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Rutgers SHP Requirements for Graduation and Course Descriptions

Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation & Counseling Professions

Psychiatric Rehabilitation

PSRT5201 - Career Development Theory

Course Description

This course focuses on theories of career and lifestyle development. The course also includes information about identifying career options, occupational and educational information, and career decision making and planning.

Credits/Modes of Instruction

Credits: 3

Modes of instruction include lecture, class discussion, and in-class activities. Additionally, students will complete assessment instruments on themselves, as well as work with a focus person to complete a readiness assessment and to use occupational information resources in career planning. This course is offered in both on-campus and online formats.

Prerequisites

None

Course Goals and Outcomes:

Goals

The goals of the course are to be able to:
Develop an understanding of career development theories and decision making models and their use in counseling for career planning and decision-making including identifying sociological and psychological dynamics that may affect career choice and career development;
Access labor market and related information such as educational and vocational information and use it to assist in career planning;
Assist clients to identify and use sources of occupational information;
Work with clients to use technology-based approaches to identify information helpful in making career decisions, including using career information systems and Internet resources;
Work with clients to consider their perspectives on the process of making career changes and choosing career goals including the interrelationships among work, family, and other life roles;
Identify measures related to specific career development theories and discuss their use in counseling;
Consider diversity variables such as ethnicity, gender, demographics, and social class in career planning and decision making;
Recognize and address ethical and legal issues in assisting clients who are making career choices.

Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
Describe several theories of career development and related approaches to career decision making in counseling for career issues including sociological and psychological dynamics as forces in career development and strategies to develop self-awareness and self-development and to address external barriers;
Complete an assessment about the client's perspective on making changes related to career and readiness for employment, and interpret it to the client;
Assist the client to develop and implement plans to research possible career alternatives including facilitating the client’s involvement in career and educational exploration and planning;
Specify how to include the use of sources of occupational information and labor market trends in the counseling process of assisting clients to choose specific career goals including using technology-based resources;
Incorporate measures related to career development theories in the counseling process;
Describe applications of career development theories in career program planning;
Discuss how diversity issues may affect the process of choosing career goals and the process of career development; and
Identify ethical and legal issues in career counseling and the use of the NCDA Code of Ethics and other Codes of Ethics in ethical decision making.