According to literature, there have been lack of studies on career counselor's competencies. The purpose of this study was to examine a variety of competencies which are required for career and vocational counselors and identify which competencies are...
According to literature, there have been lack of studies on career counselor's competencies. The purpose of this study was to examine a variety of competencies which are required for career and vocational counselors and identify which competencies are more important for these counselors depending on a developmental stage of clients.
In order to develop preliminary items, in-depth interviews were conducted for 16 current career and vocational counselors. A total of 61 preliminary items were identified. Then a survey including the 61 items and other criteria variables was administered to 120 professionals working in an area of career counselors.
The results of factor analyses showed that a six factor solution appeared to be the best in terms of interpreting the construct. Also 49 items were finally identified based on the results of factor analyses. Those extracted competency factors were 'management skills of career and vocation information', 'Professional spirit', 'Career and vocational counseling skills', 'Positive attitude about client', 'Career program development and management skills', and 'Expert knowledge in career counseling'.
The results of frequency analyses of in-depth interview showed that expert knowledge was the most required competence for the counselor group specializing for adolescents while information on career and vocational counseling was the most required competence for both counselor groups specializing for undergraduate students and adults, respectively. Also the career and vocational counselors have generally high level of competencies of 'positive attitude about client' and 'professional spirit' but have low level of competencies of 'expert
knowledge in career counseling' and 'management skills of career and vocation information'.
Finally, limitations, future studies, and implications of this study were discussed.