Career Development Needs of Adults: How to Improve Career Development Programs.

Suggesting implications for career education program development and revision, this document is one in a series of five publications reporting results of a career development needs study of four different age levels. In this document, the assessment of career development needs of adults (ages 26-35) is presented in three major sections. Section 1 presents an overview of the National Assessment of Career and Occupational Development (COD), explaining the rationale, objectives, exercises, assessment samples, subpopulation data, and possible uses of the career development needs series. Section 2 presents the collected data on career development needs of adults. The results are summarized and program implications are suggested under three broad objectives: prepare for making career decisions; improve career and occupational capabilities; and possess skills that are generally useful in the world of work. Also organized by these three objectives, section 3 provides a more detailed description of the COD assessment data, including statistical tables. (BM) Aspect of National Assessment (NAEP) dealt with in this document: Results (Interpretation).