CAREER_COUNSELLING_EN

• competence evaluation tests (requiring the observation of the subject in a real
  work environment, or in a work simulation, as well as questionnaires);


• interest questionnaires;


• computerized instruments.

The role of the counsellor

A career counsellor follows ethical principles, and ensures evaluation test and

questionnaire result confidentiality. Screening could represent a moment of clash between

occasionally contradictory instances of logic. A counsellor must seize the inadequacy

between social and individual requests, try and quantify the gap between the official

discourse and the reality of practice. A counsellor views people in their complexity,

respecting their interests and autonomy. This approach requires a set of professional

competences (psychological, socio-economic, legal), and personal qualities such as

tolerance, openness, spontaneity, flexibility, empathy.

Evaluation of competence screening

In France there was a national analysis inquiry of the competence screening efficiency in
relation to the beneficiaries’ expectations. 372 beneficiaries participated from 84
Inter-Institutional Competence Screening Centres (Guichard, Huteau, 2001). Of these,
67% were seeking for a job.

Expectations were related to:

• self-knowledge;
  
  
  • guidance with a view to:
    
    choosing a training course,
    
    elaborating a project,
    
    changing jobs,
    
    choosing a new profession,
    
    finding the first employment;
  
  
  • professional development:
    
    recognition of competences,
    
    professional development,
    
    taking on new responsibilities.