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USA Information

USA Representative:
Ms. Jenn Leard
Director, Coaching & Education
Career Development Office
Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School
USA@AsiaPacificCDA.org

April 2023 USA Report

Current Themes/Resources in Career

  • Economy: Bureau of Labor Statistics cited jobless rates decreased in 9 states, increased in 3. Released the “Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary” on 4 April 2023, including number of job openings decreased by 6% (highest decreases in professional and business services, health care and social assistance, and transportation/utilities; increased openings in construction and the arts). Separation rates (layoffs, discharges, and other separations) decreased slightly (by 1%) while quit rates (employee-initiated separation) increased in some sectors. Overall, layoffs in the tech sector and some other business sectors has been inconsistent with some companies undergoing layoffs while other companies hire – making the market complex to navigate for job seekers and students.
  • Technology: Conversations across a number of career-focused organizations related to the impact (positive and negative) of ChatGPT in career development, job search strategies, and professional marketing materials for students and working professionals of all levels. Emerging discussions and questions around ethics, impact, and opportunity.
  • International Students: Challenges for International Students seeking internships and full-time opportunities continue – some employers creating new pathways while other employers are reducing openness to sponsor. Challenging for International Students to navigate inconsistency in available opportunities. Interstride (https://www.interstride.com/) continues to emerge as an International Student job/internship search and career resource portal for opportunities that offer sponsorship.
  • Employee & Student Well-Being: Increased concerns for both students and employees across all professional levels around well-being and mental health, with more employers and education institutions initiating programming and resources to help reduce stress, improve work-life management, build resilience, and help people regulate their nervous systems; continued increase emphasis on belonging at work and inclusive practices (tied to US focus on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging, and Access).
  • Continued Return to Work & Hybrid Workplace Discussions: Companies and employees continue to face complexities about the current and future workplace as it relates to on-site and remote work, physical building space (costs, space, leases), and balancing employer needs with employee preferences. Many organizations have put in place climate or work satisfaction and work space planning surveys, taskforces, and planning strategies to address these needs.

Upcoming Opportunities & Resources

  • National Career Development Association:
      • Recognition and celebration of life for Dr. Mark Pope as an integral leader in the field and the NCDA community, who passed in late January 2023
      • Launch of NCDA’s new on-demand learning platform, The Hub (https://www.ncda.org/aws/NCDA/pt/sp/learning_hub)
      • Career Practitioner Conversations Podcast with NCDA – continues to thrive (https://ncda.buzzsprout.com/)
      • Washington CDA Webinar focused on Life Design coming on 13 April
      • Global Conference – 29 June – 1 July : Career Development Around the World: Making Connections and Increasing Access to Impact the Global Labor Market

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November 2022 USA Report

Current Themes/Resources in Career

  • Election: Mid-term political election taking place November 8, 2022.
  • Economy: Bureau of Labor Statistics release “The Employment Situation – September 2022” outlining the current unemployment rate of 3.5%, with notable job gains occurring in leisure, hospitality, and health care. Inflation increasing and threats of recession or recession-like economy continue. Conversations about employment trends and opportunities, and the job marketed that 2023 graduates will experience and available opportunities that will impact search strategies and preparation. Inconsistent implications across different industries – findings some industries/companies instituting hiring freezes while other industries/companies are actively posting positions. Hiring timelines for many industries extended due to number of open positions to number of job seeker ratio, as numbers of candidates open to making a move often slows with inflation.
  • Continued Return to Work & Hybrid Workplace Discussions: Many companies and employees are facing complexities about the current and future workplace as it relates to on-site and remote work, physical building space (costs, space, leases), and balancing employer needs with employee preferences. Many organizations have put in place work satisfaction and work space planning surveys, taskforces, and planning strategies to address these needs. The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) has a webpage dedicated to this topic - https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/pages/return-to-work.aspx. An additional resources is a survey conducted by Microsoft about perceptions of productivity in a “work from home” environment posted on the World Economic Forum site. Bosses Think Workers are Less Productive Working From Home, Microsoft Survey Shows.
  • Leadership Development: Leaders are navigating increasingly complex work-place dynamics, challenges, and change. A recent article posted by the World Economic Forum “5 ways to find joy at work: Top leaders share strategies” provides some insights for increasing joy at both leadership and non-leadership levels. When coaching clients in leadership roles or seeking leadership roles, the following resources can be useful for support: Dare to Lead by Brene Brown (and her Dare to Lead podcast); Radical Candor by Kim Scott, Fierce Conversations by Susan Scott; The Leader You Want to Be by Amy Jen Su.

