Running Head: CAREER TRAJECTORY PAPER

Career Trajectory Paper

Leanne M. Sylvia
Georgia Southern University

Running Head: CAREER TRAJECTORY PAPER

Career Trajectory Paper
Getting Involved in Higher Education
I graduated from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in 2005 with a Bachelor of
Arts degree in Psychology and a minor in Spanish. This was a very exciting time in my life
because my twin sister and I were first generation college graduates. Needless to say, it was a
challenging experience to attend college with little guidance from my parents who hadnt been
through the experience themselves. After graduating college, I pondered the idea of continuing
on to get a masters degree to become a licensed counselor or a teacher. This idea, however, was
put on a back burner for a while because I was worried about the cost of another degree and I
started working full-time making a decent salary. My exposure to higher education began when I
acquired a job as a medical student coordinator, working with Harvard medical students, at a
prestigious hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. This job opened my eyes to the opportunity of
working with the college-aged population and being a facilitator which I really enjoyed as a part
of my job. Even though I loved the people that I worked with and the city that I worked in, I also
felt like something was missing in my life. I was still looking for more direction and a stronger
career pathway and I wanted to inquire about the teaching profession. In 2008, I signed a one
year contract with a private school to teach English to kindergarten children in South Korea. For
me, this was the best way to earn a living, travel, and determine whether or not I really wanted to
teach before pursuing a masters degree in the field. When I came back in 2009, I knew that
teaching wasnt something I really loved and went back to being a medical student coordinator.
In 2011, I met my (now) husband who was stationed at Ft. Stewart and we relocated to the area
where I obtained a job at Georgia Southern University as an Administrative Secretary (but more
like program coordinator) in the Department of Health & Kinesiology.

Running Head: CAREER TRAJECTORY PAPER

Career Aspirations
After graduating in December 2014, my husband and I are moving to Ansbach, Germany
and will be stationed there for a minimum of three years. I am interested in becoming involved in
the career services division of higher education as a career counselor. Since I am a military
spouse, I would like to become involved in working with soldiers who are interested in going
back to school to obtain a degree. Earlier in the semester, I wrote a paper about veterans in
higher education because I think there is still a significant lack of support and resources for them
and more light should be shed on the topic. Through research, I have learned that every military
installation has an education center with satellite universities attached to them. Id like to start
my career in higher education by obtaining a position at one of the educational centers providing
guidance and resources to soldiers about careers. Working at an education center within the
military community is important to me. Our lifestyle is very different than a civilian lifestyle in
that we are moving locations about every two or three years. While this can be a disadvantage,
by having to change jobs often, it can also be an advantage to seek out new job opportunities and
learning experiences that can help me climb the ladder to leadership positions.
In the future, perhaps five to seven years and depending on my work experience, I would
consider becoming an Assistant and/or Director of Career Service, however, I do have my
reservations. In the interview assignment for this class, I learned from Dean Joyner that the
higher up you climb in higher education (e.g. Dean, Provost, Director positions) the more
disconnected you become from students. While my main goal is to help students determine
career pathways, I am concerned that if I take on a leadership position, I will become more
involved in the financial and political side of my department and lose sight or become less
involved in helping students which is what brought me to this field in the first place. I would

Running Head: CAREER TRAJECTORY PAPER

need to gather more insight from those that are currently in the leadership position to determine
if it would be a good fit for me.
What Influenced Career Decision?
My experiences working with medical students in Boston was the stepping stone that
influenced me to work in higher education. I enjoyed being a coordinator and managing a
program in surgical education. More importantly, I have realized in retrospect that I enjoy
helping people and solving problems. I first thought about career services when I was a senior in
high school. After not being accepted into the only college that l I applied to, my guidance
counselor influenced me to attend community college and get involved in a transfer program.
Without her guidance and help, I dont think I would have taken the steps to attend college.
Although she never knew it, she was part of my influence to consider a career in career services.
I know there are a lot of other first generational students that have similarities to my situation. I
would like to pay it forward and provide career guidance in their lives. My second influence was
the career counseling class that I took in the summer 2013. I enjoyed reading about career
theories and how they could be applied to students. (I am particularly fond of John Hollands
theory on career choice and personality). While enrolled in the career counseling class, I
interviewed Ms. Amy Rowell who works in Career Services on campus at Georgia Southern
University. After interviewing Ms. Rowell, my enthusiasm and passion for working in this field
only grew stronger (She will be my mentor for my internship in Fall 2014). I think there are a lot
of students who feel lost in their career choices and change majors often. I firmly believe that
participating in a career assessments and career workshops can make a difference for a student
who is indecisive about choosing a college major. In career services, I find that the help I can
provide to students has ever lasting effects and I find positive reward in seeing the outcomes of

