Career Development Manual

This book makes the case that career development practice is a mental health intervention, and provides skills and strategies to support career development practitioners in their work. It explores how practitioners do more than help people navigate career paths, they change people's lives in ways that improve mental health and overall well-being.

This 5th edition is a valuable resource for career counselors. Career development professionals will appreciate the authors' attention to the current context of career counseling practice.

This text integrates theoretical material and provides a practical slant. The many discussions and exercises enable readers to explore their own career issues in order to learn practical approaches to career planning. The authors cover basic career concepts and decision making; social conditions affecting career development such as the global economy and organizational culture; and practical information on implementing a strategic career plan. Many books in this area provide an extensive survey of various theoretical approaches to career planning/development. However, this text constitutes a systematically designed course based on the cognitive information processing model of career problem solving and decision making. This model provides a practical and realistic vehicle to inform students about career planning and management interventions and to accommodate students at different levels of decidedness about their career aspirations.

The average 21st-century career is one of constant change: an individual can no longer expect to remain with one organisation his or her entire life, achieving managerial status through natural progression. Today's job market requires constant re-training and adjustment because of skills obsolescence, age discrimination and technological illiteracy. On the other hand, younger or less qualified workers find it difficult to enter the labour market because of a lack of skills or experience. Career counsellors should be able to help clients to navigate this difficult and changing role. The book offers a practical framework within which the career counsellor can work. The text explains the role of the career counsellor within the organisation; discusses the key concepts that influence career behaviour; explains the use of counselling and guidance tools and techniques; offers insight into the profession and practice of career counselling; and provides guidance within an international and a South African context. Integrating theoretical and practical perspectives, this book offers a comprehensive overview of career counselling and guidance services, practices, tools and techniques in an organisational context. It consists of five chapters, each of which has a summary, key terms and review an discussion questions.

A must-read for counselors in training, Sharf's APPLYING CAREER DEVELOPMENT THEORY TO COUNSELING, 6th Edition, shows you how to apply the principles of career development to a variety of counseling settings. This book is clearly written, filled with useful case examples, and includes integrated diversity coverage to give you the advantage in your course and your career. You'll find information about websites on internships, education, counseling organizations, and jobs. The book's Companion Website provides case studies, tutorial quizzes, and relevant links.