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This study investigated students' experiences of a career development program that was established to foster interest in and aspirations for higher education within high school students residing in rural and isolated areas of Australia. Nine students who participated in the program were interviewed 18 months later to explore their recollections of the experience. Results of the study revealed three themes pertaining to the value of career planning information, elaboration and confirmation of career thoughts and the social connectedness and positive experience the program provided. It was concluded that the program had a long-term positive impact and that there should be consideration given to exploring the cost-benefit of such programs in terms of university attrition rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a report on the perceived correspondence between career development learning and work-integrated learning programs that were delivered by career services in Australian higher education institutions. The study entailed a questionnaire survey of representatives of university career services. The questionnaire dealt with the extent to which the elements of career development learning were present in work-integrated learning programs. Results of the survey indicated convergence of the career development-learning domains of self-awareness and opportunity awareness, but relatively less integration of decision-making and transition learning. The article concludes with a call for further exploration into how universities and employers view career development learning in work integrated learning programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the contribution of career development to national policy programs and formulations based on research. It states that the ability of career development involvement to create changes in a person's life is worth considering. It proposes an initiative that will change the capacity of the career development profession making micro-contributions be assessed as real differences in the lives of people who experience career development learning in its diverse forms.

An interview with professor Beryl Hesketh, a world renowned figure in the field of career development, is presented. When asked about how she arrived into career development research, she refers to being a part of the Rotary Scholarship program in upstate New York with parents of both personnel manager. Hesketh shares her interest in vocational psychology. Moreover, she cites some of their subsequent contributions in career development, along with her colleagues.

The article focuses on the role of career development practice in higher education in Australia. It examines the way career development practitioners in the country's universities make a significant contribution to the development of the profession and strengthen its position as a legitimate educational partner in the provision of higher learning. It highlights the effort of Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in reviewing the career development services in the country.

This paper reports a study of adult clients' experience of My Career Chapter, which is a theoretically-informed, qualitative career assessment and counselling procedure. My Career Chapter engenders personal exploration through a client's writing and reading aloud a career-related autobiography, which is formulated on the basis of structured steps and a sentence-completion process. In a predominantly qualitative, mixed method design (i.e., QUAL+quan), interpretative phenomenological analysis of six interview transcripts constructed three major clusters representative of clients' experiences: implications for instructions and guidelines; induction of personal contemplation and self-reflection; and positive emotional experience. Secondary quantitative data aligned with the primary qualitative results. The results of this study were consistent with and extend upon previous research; and were indicative of the safety and potential of My Career Chapter as a narrative career assessment and counselling procedure for adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper overviews the qualitative research method of autoethnography and its relevance to research in vocational psychology and practice in career development. Autoethnography is a reflexive means by which the researcher-practitioner consciously embeds himself or herself in theory and practice, and by way of intimate autobiographic account, explicates a phenomenon under investigation or intervention. Autoethnography is presented as a vehicle to operationalise social constructionist research and practice that aims to establish trustworthiness and authenticity. Furthermore, the method is presented as a means to operationalise the notion of critical consciousness within researchers and practitioners. It is concluded that autoethnography should be admitted to the methodological repertoire of vocational psychology research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Systems Theory Framework (STF) is presented as an integrating and organising concept for the predominant theories of career. In order to test the integrative capacity of the STF, this research merges the STF's theoretical element of story with the Theory of Dialogical Self's model of personality. Implications for the practice of career counselling are discussed along with a working example of a career assessment procedure informed by the STF and the Theory of Dialogical Self. It is concluded that integration of the two theoretical bodies adds to the STF's explanatory capacity. There is further scope, however, for STF's integration with theories based upon varying epistemological and ontological assumptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated a qualitative career assessment and counselling procedure that was founded upon a constructivist, narrative approach to career counselling, My Career Chapter: A Dialogical Autobiography (McIlveen, 2006). Counsellors were trained in the use of the procedure and then applied it to themselves in an intensive workshop format. Intepretative phenomenological analysis was used for the research methodology. Counsellors were then interviewed to determine (a) their personal experience of My Career Chapter and (b) their appraisal of its alignment with a set of recommendations for the design and use of qualitative assessment procedures. Four superordinate clusters were derived from the data and these included my career chapter's relationship to theory, its administrative process, the counselling process, and the counselling relationship. The results indicated that My Career Chapter satisfied the recommendations for qualitative procedures. Possible amendments to the procedure were discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a critical argument to the profession of career development for the purpose of stimulating reflexive consideration on the myriad influences that impinge upon practitioners. The paper suggests that given the current skills agenda in the Australian economy, it may be timely to reflexively consider career development practice. The paper uses Charles Dickens' novel Hard Times and the character Mr Thomas Gradgrind, who was a dedicated educator in a small industrial town set in the Victorian era, to exemplify how the influence of prevailing social philosophies and economic conditions imbue the practice of professionals. It is suggested that there are potential parallels between the practices of Mr Gradgrind and contemporary career development practitioners. Career development practitioners are asked to consider their position in and amongst high-level political, economic and educational influences and to reflect upon if and how these influences manifest in their practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the social justice activities facilitated by a university careers service. The article includes a discussion on the relationship between social justice and career development in higher education. Working examples of the activities provided by the career service focus on the delivery of career-related services to students who are represented by the major equity groups identified within the Australian higher education sector. The importance of theoretically informed practice and collaboration between campus agencies is emphasised as a means of achieving social justice outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including the green paper that outlines the provision of quality access to education, the concept of nation's prosperity and the discourse that constitutes the career development field.

