Assessment and Career Planning Chapter 5. Introduction Assessment is the use of any formal or informal technique to collect data about a client. It is.

Assessment and Career Planning

Chapter 5

Introduction

• Assessment is the use of any formal or informal technique to collect data about a client.

• It is a tool of the trait-and-factor approach, which had its beginning with the three-step career choice process introduced by Frank Parsons.

Guidelines for Use of Trait-and-Factor Approach in 21st Century

• Test data – are only one piece of a much larger puzzle.– should be used less for prediction and more for

identifying new options.

• The client should be more involved in making the decision about whether to use assessment and for what purposes.

Becomeawa re of ne edto make career

decisions

1

Identifyoccupationalalterna tives

3

Obtaininformation

about ide ntif iedalterna tives

4Ma ke

tentativechoic es from

among a vaila bleoccupations

5

Ma keeduc ational

choic es

6

Impleme nta voca tional

choic e

7Le arn

about and/orre eva luate

self

2

(w ebsites,databases,

print materials,software)

Resources

Assessment and the Career Planning Process

• Step 1 - may use an instrument to measure career maturity, career beliefs or decision-making style

• Step 2 - may use inventories to measure interests, abilities, skills, work values, or personality type

Assessment and the Career Planning Process

• Step 3 - Score report from inventories given in Step 2 will suggest occupations.

• Step 4 - Assessment not likely to be used.

• Step 5 - Inventories of work-related values may be used to reduce number of options.

Assessment and the Career Planning Process

• Step 6 - Tests that predict success in college or measure achievement in specific subject matter may be used.

• Step 7 - Instruments that measure work skills or personality type may be used.

Purposes of Assessment

• Counselors can learn more about the needs (decision-making skills, career maturity, removal of irrational beliefs) of clients.

• Counselors can learn more about the characteristics (interests, abilities, skills, values, personality) of clients.

Purposes of Assessment

• Clients can learn more about themselves (such as their interests, skills, abilities, work values, personality type).

• Counselors can measure the progress (in acquiring career maturity,decision-making skills, career decidedness) of an individual or group of individuals.

Counselor Responsibilities

• Follow ethical guidelines provided by professional associations

• Possess knowledge – basic principles of assessment– details of specific instruments to be used– how to prepare clients/students– how to administer properly– how to interpret properly

Characteristics of Informal Assessment

• Instruments not subjected to scientific study

• Results for one person cannot be compared with those of others

• No standard linkage between results and occupational choices

• No standard way to interpret results

Types of Informal Assessment

• Checklists

• Games

• Career fantasies

• Forced-choice activities

• Card sorts

• Structured interviews

Characteristics of Formal Assessment

• Known validity (instrument measures what it claims to measure)

• Known reliability (results of a later administration will be highly similar to those of first administration)

Characteristics of Formal Assessment

• Fairness related to diversity (instrument adequately researched with kinds of individuals who will later take the instrument)

• Measures of comparison (compares the scores of one individual with those of others)

Common Interest Inventories

• Campbell Interest and Skill Survey (CISS)

• Career Assessment Inventory (CAI)

• Career Occupational Preference Survey (COPS)

• Career Quest

• Harrington-O’Shea Career Decision-Making System (CDMS)

Common Interest Inventories, continued

• Interest Determination, Exploration, and Assessment System (IDEAS)

• Interest Explorer

• Jackson Vocational Interest Survey (JVIS)

• Kuder Career Search with Person Match

• O*Net Interest Profiler

Common Interest Inventories, continued

• Self-Directed Search (SDS)

• Strong Interest Inventory (SII)

• Unisex Edition of the ACT Interest Inventory (UNIACT)

• Vocational Interest Inventory

Common Instruments to Measure Skills and Abilities

• SkillScan

• WorkKeys

• Passion Revealer

• Career Planning Survey

• O*Net Ability Profiler

Other Inventories

• Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) - measures personality type

• O*Net Work Importance Profiler - measures the importance of six work values

• Super’s Work Values Inventory - measures the importance of 12 work values

Steps of the Assessment Process

• Prepare students/clients for assessment

• Administer instrument(s) properly

• Interpret instrument(s) properly

• Follow through to assist students/clients to use results for action planning

Ways to Administer and Interpret Assessment

• Print form - manual or optical scoring; counselor interpretation

• Computer (standalone or networked) - administration and scoring; counselor or computer interpretation

• Internet - administration, scoring, and interpretation

Advantages of Internet Delivery

• Can be taken from anywhere 24/7

• Immediate scoring and feedback

• Standard interpretation, though customized

• Capability to share report with others electronically

No-Fee Assessment Websites

• University of Waterloo Career Services - www.careerservices.uwaterloo.ca

• CareerKey - www.ncsu.edu/careerkey

• University of Missouri Career Center - http://career.missouri.edu (Select Career Interests Game)

• Motivational Assessment of Personal Potential - www.assessment.com

For-Fee Assessment Websites

• Kuder Career Planning System - www.kuder.com

• Self-Directed Search - www.self-directed-search.com

Types of Reports

• Raw scores - provide a tally of responses in a specific category; examinee cannot compare personal scores with those of others

• Percentile scores - compare the scores of one person with those of a selected norm group

Steps in Selection of Instruments

• Determine purpose of assessment.

• Consider characteristics of those to be assessed.

• Determine if norm group for instrument includes characteristics of persons to be tested.

• Investigate the reliability and validity of the instrument.

Steps in Selection of Instruments

• Read critical reviews and talk to other professionals.

• Acquire a sample copy, take it, and read publisher’s materials.

• Administer instrument to a few individuals and practice interpretation.

• Determine cost and options for administration and scoring.