Guidance counselors are invaluable assets to school districts, operating at the elementary, middle and high school levels. A school guidance counselor usually has a Master’s degree, and most states require counselors to be licensed.

Guidance counselors have to balance multiple roles when relating to students. They are a primary advocate for students, in both the students personal and academic lives.

Preparing students for the future:

It’s important for counselors to be able to make regular assessments of each student’s academic progress, so that they can be familiar with individual needs and goals. Advising a student on which classes to take and how to prepare for their academic and career futures is a cornerstone of a guidance counselor’s function. Giving out assessment tests, consulting with students regarding career goals and reminding them about scholarship and application deadlines are all regular duties for high school guidance counselors in particular.

Helping students with the present:

One of the hardest and most rewarding aspects of being a guidance counselor is helping students today. Whether it’s giving them the confidence they need to sign up for a particular class, or helping them through a troubled period in their lives, guidance counselors are important. Children coping with family issues, such as divorce, or social issues, such as peer pressure or bullying, often turn to their guidance counselor for advice. Even more importantly, a guidance counselor should be attuned enough to their students that they notice shifts in behavior or attitude even before the student brings it up!

But for somebody who is interested in helping others, who can really listen and wants to help guide children and young adults – for that person, a career as a guidance counselor can be a wonderful and rewarding occupation.

In the article “Internships Go Virtual, Allowing for Flex Time,” Wall Street Journal Reporter Amy Hoak discusses how students are increasingly taking on internships that don’t require regular appearances in the office. Virtual internships allow students to work independently while having the flexibility of working in their dorm rooms. (more…)

Joe Turner, a career expert and writer for MSN Careers, makes the comparison between the show that entertains millions of Americans for hours each week and the situation that millions of Americans dread: the job interview.

Are you currently interviewing for a better job? Try watching American Idol. If you follow this huge money-making singing contest from Fox these days, you already know all about this phenom.

Love it or hate it, American Idol (and their other country equivalents) is a good metaphor for life on a number of different levels, which is one reason why it’s so popular. If you’re currently in job interview mode, you could learn a lot by watching this show. (more…)

For thousands of college students, graduation is just weeks away. While some seniors may have recently been thinking more about spring break than a job or graduate school, it’s not too late for those who haven’t found a job to get help from the campus career center.

These centers typically offer a range of services from one-on-one counseling and classes on resume writing to on-campus job fairs and alumni networking opportunities. Ideally, students should show up as freshmen to discuss their majors and career choices, but most don’t arrive until they’re almost out the door.

“One of our biggest challenges is raising students’ awareness to get them to take responsibility for their careers,” says Jack Rayman, senior director of career services at Pennsylvania State University.

The Penn State center offers programs including individual and group counseling, classes on job hunting, and recruiting visits from 500 to 1,000 public and private employers each year. The school’s “LionLink” program brings together students and alumni who serve as volunteer career coaches. (more…)

As mentioned on MSN Careers in the article Job Outlook for Class of 2007, the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) predicts college hiring will increase by 17.4 percent in 2007. This is the fourth straight year that new graduate hiring is expected to grow by a double-digit percentage.

According to the fall preview of NACE’s “Job Outlook 2007″ survey, employers cite company growth, retiring employees and high job turnover as key reasons for the rise in hiring.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ “2004-2014 Job Outlook for College Graduates” identifies seven prominent career fields that will have significant openings in the years ahead two of which tie in closely to school guidance counseling. (more…)

Is graduate school right for you? Only you can answer that question. Don’t take the decision lightly. Consider your interests, goals, dreams, and abilities. Assess your skills, competencies, and weaknesses with brutal honesty. In-depth soul-searching is unpleasant, but vital to making a choice you can live with for the next two to seven years. Consider the following questions: Why do I want to go to graduate school? Is it for the right reasons?
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In the article, ‘Eight Summer Reads for the Career Conscious,’ Kate Lorenz outlines recommendations for career-conscious individuals who are reading for both pleasure and profit. However, as a fan of hot summertime days, I suggest these ’summer’ reads for the bitter cold days of winter. After all, what’s better than curling up under a blanket with a good book? Well, maybe you should include a cup of hot chocolate and glowing fireplace for the ultimate experience.

Check out the recommendations below for the best books for job hunters, best books to enlighten (and impress) and the best books for personal effectiveness. (more…)

If you are on the path to becoming a guidance counselor, you’re heading toward a position that involves a great deal of interaction with others. Elementary-level school counselors through college-level guidance counselors work with students to promote and support their academic, personal and social development. It is essential for guidance counselors to be effective communicators, able to provide educational advice, career recommendations, and even help to those who may not be heading in the right direction at all.

Before you can secure your place in this field, you’ll have to successfully complete a different type of interaction process the job interview. Interviewing skills are important for any career field. However, guidance counselors not only need to excel to land a job, they should also be able to help future job-seekers with interview tips.

Learn from common mistakes made by others instead of committing an interview no-no. After all, as Kiplinger’s writer Peter Phelan states, the last thing you want to do is leave the wrong impression.

In his article, What Not to Say at a Job Interview, Phelan outlines 12 gaffes that could cost you a job. (more…)

Article by Stephanie Armour, USA Today

College graduates are experiencing the best job market in four years as a stronger economy leads more employers to ramp up hiring.

Employers expect to hire 17.4% more new college graduates in 2006 and 2007 than in 2005 and 2006, according to a new survey by the Bethlehem, Pa.-based National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE).

Signing bonuses range from $1,000 to $10,000, with the average at $3,568. And employers reported plans to boost their starting salary offers by 4.6% over last year, nearly a full percentage point higher than increases for the classes of 2006 and 2005.

“This is the fourth year in a row that employers have predicted an increase in hiring,” says Andrea Koncz at NACE. “It really is because of the economy and more demand. Companies are growing.” (more…)

For parents, releasing children off into the ‘wild’ (also known as college) can be a really difficult time. You can no longer tell them when to do their homework, you have no control over their curfew, and you can’t make sure they are eating their vegetables. Whether it’s your firstborn or the last of several children to escape the shelter of your wing, parents commonly suffer from empty nest syndrome. However, the most recently discussed problem known as ‘helicopter parenting,’ a term coined by colleges across the nation involves parents who don’t make an effort to loosen the leash. (more…)