Career counselling questions (Top 3)

This blog post will talk about career counselling questions, it will include the meaning of career counselling, questions you can ask your counsellor and the benefits and drawbacks of career counselling.

What is career counselling?

Career counselling is a form of counselling where counsellors provide advice and support to their clients to help them manage their life and job. It includes exploring your options, making career choices and changes, and dealing with career issues.

You can go for counselling if you experience any of these issues:

• Recently completed your studies, and are unable to decide which career option to choose
• Conflicted between choosing one option out of many things that you like
• Feel that you don’t have the experience or aptitude required for the chosen career
• Want to change your job or get a degree in a different area or career, and are confused about it

There are a variety of career counsellors, who specialize in different areas in this field. Some of them as reported by the NPR are :

• Career educators help individuals in developing abilities for managing their career
• Career information and assessment experts assess people needs and match them to the best-suited career
• Career counsellors help clients work through their issues
• Programme and service managers are the supervisors of career counselling organizations

What questions should I ask a career counsellor?

You should get the most out of your session, to help you make the best decision that you can concerning your career. These questions will help you with that.

How can I build on my strengths?

If you know your strengths, it makes it easier for you to make a decision. So, the best thing you can ask your career counsellor is how to build those strengths, and choose a career accordingly.

Some strengths may include :

• research skills
• Communication
• problem-solving abilities
• Teamwork
• Presentation skills
• Analysis of data

Your counsellor can also give you tips on how to use this question to demonstrate self-awareness and proceed towards your improvement goals.

How can I work on my weaknesses?

It’s okay to accept your weaknesses. You can now work on them and make a more informed decision. It’s important to discuss this with your counsellor so that you can make a list and maybe come up with steps to overcome them. 

What are the job opportunities in this career?

This can help you improve your chances of employment after graduating. The counsellor will help you evaluate the trends in this industry, required skills and the expected growth and dem

For example, a psychology degree can help you in a lot of different careers. 

You can develop communication and interpersonal skills, which are important in a lot of careers. 

In some cases, your present degree may be beneficial to your new career. 

Since counsellors are aware of new job trends, and which careers are in demand, they can help you make a more informed choice by looking at the best options for you.

Can I get some feedback on my resume and cover letter?

Since counsellors are quite experienced with this, and this is their daily job, they can give you good feedback on your resume. These are crucial tools when applyi9ng to jobs and universities. A good resume and cover letter will increase your chances of employment. 

Counsellors can also give you recommendations for skills or experiences you can add to your resume.

Similarly, your cover letter should be modified for the job you are applying to. The counsellor can give you feedback to make it stand out.

How can I improve myself?

A lot of the jobs are extremely competitive and There are a lot of applicants for the same job. Your counsellor can help you improve your interview skills by helping you practice, and improve your resume and cover letter so that it helps you look better than the other applicants.

Since counsellors are experienced with this, they might recommend upgrading your networking skills, adding on job-specific skills on your resume, and taking courses related to your career.

How can I make my resume look better? 

Your counsellor may recommend taking on some internships or specialized courses that build upon your required skills. This can help you get the best out of your education and improve your chances of getting a good job.

How can I get more information about my career choice? 

You can ask your career counsellor to help you get more information about your intended career, The resources available in your field.  Looking up interviews and reading autobiographies about current professionals in your field is one of the best ways that you can get more information about your career. 

What should I work on till my next session?

If you intend to take another session with your career counsellor, they may ask you to focus on what you talked about in this session. Let’s say that you talked about your strengths and weaknesses. Your counsellor may recommend that you make a list of how you think it may work to your benefit in your job.

They may also ask you to make a list of questions or doubts that you may have, that you would want to work upon in your next session. 

How should I go about my job search?

since everyone is different The same strategies will not work for everyone. You and your counsellor will have to come up with different strategies relating to your strengths and your weaknesses to get the best job. 

You can ask questions such as. 

• How should I distribute my search time Between networking, looking up interviews and applying for jobs?
• What strategies have worked for other people? 
• What would be the best site to look for jobs?

The benefits of career counselling

It helps you clarify your career goals

Since choosing a career is a big decision, it’s not an easy one to make. Sometimes you may change your career after working in a field for a long time. Career counselling helps you clarify your goals before making that decision.