Upcoming Opportunities & Resources

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August 2022 USA Report

Current Themes/Resources in Career

  • Economy: Inflation increasing and threats of recession or recession-like economy in wake of/with on-going COVID-19 pandemic causing concern for clients around stability of job market, opportunities, and salaries that keep-up with inflated prices/cost of living. Conversations about the job marketed that 2023 graduates will experience and available opportunities that will impact search strategies and preparation. Thought leaders have highlighted that some industries will see reductions in force and limited growth, while others will thrive, making this a unique economy for job seekers to navigate. Travel, consumer services, transportation, and entertainment industries all seem to be thriving in alignment with reduced COVID restrictions. 

  • Career Transition and Job Change: Increase in clients considering job change and career transitions seeking opportunities with increased alignment with their priorities and career values. Resource recommendations:Switchers by Dawn Graham; Career Values Card Sort by Dick Knowdell; How to Survive the 4 Types of Career Transition Everyone Goes Through from The Muse

  • Holistic Approach to Career Development: Topics of imposture feelings/syndrome, confidence, uncertainty navigating a rapidly changing workplace, storytelling, neuro-diversity, and happiness continue to emerge as themes that intersect and align with career development. The Muse identifies 21 Books That’ll Get You Ahead at Work, According to Top Career Coaches. 


Upcoming Opportunities & Resources 

  • National Career Development Association:

  • National Association of Colleges and Employers:

    • Upcoming webinar – Is “Relationships vs. Transactions” the New “High Touch vs. High Tech”? on 25 August 

    • Upcoming webinar – Intersectionality: The Role of Intercultural Competence in Promoting Student Career Success on 30 August 

  • American Counseling Association: 

    • Counseling Today articles for highlights and resources related to current counselling and mental health issues/initiatives 

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May 2022 USA Report

Current Themes/Resources in Career:

  • Unemployment Rate (March 2022, Bureau of Labor Statistics): 3.6% (number of unemployed persons decreased by 318,000). 

  • Employment Market (March 2022, Bureau of Labor Statistics): 

    • Job gains continued in leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, retail trade and manufacturing. 

    • Adult women had the most significant declines in unemployment rate by 3.3% in March (with all other groups showing relatively low change). 

    • Number of persons not in the labor force who currently want a job increased by 382,000 in March (following a decrease the month prior) 

    • Additional insights can be found at https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf. 

  • The “Great Resignation” and Employee “Re-Prioritization” - Continued trends in many employed persons in the United States making choices to quit their jobs due to better opportunities, newly required benefits, increased flexibility and remote work needs, re-prioritization of the American workforce. Multiple articles highlight reasons why workers are learning their jobs. Pew Research Center article from 9 March 2022 - “Majority of Workers Who Quite A Job in 2021 Cite Low Pay, No Opportunities for Advancement, Feeling Disrespected” (https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/03/09/majority-of-workers-who-quit-a-job-in-2021-cite-low-pay-no-opportunities-for-advancement-feeling-disrespected/) 

  • Highlighted Article: 14 March 2022 by Helen Brown, Ph.D - “What Is Career Counseling? 3 Fascinating Theories Explained” - https://positivepsychology.com/what-is-career-counseling/ 

  • Book Review: 1 May 2022 by Melanie V. Buford - “Sparked: Discover Your Unique Imprint for the Work that Makes You Come Alive” https://www.ncda.org/aws/NCDA/pt/sd/news_article/436096/_PARENT/CC_layout_details/false 

  • Re-share: Post-Pandemic Recovery/Planning - As the pandemic continues, employees and employers are looking at what pandemic recovery in the workplace might look like. World Economic Forum shared insights in on 01 February 2022 in the 3 Keys to a Resilient Post-Pandemic Recovery. 

  • Re-share: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) in the Workplace – continued increased emphasis on and increased practices to support Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the workplace continue, including critical focus on both hiring processes to increase diversity (especially at leadership levels) and to increase inclusion and support within the workplace. 

