This article first appeared in the Australian Career Practitioner, Vol. 20, No. 4, Summer 2009. Some material has been updated, Reprint permission granted by Editor - Lee Miles.
Introduction
The term globalization is now commonplace. It refers to more than economic and political concerns. Globalization can also apply to career development services as they can be provided to the world's population. Many national, regional and international organizations have focused on career development policies and practices. The International Centre for Career Development and Public Policy (ICCD) has facilitated many meetings, research reports and policy statements. Reports by Watts and Sultana (2004) and Zelloth (2009) indicate that countries need to formulate comprehensive plans for effective delivery of career guidance services. The National Career Development Association regularly sponsors an International Symposium to facilitate world wide discussions.
However, McCarthy (2004) reports on wide variations between and within countries as to the training and requirements needed to practice as guidance workers. Training for career practitioners to provide career guidance services is a major concern. Nues, Engels, and Lenz (2009) state that career practitioner preparation is challenged by the needs for - public policies on career development, greater competencies standardization, and innovative training programs.
Standardization of training is not an easy task. A key component in preparing for training is to access the needs of potential providers. Splete and Hoppin (2000) discuss the lengthy process of formulating a United States training curriculum based on a needs survey of practitioner competencies. Completion of this NCDA-CDF training allows one to apply for certification as a Global Career Development Facilitator (GCDF). Repetto (2008), with the support of the International Association for Educational and Vocational Guidance (IAEVG), coordinated an extensive project which identified needed competencies and established a training outline based on these competencies. Completion of this training allows one to apply for an international credential in Educational and Vocational Guidance Practice (EVGP).
The 120 hour NCDF-CDF Curriculum was originally developed to fill in gaps of knowledge and skill of career practitioners, usually paraprofessionals working in career centers under the supervision of Master's level counselors. Over the past 10 years, we have seen Master's degree counselors taking this training to obtain more information about career development practices and to upgrade their skills. Often this material is included in college and university courses. In addition to this training, certification groups review the educational and work background of the applicants.
Some terms used to describe various practitioner roles include career counselor, career development facilitator, career coach, career advisor and employment counselor. In practice, one needs to know the qualifications and training of the practitioner so that role is well defined and the guidance worker can effectively serve the appropriate populations.
For example, Patton (2005) describes the breadth of the Career Coordinator role in Australia. The government's Department of Education Science and Training formulated a series of 3 programs for various levels of career practitioner needs. The Australian Career Development Series (ACDS) includes Awareness of Career Development, Elements of Career Service Delivery and Career Development Services. These programs are sequenced from requiring no formal educational qualifications to postgraduate certificate level.
So, it seems realistic for each country to recognize the training required for their use of a career practitioner title and for the most relevant training for that role. This does not preclude that country from adapting what is appropriate from training models as those of NCDA -CDF and the IAEVG. Organizations from the following countries have had their CDF training approved and their trainees become eligible for CCE certification as GCDFs. They are Bulgaria, Canada, China, Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Japan, Macedonia, New Zealand, Romania, South Korea, Taiwan, Turkey and the United States.
Training Programs
Before we discuss NCDA CDF training in the Middle East, it may be helpful to clarify the NCDA Career Development Training Program. Powell (2009) provides a concise overview in which she describes possible roles of a CDF and a general definition as one who has completed in-depth training of up to 120 or more instructional hours provided by an NCDA nationally trained and qualified instructor. Upon successful completion of the NCDA CDF training, the participants may apply to CCE for certification as a GCDF.
The current version of the NCDA Career Development Facilitator Curriculum was revised by Harris-Bowlsbey, Suddarth, and Reile (2008). The curriculum is designed to teach skills in 12 competencies. They are - Helping Skills, Diverse Populations, Ethical and Legal Issues, Consultation, Career Development Models, Assessment, Labor Market Information and Resources, Technology, Employability Skills, Training Clients and Peers, Program Management Implementation and Promotion and Public Relations. This training resonates with a Western culture and provides a United States model of the concept and delivery of career services. However, the 12 competencies of the curriculum may be considered as a basis for transferability to many parts of the world. Adaptation as appropriate is the key.
International Training
International requests for the CDF training and GCDF certification have continued to increase. This is true of Middle Eastern countries. To our knowledge, Egypt was the first Arabic speaking Middle Eastern nation to use a version of the basic CDF training as a preparation to apply for GCDF certification. University staff in Istanbul and Ankara, Turkey had previously adopted the CDF program for use with agencies and in higher education. Staff at Cairo University and at Ain Shams University saw a clear need to prepare their engineering students for employment in career development activities in their field and saw this training program as appropriate. Topics and modes of delivery of the curriculum were adapted for relevancy to Egyptian culture, economic conditions and educational structure while keeping a focus on the NCDA competencies.