You understand yourself, your career, and the field that you are planning to go in better. According to a career counsellor at Clear Rock, because there are so many options in this world today, it can be a very hard decision to make a good career choice. A good career counsellor will consider everything and help you make an informed decision by implementing a plan that is customized for your needs.

It can help you understand your options better

Your counsellor can make a detailed list of careers that would be the most suited to you by taking into account your personality, interests, aptitude and career trends.

You can make a more informed decision, as you are now made aware of the educational qualification required, and the scope of that career. 

You get an unbiased opinion

As the counsellor is not emotionally attached to you, they can offer unbiased information and insights. This will enable you to get to know yourself better and understand what you want from your career. 

You can talk about your ideas, plan, interests in a non-judgemental environment and the counsellor will help you make sense of these and push you in the right direction for it.

You understand your strengths and weaknesses

Career counsellors use a variety of different tests to help understand your personality, aptitude and IQ. This is so they can make the most informed decision by considering everything.

You gain key skills

You can conduct mock interviews with your counsellor, which can help you understand where you lack, where your strength lies and how to use both of them to your benefit. It helps you practice your skills and helps you gain confidence in yourself. 

The feedback your receive from this will be unbiased and help you improve your communication skills. This also helps you be more straightforward and ask for what you need from the job. 

Drawbacks of career counselling

Fake counsellors

A lot of the counsellors online are fake and have no prior experience in this field. Their only aim is to earn money. 

They can give you wrong advice, which may lead to regretting your decisions later.

Wrong decisions

If the counsellor assesses you wrongly or is not that experienced, they may give wrong advice. It may lead to career options you have no aptitude for or ones that aren’t suited to your interests and requirements.

Conclusion

This blog talked about the definition of career counselling, its benefits and drawbacks, and listed what questions you should ask your career counsellor.

Frequently asked questions: career counselling questions

How do I prepare for career counselling?

There are 4 ways to best prepare for your session :

Be ready to talk about yourself 

You’ll need to tell the counsellor about yourself, to help them create a good plan for you. You should consider what information you tell your counsellor as it’ll help them understand you better. 

Prepare your questions

Make a list of all the questions you want to be answered about your career, the job and everything related to it. This will help you get the most out of the first session, and get a good idea of what you want for the future.

Take notes

There are a lot of things that your counsellor will say that will be important and help you in the future. It’s important to take notes so that you don’t miss anything. 

Have practical expectations

Going to a counsellor won’t make you get your dream job. It will just help you work towards the best options for you. 

Expect a lot of self-reflection, understanding yourself, getting to know more about your career. 

What do you say to a career counsellor?

Talk to your counsellor about your career expectations, ask your questions, ask for feedback on your resume and tips on how to improve your strengths and weaknesses.

A counsellor can also help you prepare for mock interviews for your job, so you can ask them for help with the same.

What happens in career counselling?

You make a map of your career. It includes what you want from the career, the requirements, your strengths and weaknesses and how you can reach your goal. In the end, it helps you with career growth. 

Why do we need career Counselling?

Career counselling helps us understand our career options and how to best pursue them. It helps you learn more about yourself, your strengths and weaknesses and how to use the skills you have to get the job you want. 

It also helps you build upon the skills required to get the job that you are applying for. Counselling also helps you make an informed decision about your present career and the one you want to pursue soon.

Anyone from a school graduate to someone planning on changing their job can go for career counselling.

References 

Indeed Editorial Team. (2021). 12 Career Counseling Questions To Ask Your Career Counselor. Retrieved from

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/career-counselling-questions-to-ask

Yoo, S. 7 Questions to Ask Your Career Counselor. Retrieved from

https://www.themuse.com/advice/7-questions-to-ask-your-career-counselor

10 Questions You Should Ask Your Career Counselor. Retrieved from

Questions you Should ask your career counselor

7 Career Advice Questions to Ask Your Career Advisor. Retrieved from

7 career advice questions to ask your career advisor

Chambi, M.(2020). 9 Essential Benefits of Career Counselling. Retrieved from

https://www.careeraddict.com/5-benefits-of-career-counselling

Reddy, C.Career Advisors Advantages and Disadvantages. Retrieved from

Career Advisors Advantages and Disadvantages

Townes, C.(2021). Does Career Counseling have any Disadvantage? Retrieved from

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