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General
Description:
Career
counselors/coaches help individuals with
a wide variety of job/career related functions.
Some of the issues a counselor might address include:
- Clarification
of life/career goals.
- Administration
of tests, written exercises and inventories to assess abilities,
interests, skills, personality traits and other factors relevant to
the selection of career/entrepreneurial options.
- Exercises
to help sort through work/life balance issues.
- Assistance
in the development of resumes, cover letters and other marketing
materials for the job search.
- Support for
people experiencing job stress, job loss or other career transition issues.
Professional
career counselors are typically trained in a graduate
level counselor preparation program with a specialty in career counseling.
(Most earn masters level degrees in counseling or career development). Depending upon their state
regulations, they may need to be licensed by state counselor licensure
boards or certified by the National Board for Certified Counselors.
Career
coaching is a relatively new field, and as such, the educational/licensing
requirements for career coaches are less well-defined.
People calling themselves coaches have a broad variety of
backgrounds and experiences. There
are numerous coach training programs, ranging from weekend training
classes to year long programs.
Options
for Flexibility:
Many
career counselors/coaches are in private practice and work with clients
either in person, over the telephone or via the web.
Others are employed by outplacement firms, college career planning offices, corporations or
government agencies.
Because
client appointments are scheduled in advance (and the occurrence of true
emergency consults is relatively low) this career allows for
ample personal flexibility.
Resources
for Further Exploration:
Associations:
Association
of Career Professionals International
American
Counseling Association
International
Coach Federation
National
Career Development Association
Books:
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