Career Counsellors are entrusted with the task of being the torchbearer to light up the career path of students and help them navigate from chaos to confidence and from confusion to clarity. It is a huge responsibility that we are entrusted with and our counselling sessions must be very meticulously conducted.

I want to share my idea of how to counsel students which are based on my own experiences

Developing a Therapeutic Relationship

It might sound a bit overwhelming, but trust me we may or may not be therapeutic counsellors having a background in psychology, but it always strikes a magical bond if you are able to develop that level of connectedness with the student. Though we have psychometric tests to guide us about the interest aptitude EI score of the students it always helps if you are able to make that connection with your client, delve deeper into the needs and aspirations by posing relevant probing questions. Establishing a strong healthy alliance can be invaluable in influencing candidates. They will trust you to give the right options for them and you can trust them to listen to your advice. By building a good rapport with your prospects, they are much more likely to recommend you as a counsellor to others and support your ideas

 And I must add here that being an Emotional Intelligence facilitator as well, has definitely helped me to establish that rapport with my client.

Seek First to Understand Your Client

First, understand how to start a conversation with clients. Ask questions and wait quietly for their response at times a constant nudge to answer may actually be a hindrance. Be organized with the right set of questions that you need to ask your client, in order to be clear of what are their aspirations 

Conduct a Pre-Counselling Session

I always make it a point to conduct a Pre Counselling Session which lasts for about 15 minutes or at times it may be filled with a google form with the questions that you think will help you in refining your research and guidance as per the client’s needs. Let’s consider this, the doctor asks a preliminary set of questions before recommending any treatment, so that’s what we must be able to do as well. Find out their goals and the current state and thereafter bridge the gap.

Holistic Approach

Career counsellors must take a holistic approach, viewing each client as a whole person and then seeking out life themes that have a natural connection to a career for which the client is qualified. There’s a little long-term benefit to entering a career that you’re good at but dislike. The best approach is to find a career that’s in tune with your abilities and your life goals. As career counsellors, we have to do just that. This approach focuses on the candidate’s thoughts, culture, beliefs, and frame of mind together with his or her skills, personality, and knowledge among other assessment factors.

Career Assessment

It may at times be necessary to conduct an appropriate carer assessment test for the client. It is imperative that we must always assert that the reports are not prescriptive, they are indicative as quite often it might lead to a sense of confusion or stress if the test reports may not match with the aspirations of the individual. It is recommended to follow a multidimensional assessment that provides a comprehensive and accurate analysis.

Goal Setting

Once the student has decided upon a career path of his/her choice, it is of utmost importance to set out a solid framework of the milestone or the goals, both short term and long term that he/she must achieve. I remember joyfully when my student asked me why do you say you are a  career coach and not just a counsellor, to this the answer that I had for him- “I don’t just pave the way, I make sure you walk that path as well and have a backup plan ready in case you fail”. I must add here the same client Saurav Badoni, a Pharmacy Student at Jamia Hamdard, is still in touch with me and keeps me updated and is always filled with gratitude. This gives me a deep sense of contentment!!!

A few tips to help in goal setting are:

  • Be very concise 
  • The goals should be time-bound 
  • Specific, realistic, measurable and achievable 
  • Be adaptable to the change 

An Innovative approach

this would mean enabling the client to think innovatively and match the right career fit based on their unique skill set and not zero-in on the typical careers for which they might not be suited. For this, we might have to do a lot of research on emerging careers and build that sense of confidence and trust in the client. Help them in deciding upon the internships,  extracurricular activities, summer programs and volunteering opportunities that might help them in profile building and cement or redefine their career goals.  At the end of the day, it is the delight of the student’s achievement that matters most!!! Career counsellors must be prepared to help these students navigate these stressful decisions, which may include career discovery, job shadowing, and changing majors. 

Decision Making

Uncertainty is a major obstacle to career planning, most clients need to recognize that a certain amount of ambiguity is associated with any decision. At the stage in the planning process, clients need to rely on their intuition as well to guide them to tentative choices. This may be encouraged by exploring how clients feel about alternatives they have encountered during exploration, and by using “what if” scenarios to prevent perceived barriers from prematurely ruling out options. Remember we have to tell them not what they want to hear but what they need to hear.  

Beyond all our efforts it is the call of the student in taking a decision, but they must be told the pros and cons of every step that we might intend them to take.

“ A mentor is someone who allows you to see the hope in yourself, empowers to see the possible future and believe that it can be obtained”. It must be our endeavour to be such mentors.

This is the process that I use as a professional career counsellor. I recommend this to every professional who loves guiding students and wants to get them towards the right career direction.

Introduction to the Global Career Counsellor Program

The Global Career Counsellor Program is an online course in collaboration with UCLA Extension and Univariety. The program brings together learning from International and Indian Experts in the field of Career Counselling. This industry-ready program covers all aspects of:

  • Education Psychology
  • Career Planning
  • Career Development
  • School Counselling

and more…

Therefore, the Global Career Counselling Program is recommended by 6700+ career counsellors across India.

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Durga Yadav
Durga Yadav

Ms. Durga Yadav is an M.Sc/B.Ed/PGDEM and the founder of Eduperfexo Learning. She is an enthusiastic Educator, Soft Skill Trainer, Emotional Intelligence facilitator, and a trained Global Career counsellor. 

She has been closely working with children as an educator for more than a decade. Currently, she is an SEL facilitator and a business communication trainer besides being a Career Counsellor.

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