Vocational Counseling Development Plan for Career Change

Introduction and Assessment Overview

A client should be comfortable with her treatment, the counseling process, and what to expect during that process. A counselor should understand the client's needs and immediate situation. In order to gather the information that will guide both counselor and client, an initial intake or assessment collects all essential personal information, such as race, age, sex, marital status, and presenting problems. Through an initial assessment, the counselor must understand the client's background and use that information to guide her toward the right career path.

The client interview will focus on obtaining information about the client's work history, career aspirations, work role, medical history, education and family history, problems in daily living, behaviors, and faulty cognitions that contribute to employment difficulties. The counselor will also consider the client's overall appearance, behavior, and mood at the time of the interview. Additional focus will be placed on examining the client's pattern of job dissatisfaction and career change, mental health history, and concerns about childcare. The counselor will create a career genogram and explore the impact of the client's family on her career goals and future aspirations.

Client Background

The client is a 40-year-old Caucasian woman of Greek-Irish ancestry seeking vocational counseling at a career center. She is a former schoolteacher who left her teaching career after two years due to burnout. She holds a B.A. in English with a minor in Journalism and an M.S. in Education. For the past two years, she has been working as a consultant developing writing programs used to train managers and salespersons for utility companies. She lives with her husband and two children, ages seven and eleven.

The client is seeking vocational counseling because she is dissatisfied with her current occupation as a technical writer. She considered seeking counseling for approximately one year before coming to the career center. She is interested in pursuing a career as a technical writer, editor, dietician, publisher, or recreation planner, but remains undecided about which direction to take and has no concrete plan for achieving her career goals. Her employment experience includes work as a high school teacher and as a writer.

The key problems the client needs to address, in order of importance, are: deciding which career to pursue, and developing a plan for achieving her career goals. An examination of why she continues to experience a pattern of job dissatisfaction may also be necessary. The client has been diagnosed with dysthymia and is currently prescribed the generic form of Prozac at 20 mg per day to manage her depression. She plans to see her family physician regarding recent changes in her sleep pattern. Because of her mental health concerns, a team approach will be required to manage the case. Her assets include being well educated, active in her community as an athletic coach, and a member of her church. She also has a strong, supportive family, a Master's degree in Education, and excellent writing abilities. An assessment battery will be administered to gather further information about her skills, strengths, and career goals. Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) will be used in counseling, as it incorporates attitudes, values, interests, gender, ethnicity, and environment into career planning and goal setting.

Current Motivation for Seeking Counseling

The client is seeking career counseling to help her find a new career. She left her previous career as a teacher due to dissatisfaction with the school system and difficulty working with school-age children. She has explored other work options but has not found a role that provides fulfillment. She has several interests and multiple hobbies, yet she seeks a career that will offer genuine job satisfaction.

The client has been considering professional career counseling for more than a year and has now decided that the time is right to seek that help. Her husband is supportive of a career change, and she has access to discounted tuition through his employment. Her career counselor will assist her in identifying a career that is a good fit and will help determine whether additional training or education is required for her chosen path.