Career Choice Essay

1345 Words6 Pages
“Career Choice, is it a process or an event”. Comment on this statement referring to at least TWO theories of Career Choice. In life, no two people share the same experiences, so it’s easy to see why each person’s career pathway is different. For some of us, our chosen career has been evident from childhood, yet others may find it difficult to reach an outcome and may go through a variety of posts before finding their ultimate calling. The process of making career choices and managing your career is a basic life skill that everyone should understand. Our career decisions have such a profound effect on all aspects of our lives, so it's vital that we have the knowledge and resources needed to make smart, informed decisions. I feel that for the majority, career management is a life-long process, not an event; and we continue to make consequential career choices over the years. Good career decisions are made over time after considering a number of factors such as your work related values, career interests, personal preferences, skills and abilities. My objective in this essay is to explore the many theories constructed which aim to understand how our career choices are made. Frank Parsons is regarded as the founder of the vocational guidance movement. He developed the talent-matching approach, which was later developed into the Trait and Factor Theory of Occupational Choice. At the centre of Parsons' theory is the concept of matching. Parsons states that occupational decision making occurs when people have achieved an accurate understanding of their individual traits (aptitudes, interests, and personal abilities), knowledge of jobs and the labour market rational, and objective judgement about the relationship between their individual traits, and the labour market. This three-part theory still governs most current practice. The trait and factor theory operates
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