An introduction to the journal in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue including one by Susan Gorton on career education for rural schoolchildren and the rural health workforce, Kim Williams on the training associated with the Australian wine tourism industry, and Samer Khasawneh on the occupational engagement of university students in Jordan.

Lester Oakes is the President of the International Association for Educational and Vocational Guidance and the Chief Executive of New Zealand Career Services. He has been a leader in the career development field, contributing particularly to matters of public policy and creating a world class-career service in New Zealand. Lester is driven by the belief that the careers industry is a credible contributor to governments' broader economic and social development agendas and is central to achieving governments' education, employment, economic and social policy objectives. He is also a strong advocate for and practitioner of work-life balance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction to the journal is presented in which the editor discusses an article by Cathy Hughes that analyzes a career development program embedded within a school and its spiritual ethos, another article by Suzette Dyer and Fen Lu that explores the study-to-work transitions of students with an international background, and one by Robert Pryor that articulates important dimensions of career counselling that is informed by the theory of career.

The article reflects on the diversity of professions and discipline of various professionals in the U.S. He cites two fundamental covers of disciplines and professions that make up the field of career development. These include the evidence-based practice and he applied research and development. The author stresses that evidence-based practice has a strong position in other human services professions such as medicine and clinical psychology.

The article discusses various reports published within the issue including one on career development, one on social inclusion and one on economic inclusion.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including social constructivism, career development services, and career counseling.

An introduction to the journal is presented in which the editor discusses minor changes to the journal's production process, developmental differences in educational intervention and a study on the impact of a career education on rural students.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including case study on the career development professional short course for schoolteachers in Queensland, career development practitioner analysis of professional standards in Australia and New Zealand, and career intervention evaluation constructivist framework.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including the development of a new framework for quality assessment, the theoretical framework of the developmental stages in which individual progress is the classical view on adult career development, and an overview of a conceptual framework of retirement and career development.

An introduction to the article is presented in which the editor discusses an article on the notions of professionalism, the experiences of immigrant Japanese teachers in New Zealand, and the research on the scholarship practice in New Zealand.

The author discusses various topics published within the issue including one from James A. Athanasou on the foundations of social integration and career development, another from Chris Kossen and Sara Hammer on a study of the experiences of unemployed adults, and one from Wendy Patton and Erica Smith on the complexities of adolescents undergoing part time work while studying.