and post-test (end-line) after the respondents had participated in an intervention tagged “Agricultural Career Information Program” and analyzed using descriptive and inferential (using t-test at p ≤ 0.05) statistics. Result showed that the students had a significant change in attitude towards choosing agriculture as a career choice after being exposed to the intervention program, but no significant change in the students’ knowledge and perception after being exposed to the program. Agricultural career counselling should be intentional in the education of the youths, in order to influence their attitude and eventual choice of a career in agriculture. The study recommends that career guidance be included in the curriculum of primary and secondary school students, with a focus on agricultural sector. Information sessions on the agricultural sector can also be organized to improve students’ knowledge, attitude and perception in order to direct their choice towards agriculture.

Facing the Chaos of Today’s World: Life Design as a New Concept of Counselling for New Times

My goal in this paper is to present what is referred to as the life design paradigm as a new, viable approach to career design which takes into account the new contexts cursorily outlined above. Drawing on the notion of chaos as a tool for describing today’s world, I seek to show how the concept can help us conceptualise the changing systems of work organisation, people’s biographies and applicatory potentials of career counselling theories. By doing this, I to make the case for the pertinence and utility of the intervention model proposed by Mark L. Savickas and his collaborators.