Qatar was the second Arabic speaking Middle Eastern nation to collaborate with NCDA in a country specific training. The sponsoring group was The Higher Education Institute (HEI) of the country's Supreme Education Council (SEC). Two of the main functions of HEI are administering higher education scholarships and providing educational and career counseling. Currently, the HEI has 350 top-ranked institutions from around the world on its scholarship lists. HEI's Advising and Career Development Center (ACC) provides comprehensive advising and career counseling services that help students and graduates make educational and career choices based on their interests, abilities, values and needs of the labor market.
Career counseling services in most Qatari schools are still in their initial stages. Some schools have not included counseling in their educational plans and the SEC recognized the need for greater numbers of welltrained professionals with appropriate counseling and related skills to become involved in the process of counseling students.
To meet this need for a high-quality academic advising program with career information overtones in Qatar, the Secretary General of the SEC instructed the ACC to prepare a long term training program to provide academic advisors with the necessary skills to help students make wise educational decisions. Three phases of a training program were outlined. The first phase, completed in December of 2008, was conducted by ACC staff. The focus of this phase was to prepare the school advisors with the essential skills required to help individuals make mature decisions about their future careers or academic pursuits.
In preparing for phases two and three, the ACC recognized the need to look internationally for a professional group that could provide expertise, ideas and best practices that would help further prepare their staff to provide quality career delivery services. After an extensive search of professional organizations, ACC chose the National Career Development Association (NCDA) to help them in planning for and implementing these phases. The NCDA - CDF training curriculum provided the basis for this collaborative effort.
Each of the second and third phases was planned for a face to face two week period in which 60 hours would be spent covering the curriculum and CDF competencies as they related to Qatari culture. Forty two trainees, including school personnel, social workers and staff from the Qatar Foundation, Qatar University, and from public, private and independent schools completed phase two in May, 2009. The content covered in the second phase was based on the first 5 chapters of the curriculum. They were: Developing a Helping Relationship, Using Your Helping Skills with Diverse Populations, Ethics for the Career Development Facilitator, Career Development Theory and Its Application, and The Role of Assessment in Career Planning.
The third phase of 60 hours was conducted in November 2010. After a review of phase 2 curriculum, we covered the appropriate portions of the remaining curriculum chapters - The Role of Career Information in Career Planning, Computer and Career Planning, Job Seeking and Employability Skills, Working with Groups, and Designing and Implementing Career Planning Services.
We concluded the program with each participant presenting a proposed career development activity based on a CDF competency. Through these presentations, we noted the students' growth in knowledge of the training materials and their desire to use this training in their current jobs. During the last week, the trainees completed application materials for GCDF certification.
Participants evaluated the program at the conclusion of each stage of the training. Trainee comments indicated that they were very satisfied with the high level of training. The majority of responses indicated that - the training objectives were clearly defined, the training environment was very supportive, the trainers actively involved the participants and that the feedback given in process evaluations helped to strengthen the training process. In addition, the participants thought the training was unique due to - the quality of the curriculum, the training style of the instructors, the interaction between the participants, and the excellent ACC - HEI preparation and organizational support. This support included the provision of simultaneous translation in both languages. Over all, the evaluation results indicated a growth in the career development service skills of the trainees. In addition to gaining knowledge and skills from the NCDA-CDF content, the students used this opportunity to get to know one another, discuss their needs, share related experiences, and provide suggestions and recommendations for future professional activities. The authors were able to share their training experiences with other professionals during seminars and programs at the 2010 NCDA Global Development Conference and IAEVG International Symposium in San Francisco, California.
Implications from the Training
Based on our experience, we suggest:
1. appropriate time for pre-training meeting and communication between the two parties;
2. agreement on training purpose and clarification of expectations;
3. choice of qualified trainers based on their experience and their match with the trainee population;
4. sharing of information about host country's size, history, economy, culture, local customs, workdays and holidays and relate that to the training process;
5. support by the host group in helping with adaptation of curriculum, translation of materials, simultaneous translations during training, provision of adequate training environment and with site support services including media and technology access;
6. sharing of information about the trainee population, selection process, work and educational backgrounds, possible language difficulties, and possible conflicts with work schedules;
7. use of face to face interchanges during the training to work through cultural nuances and assumptions;
8. work closely with the assigned translators to deal with challenges in direct translation;
9. relate training to specific work environments and possible site supervision; and
10. continuing education hours to extend skills, provide support for change and add visibility to the workplace.