Running Head: CAREER TRAJECTORY PAPER

ones success, be it personally, professionally, or financially. Its also interesting to observe the
journey that students take throughout their four years of college as they find something they
really love to learn about and apply it to the real world setting.
Short Term and Long Term Goals
Short term goals. Within the next two to four years I would like to accomplish a few short term
goals. I think these goals will help me establish myself as a student services administrator and
help me to gain additional experience and networking in the field of higher education.
Graduate in December 2014, move and settle in Germany by Feb 2015.
Find a job within the Army community, with preference to education centers that offer
satellite universities in career counseling
Explore networking opportunities for conferences that might take place in Europe in 2015
and/or 2016
Become a member of the Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education (NASPA)
Become a member of the International Association of Student Affairs and Services
(IASAS)
Become a member of National Career Development Association (NCDA)
Since I am moving to Europe, my circumstances are slightly different than the average graduate;
however, Id like to take full advantage of the experience of living and working abroad. I do plan
to attend an international conference held by one of these associations within the next two years.
I would also like to focus my efforts on continuing my education and training specifically in
career counseling. More specifically, I would like to explore additional educational opportunities
(e.g. online programs or training sessions) in this area once I am settled in Europe.

Running Head: CAREER TRAJECTORY PAPER

Long term goals. Within the next five to seven years, I hope to be living in the United States
or Hawaii. This is a family goal that my husband and I have set for our (future) family. In the
event that we are living stateside, I hope to accomplish the following goals for myself:
Obtained licensure and/or certification as a Master Career Development Professional
Apply for a management position in a career services center in a university setting or
military installation
Further develop my understanding of theory, practice, and research related to career
counseling
Attend the annual conference for the National Association for Career Development
(NCDA) related to supervision of career counselors.
According to the NCDAs website (2014), they offer a training program for those interested
in supervising career practitioners. I think participating in a program like this would be
beneficial because it would further help me develop managerial skills needed to manage a
team of professionals.
Job Qualification for Future Career
A Career Counselor in a university setting is responsible for providing comprehensive
career counseling and services on career-related issues. This may include hosting works
shops related to developing resumes and cover letters, educating students on job search
strategies and interview skills and internship opportunities with employers. A successful
career counselor will need to have a masters degree in counseling or a related field and a
minimum of 1-3 years experience in career services in a higher education setting. The
professional must also demonstrate an ability to establish relationships with students, faculty
and staff, demonstrate experience in providing presentations to large groups, be comfortable

Running Head: CAREER TRAJECTORY PAPER

in a classroom setting, and also demonstrate experience working in a collaborative and team
oriented environment.
In conducting job searches related to an Assistant Director in Career Services, most of the
positions stated that a practitioner must possess at least five to seven years of experience in
career counseling and demonstrate leadership skills. Some of the posts also indicated that the
Assistant Director must possess problem solving skills and critical thinking skills. I agree that
these are important characteristics to have when taking on a management positions because
the director is not only responsible for the well-being and success of the students, but those
under the supervision of the director as well.
Strengths and Areas Needing Improvement
In order to become a successful career counselor upon graduating with my degree, its
important for me to identify my strengths and the areas where I could use additional
improvement. In reviewing the ACPAs report on Professional Competencies (2007) I am able to
determine what knowledge, skills, and abilities I need to possess as a career counselor and as a
professional in student services. These competencies are identified as: Advising and Helping;
Assessment,

Evaluation,

and

Research;

Ethics;

Legal

Foundations;

Leadership

&

Administration/Management; Pluralism and Inclusion; Student Learning and Development; and

Teaching.
Among the Professional Competencies listed, I believe that the competency area of
Advising and Helping is most closely related to a career counselor profession. I believe that I
have achieved a basic level of competency. My strengths are active listening, establishing
rapport, making appropriate use of nonverbal communication, engaging in problem solving and
pursuing multiple objectives in conversations. I was able to gain basic skills and knowledge

Running Head: CAREER TRAJECTORY PAPER

within this area because of previous job-related positions that often required me to solve
administrative tasks at the last minute and work with larger groups of students. I think most of
my acquired knowledge also stems from previously taken counseling courses in Fall 2013 that
taught me how to engage, support, and work with students effectively.
As I continue to develop my craft as a career counselor, I would like to work on my
management skill set. If I want to become an effective and respected Assistant Director of a
Career Counseling center in the near future, its important to know how to delegate tasks and
manage a team successfully. Although I currently manage a small group of student workers in
my office, I do not believe I am an effective manager. The two areas that need the most
improvement are 1)having a basic understanding of effective management and 2) fiscal
management. I imagine that if I continue to attend the annual conferences related to career
counseling, they will provide me with the guidance that I need to develop these skills. More
importantly, I have to remember that I am new to the field and like most things, developing my
strengths and abilities will come with time and practice.

Running Head: CAREER TRAJECTORY PAPER

References
National Association of Student Personnel Administrators [NASPA]. (2007). A Report of the
Steering Committee on Professional Compentencies. Retrieved from:
http://www.bacchusnetwork.org/documents/ACPA_Competencies.pdf
National Career Development Association [NCDA]. (2014). Career Practitioner Supervision.
Retrieved from: http://www.ncda.org/aws/NCDA/pt/sp/cpsupervision