Helping in Career Choice - Research Proposal Example

Career Choice Affiliation Contents Interview with the Client 3 Career Opportunities 6 Journalism 6 Education and Training 6 Employment 7 Job outlook 7 Salary 7 Advancement 7 Nursing and Psychiatric Aides 8 Education and Training 8 Employment 8 Job Outlook 9 Salary 9 Advancement 9 Conclusion and Recommendation 9 References 11 Research Report Assisting a Client in making a Career Choice Introduction Choosing a career is a very tough business for many people. There are very many choices and very many different factors to be considered. For example, money, effect of the job on the family life, and job setting. Therefore, to make good career choices it is very vital to seek advice and counseling from career professionals. There are many career counseling firms with qualified professionals who can give quality and perfect advices on career choices (Cochran, 1997). Open Options is a career-counseling firm. It had the honor of helping a given client who needed the advice of the firm in career choice. Following is a report of the interview that was carried out in response to his order. The main aim of this interview was to help the client follow the correct path in developing his career. The report covers a large scope including his personality and skills suitability, alternatives available to him, the constraint which may deter him from achieving his career and the value that the client would like to obtain from the choice of his career. Sources of the information that were used in giving advice to the client embody records of previous works with some of our clients, career books, and other web sites that cover issues on career alternatives. The report covers the information obtained from the client through an interview, opportunities available for the client, a recommendation of the best choice for him and a conclusion. Interview with the Client The interview I carried out with the client was designed with the aim of enquiring on the issues he wanted tackled. The client explained that he needed the help of the firm in developing the correct path for his career. He explained that he needed to have a good understanding on the best career that suited him, the pay and how he could possibly develop it to greater heights. The client is an 18 year old, Black-American boy whose parents do no have access to unaffordable counseling service. He is an 11th grader learning at an English high school in a traditionally advantaged area. The school is dominated by white teachers. The client’s language preference is English with French as a second choice. He is the only child from his family. His parents were divorced and now both married. He has a half sister and three half brothers who are all younger than him. His father is self trained auto-mechanic who runs an own business from his house. His mother, a ninth grader, works as a housekeeper in a white’s home. Although the father and the mother are in disagreement on the field that their son should pursue, they both expect him to study towards a further qualification. The client expressed a desire to study bio-chemical engineering and medicine. Although he is not certain about a career choice, he desires to work with people in a helping capacity. He indicated that he would wish to converse and help people to improve the quality of their lives. His teachers describe him as intelligent, well behaved, hardworking and conscientious. His friends and classmates regard his ability to communicate as his strength. His school marks for the second term of the eleventh grade during 2011 are recorded in the order of preference of the client: Subject Grade Symbol English (1st Language) HG C French (2nd Language) HG B Physical Science HG C Biology HG E Mathematics HG D Accounting HG C The client was then assessed to obtain the necessary information required for the counseling. The assessment was conducted in three sessions. The first consisted of contact interview, the second was completion of a number of psychometric tests and the third was a feedback session. During the session, the following general and traditional media as recommended by Cochran (1997) were used: Senior Aptitude Tests (SAT) 19 Field Interest Inventory (19FII) Jung Personality Questionnaire (JPQ) High School Personality Questionnaire (HSPQ) The Senior Aptitude Test gave the following information concerning the intellectual and aptitude ability of the client: The 19 Field Interest Inventory gave the following information: Preference profile according to the 19FII: Science 9 Creative thought 6 Practical (male) 9 Performing arts 5 Language 8 Travel 5 The Jung Personality Questionnaire (JPQ) and the High School Personality Questionnaire (HSPQ) gave the following information about him: The client is amiable and has a good sense of humor. He is organized, helpful and initiates conversations. He is very cooperative and values each and every person. He is emotional and conscientious with high level of integrity. The client also displays an academic self image that is positive. He believes that he can succeed in his school work and future careers despite his current situation. He is adaptable and accepts challenges. Despite his current situation, he sets high standards and is focused on achieving them. Family values are very important to him despite his depressing family situation. He is very ambitious, determined and displays a need to move out of his present situation. Career Opportunities The client was given a list of five careers which he could pursue. The careers, which needed tertiary training, were discussed with her in details. The discussion covered the education requirement of each career, salary expectations and advancement. The careers discussed were: Journalism Education and Training According to United Stated Department of Labor (March 11, 2010), the career requires formal training in broadcasting from any college or technical school with a bachelor degree in a subject such as broadcasting, communications or journalism. Computer skills, high school and college courses in English, public speaking drama, and foreign languages are also important. Hobbies in sports and music are also an added advantage to pursue the career. Employment In 2008, announcers (journalists) held about 67, 4000 jobs. Close to fifty one percent were employed in radio and television stations and many others were self employed freelance journalists (United Stated Department of Labor, March 11, 2010). Job outlook In the US, there is great competition in the journalism jobs because the field has many more job seekers than the available jobs. In addition, employment in the field is projected to reduce slowly. Announcers also leave the field due to inability to advance to better paying jobs. Changes in ownership, format and rating of the stations also cause unemployment to many journalists. However, although there is projected decline in employment in this area, there is a possible area for radio presenters- the hybrid digital radio. Broadcasters believe that this area will increase in the coming years. Therefore, before this period comes, to get employed in this field one must be best among all others (United Stated Department of Labor, March 11, 2010). Salary Although the Salaries in broadcasting vary widely, they are relatively low except for those who are employed in large stations or networks. Payment is higher in television than in radios and higher in commercial broadcasting stations than in public stations. In May 2008, the median wages of radio and television presenter per hour were $12.95, and for public address and other system presenters were $13 (United Stated Department of Labor, March 11, 2010). Advancement The presenters or journalists usually start there work in small stations in the community and, if they are qualified, can move to the city for better paying jobs. They may also advance by hosting a regular program. Due to stiff competition in the field, presenters will need college degrees and several years of experience to advance further. Nursing and Psychiatric Aides Education and Training In most cases, diploma from a high school or equivalent is necessary for the nursing and psychiatric aide job. Training in these fields is offered in high schools, some nursing care facilities and community colleges. The courses taught in these fields include body mechanics, nutrition, communication skills, personal care skills and anatomy and physiology. Training may be provided to the new hired aides by some employers or from experienced workers. The aides may also attend workshops and in-service for training on the field. In the US, the aides are required by the federal government to complete a state approved training for not less than 75 hours and pass a competency evaluation. Those who successfully complete the training qualify to be certified nurse assistants and are placed on the registry of the state nurse aides. The aides are also required to have good health and have no criminal record (United Stated Department of Labor, March 11, 2010). Employment According to the United Stated Department of Labor (March 11, 2010), in 2008, nursing and psychiatric aides held close to 1.6 million jobs in the US. Most of the jobs- about 1.6 million were held by nursing aides, orderlies and attendants. Psychiatric aides only held approximately 62,600 jobs. Approximately 40 percent of nursing aides and attendants worked in nursing care institutions whereas about 30 percent worked in hospitals. About half of all psychiatric aides worked in hospitals. Other aides were employed government agencies, outpatient care centers and family services. Job Outlook The overall employment of nurses and psychiatric aides is expected to grow 19% between 2008 and 2018, faster than all other occupations in the US. The employment for nurses is projected to grow 20% faster than all other occupations due to the need for long term care of the rising elderly population. The financial pressures on the health care facilities to discharge patients as quick as possible will also create more opportunities for nurses in the field of health. However, the expected growth of psychiatric aides is 7%, much slower than average. Psychiatric aides are a small occupation than the nursing aides (United Stated Department of Labor, March 11, 2010). Salary In May 2008, the median wages of nurse per hour were $11.46 with the middle fifty percent earning between $9.71 and $ 13.76. The lowest ten percent were earning less than $8.34 and the highest ten percent greater than USD 15.97 per hour. In the same year the median wages for psychiatric aides were USD 12.77 with the middle fifty percent earning between USD 10 and USD 15.63 (United Stated Department of Labor, March 11, 2010). Advancement Within these occupations, opportunities to advance are limited. Generally, aides require additional formal education and training to go into other health occupations. Popular health occupations for former aides include medical assistant and registered nurse. For some people, these occupations serve as entry level jobs. Experience in the field can help individuals decide whether to a health career choice. Conclusion and Recommendation The greatest challenge that the client has is lack of financial support. The client comes from a divorced family with low financial ability. This makes him a potential bursary candidate and therefore, to further his studies in the recommended field he would need to apply for bursaries and sponsorships. He should also carry out job analyses so as to obtain insight into careers he had chosen. The client is an ideal candidate for the above career choices because he has an interest in working with people in an aid-capacity and desires to improve their lives. His good communication skills together with his sympathetic nature further qualifies him for these choices. His present school marks and aptitude also qualify him for these choices. However, the client is best suited for a nursing career. This is because he has strong language aptitudes, excellent personal interaction, good communication skills and great personality traits. Furthermore, with the projected employment trends, settling on journalism would be a wrong decision because employment on the filed is likely to reduce in future. Journalism is also competitive that succeeding in the field would be very difficult than in nursing. Therefore, with the projected employment growth in the nursing field I recommend that the client pursue a career in nursing. References United Stated Department Of Labor (March 11, 2010). Professional and Related Occupations (Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition). Retrieved on 16th June, 2011 from http://www.bls.gov/oco/oco1002.htm#social Cochran L (1997). Career Counseling: A Narrative Approach. London, Sage Publications. Read More