Conclusion
Even with the increased demands for career development practitioner training, the contracted group needs to proceed cautiously and with the full involvement, understanding and support of the host organization. Cultural values, traditions and expectations vary across regions and nations of the world. As Sultana (2009) indicates, the training group should be sensitive and flexible in its work so that western or other regional values are not seen as being imposed upon the program's trainees. We believe that career development practitioner training across nations will continue as part of globalization, and with proper planning and implementation can benefit clients of those trained career development facilitators.
[Reference]
References
Harris-Bowlsbey, J., Suddarth, B. & Reile, D. (2008). Facilitating career development (2nd ed). Broken Arrow, OK: National Career Development Association.
McCarthy, J. (2004). The skills, training and qualifications of guidance workers. Internationaljournal for Educational and Vocational Guidance 4, 159-178.
Niles, S.G., Engels, D.W., & Lenz, J. (2009) .Training career practitioners. Career Development Quarterly 57, 358-365.
Patton, W.A. (2005). Coming of age? Overview of career guidance policy and practice in Australia. Internationaljournal for Educational and Vocational Guidance 5, 217-227.
Powell, M.A. (2009). The NCDA career development facilitator training program: An Overview. Career Developments 25, 20-21.
Repetto, E. (2008). International Competencies for Educational and Vocational guidance practitioners: an IAEVG trans-national study. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance 8, 135-195.
Splete, H., & Hoppin, J. (2000). The emergence of career development facilitators. The Career Development Quarterly 48, 340-347.
Sultana, R.E. (2009). Career guidance policies: global dynamics, local resonances. iCeGS Occasional Paper. International Centre for Guidance Studies.
Watts, A.G. & Sultana, R. (2004). Career guidance policies in 37 countries: contrasts and common themes.
Internationaljournal for Educational Guidance 4, 105-122.
Zelloth, H. (2009). In demand: Career guidance in EU neighbouring countries. European Training Foundation.
[Author Affiliation]
About the authors
Howard Splete, PhD, LPC, NCDA Fellow, is a retired professor emeritus of Oakland University. He has worked extensively in the field of career development in educational and workforce settings. A previous President of NCDA and NBCC-CCE, he has been active in professional organizations at all levels. He (with J. Hoppin) developed the original NCDA-CDF curriculum and trained CDFIs and Master Trainers. A member of IAEVGA, he has presented and consulted internationally as well as in the United States. Contact him as follows:
Howard Splete, PhD, Professor Emeritus
LPC, NCCC, GCDFI, GCDF Master Trainer, NCDA Fellow
Department of Counseling
Oakland University
1539 Biggers Dr.
Rochester Hills, MI 48309
248-651-1822
e-mail: hhsplete@juno.com
Ellen Weaver Paquette, MA, CAGS has instructed nearly two thousand graduate students in career counseling courses while serving as the full time Director of Career Development at Rhode Island College. She served on the first GCDF Advisory Board, has published numerous articles for academic journals as well as NCD A' s Career Convergence web magazine and Career Development Quarterly. She is a well known presenter at NCDA conferences, and received the President's Award for her work facilitating the GCDF curriculum in the Middle East. She has earned recognition as a National Board Certified Counselor, GCDF Master Trainer, Master Career Counselor, Master Career Development Practitioner, and Distance Certified Counselor. She has trained all GCDF personnel in Rhode Island and has offered many GCDF Instructor and e-learning for Instructors training sessions in the United States. She has trained hundreds of school counselors in portfolio development, facilitated career development/counselor training through Perkins grants and has supervised work experience/cooperative education programs. Trained as a school teacher and as a school counselor, her advanced degrees in counseling psychology have made her a sought after instructor for both undergraduate teaching candidates and for graduate students. She started her own career consulting business, D�veloppe, in 2006. Her work and clients now span the United States. She enjoys multigenerational and multicultural approaches to career development with clients in schools, agencies, government, and business. Her experience in higher education, K- 12 populations, limited English speaking populations and in the performing arts have given her strong skills with diverse populations. Her career blog, posted to the Newport Daily News, is a regular feature attracting readers to career development topics of general interest. Contact her as follows:
Ellen Weaver Paquette, MA, CAGS
NBCC, MCC, MCDP, DCC
GCDF Master Trainer
Principal, D�veloppe, LLC
Adjunct faculty, Dept. of Counseling
Graduate School of Education
Rhode Island College
Adjunct faculty, Rehabilitation Counseling
Salve Regina University
Newport, RI
ellen@careerconsultingconcepts.com
401-423-0171
Skype eilen. weaver. paquette
Salwa Saleh Atiyyah is a consultant advising the Career Development Center, Higher Education Institute, Doha, Qatar.
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