John Holland Career Development Theory

For this response paper I took The Princeton Review Career Quiz. The purpose of this assessment is to help individual see what career option is the best fit. Even though this assessment does not lead us to our jackpot career it gives us an idea in the path we may end up by evaluating our interest and personality. I remember taking this assessment when I was in high school and almost a decade year later I’m doing another one in m graduate year. Overall, I am excited re-taking this assessment to visualize whether or not I’m moving into the right direction based on this assessment.

In order for me to complete this career assessment paper, I initially took an Interest Inventory survey. Upon completing this process, it revealed that my personality profile score was (I, C, A). These three letters represented my strengths and interests in determining which career field would best suit me.

Obtaining a career focus is valuable in any college student’s lifetime; therefore, it would be profitable to meet with a career counselor to discuss occupational goals and interests. Moreover, involvement with the Focus 2 assessment is another contributing factor used to guide the career decision making process. The Focus 2 is comprised of five simple tests that will analyze compatible careers for the individual taking the assessment. Mr. Richard Glass, the career counselor that agreed to meet with me, believes that the work interests assessment produces the most promising results. For instance, my work interests fall under the social, artistic, and investigative categories. Through computerized analysis, I was given a list of occupations that would agree with the data received. The content of this paper will evaluate the results of the Focus 2 assessment, in addition to the major points discussed by Mr. Glass. Come the end of this paper, the reader will gain a better understanding of my work

Dr. John Holland created a theory and inventory to help describe personality types that can be used to identify occupations that are best suited for a particular personality type, or “Holland Code.”

These results are probably right since I like to help people. At the same time, these results reflect my personality, but it does not reflect my interest because I know what I want to do, I know what I want to be, and I know how I want to see myself in the future. For instance, I want to help animals which are my passion, consequently; I want to be a Veterinarian, and I see myself in the future having my own veterinarian clinic. I have really clear in my mind what my goal is and I am going to work towards my goal to achieve it.

One theme is that leadership and extraversion. These are common throughout all my tests, which shows me that it is not something that was a one-time outcome, it is obviously a large part of who I am and what I want my career to be like. There are a few mis-matched preferences for example being a leader and working individually. Looking at all my results, there are a few themes that appear consistent. For one, they all show that I am an outgoing, and a leader. As I stated earlier this is obviously a large part of who I am so it is something that I should be looking out for in a career. They also showed that I should work in some sort of social or human resources job. This also ties into education, which is something that I was considering for a long time. One part of my initial Holland Code that I do not see throughout my other assessments is Enterprising. I feel like this is not something I see in myself and I’m not sure what careers in this category I would

I have performed similar quizzes in the past and each have had similar results to the Holland Career Assessment. I have began to seriously consider going into politics after my time in the Navy is through. I want to have a positive impact on people around me and each of the jobs I have chosen can do just that. This kind of tool is great way to narrow different degree paths for potential college students and the earlier this kind of assessment is performed, the better. A young person can begin to tailor jobs or apprenticeships in different areas to eliminate careers that are not interesting. An adult can do the same thing when changing careers to find a new career that matches his or her personality. It is also important to know the different

What I have learned over the time in this course is career counseling incorporates all aspects of the individual. Yes, career counseling is focused on helping people find that career that fits them best matching their interests and personality but deals with other issues in the individuals’ life. The theory that resonates most with me is Holland’s theory and the use of Self-Directed Search (SDS) to identify interests, abilities, and personality (Sharf, 2013). When we were able to complete the Strong Interest Inventory and Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Career Report and compare the result with the SDS to recognize the consistencies. These assessments reinforced my choice of becoming a professional counselor, although with my past career history

According to John Holland’s Theory of Career Choice, he explains the significance of involving work related behavior. Holland makes a connection between personality type and working environment, and how these two aspects guide one to career success and satisfaction. After taking the personality test, I found out that I am an extrovert. Being a very social person, I need to have a job that is not boring, keeps me on my toes, and I am constantly being challenged in. After working at the Property Management Company I learned that just when you think your day can’t get any more hectic, it does. So you always have to be alert and ready to handle whatever comes your way. This is exactly the kind of job I want, and although some people may get freaked out and scared by this, things like that are what make me happy and feel accomplished.

I selected career assessments because an employment or career change can happen to any client at any point during their lives. Drummond, Sheperis, & Jones (2015) state that individuals may benefit from vocational tests after high school, after college, or during a career change. Additionally, Drummond, Sheperis, & Jones (2015) state that some advantages of career assessments are helping a client discover new occupational interests that match their personality, as well as measuring their skillsets for varying occupations. There are several approaches to career assessments that include interest, beliefs, and capability types of inventories. Interest inventories have been available as early as 1914 and have continued to evolve over the decades (Harrington & Long, 2013). Currently, The U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (2013) has a section on their website allocated for K-12

I’ve had an interesting nine weeks in Career Exploration. I learned an abundant amount of different skills, personality types, and careers. The assessments informed me more about myself and what group I am statistically. I also learned that the Holland Codes helped me understand my personality types and needs. Also, being in the class helped me realize that I haven’t met all my needs.

A brief background overview on a few career development theories will help direct this literature review and give a foundation to current theories in career development. Career development is a complex, lifelong process that is influenced by a variety of factors. Niles and Harris-Bowlsbey (2005) defined career development as “the lifelong psychological and behavioral processes as well as contextual influences shaping one’s career over the life span” (p. 12). Although there are many career development theories, this literature review will focus on just a few. Donald Super’s Life-Span, Life-Space Career Theory highlights the “complex and multifaceted nature of career development” (Niles & Hutchinson, 2009, p. 69). Super’s theory builds upon 14 assumptions and supports three key aspects of career development: life-span, life-space, and self-concept (Niles & Hutchinson, 2009). Life-span focuses on the development over one’s life through growth, exploration, establishment, maintenance, and

Throughout life, people are influenced by others when it comes to career paths. For example, career paths can be directed by our backgrounds such as family and culture. The career path I chose has been influenced by family and those who support me and encourage me during school. The career path, I have chosen is to work with women survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. I will discuss how self-assessments helped me gain an understanding, which careers might be worth pursuing because of my interests.

For many people, finding a career that is both fulfilling and practical is a strenuous task. Fortunately, there is a plethora of different interventions, techniques, assessments, and inventories designed to aid those individuals in making the wisest career choices possible. But are any of those routes inherently better than the others? Or are all the differing options separate but equally effective? Donald Super’s Life Span Theory and John Holland’s Theory of Vocational Choice are just two of the many theories used for career counseling. Both methods are distinct in the way they approach career issues, yet despite their differences, there are some resemblances between the two theories as well. Comparing and contrasting these two theories will make it easier to see if one theory is better than the other for career counseling or if they are both equally effective.

Finding a specific career path can not only be difficult, but it can also induce bouts of anxiety, anger, and sadness over a crucial part of an individual’s life. Settling on a career can be unnerving when thinking about the fact that this is the career that you spend thousands of dollars on in college, that this is the career you will work in until you retire. With this course, I’ve found that it has been easier to narrow down a goal towards finding a career. Through career assessments, different assignments and discussions, I have realized what my barriers and strengths are. Overcoming these and improving these skills or applying them to an actual career assisted me in narrowing my goal as well. I am now able to clearly see the advantages and disadvantages of my career goal and to think clearer about the next steps that I will take after this course.