Upcoming Opportunities & Resources 

  • National Career Development Association:

    • Conference: Global Career Development Conference: Innovative Career Development Strategies to Embrace Change – 27-29 June 2022 in Anaheim, CA 

    • 6 May 2022 - California CDA 2022 Virtual Conference - Theory to Practice in Career Development Resilience and Equity Work 

    • 17-18 May 2022 - Career Readiness Summit 2022 - FREE! - Making Career Readiness for ALL the First Priority of American Education 

    • 19-20 May 2022 - Ohio Career Development Association Virtual Conference - The Future of Career Development: Build Your Toolkit for Now and the Future 

    • 19 May 2022 - Virginia Career Development Association Spring Virtual Conference

    • 20 May 2022 - Georgia CDA Mini-Conference 2022 - Constructing Careers in Uncertain Times with Dr. Mark Savickas 

    • 20 May 2022 - Washington CDA Professional Development Institute Virtual - Respond to a Changing World

USA COVID-19 Update

  • Vaccination efforts continue across the United States  

  • Many operations continue to be fully open or are re-opening; masking requirements in many states have been reduced to optional

  • Many organizations have returned to work in some capacity, with questions around continued hybrid and remote work options due to high employee demand and preference.


February 2022 USA Report

Current Themes/Resources in Career

  • Unemployment Rate (December 2021, Bureau of Labor Statistics): 3.9% (decreased by 483,000 to 6.3 million)
  • Post-Pandemic Recovery/Planning - As the pandemic continues, employees and employers are looking at what pandemic recovery in the workplace might look like. World Economic Forum shared insights in on 01 February 2022 in the 3 Keys to a Resilient Post-Pandemic Recovery.
  • The “Great Resignation” to “The Great Relearning” – labor shortages across many fields and job types continue, and the World Economic Forum shares insights around the call for ‘Relearning’ in Navigating ‘The Great Relearning’ Revolution from 24 January 2022.
  • Holistic Approach to Career Development - Topics of imposture feelings/syndrome, confidence, uncertainty navigating a rapidly changing workplace, storytelling, neuro-diversity, and happiness continue to emerge as themes that intersect and align with career development. The Muse identifies 21 Books That’ll Get You Ahead at Work, According to Top Career Coaches.
  • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) in the Workplace – continued increased emphasis on and increased practices to support Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the workplace continue, including critical focus on both hiring processes to increase diversity (especially at leadership levels) and to increase inclusion and support within the workplace.

Upcoming Opportunities & Resources

National Career Development Association:


Career Development Network:

  • Newsletter – Thriving in a New Career Landscape; Includes a touching tribute to the late Dick Knowdell who passed away in late 2021, in recognition of his significant, global impact on our work and field.

American Counseling Association:

USA COVID-19 Update

  • Vaccination efforts continue across the United States – still seeing increases in Omicron Variant, though leveling-off and reducing in many states
  • Many operations continue to be fully open or are re-opening from reduced operations related to Omicron over the winter season; masking requirements in many states continue, some areas without masking requirements, and many people have increased Hybrid workplace options


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November 2021 USA Report

COVID-19 Update

  • Vaccination efforts continue across the United States – still seeing increases in Delta Variant 
  • Many operations fully open with masking requirements, some areas without masking requirements, and many people have increased Hybrid workplace options 
  • Last week kids ages 5-11 approved by the Center for Disease Control to receive COVID-19 vaccine 
  • 65+ population and those at higher risk eligible for vaccine boosters

Current Themes/Trends in Career

  • Mental Health and Career – increasing trends in and concerns about mental health at work, especially related to work-life stress, increased anxiety, increased speed of change, reduced work capacities, resiliency in the face of catastrophe (global pandemic), increased screen time, reduced social connection and increased loneliness. APCDA’s Stress Management workshop aligns with this theme. News/Journal Titles include: “It’s a New Era for Mental Health at Work”, “Both Remote and On-site Workers are Grappling with Serious Mental Health Concerns”, “Half of U.S. Workers Suffer Mental Health Issues Since COVID Pandemic” 
  • The “Great Resignation” – labor shortages across most fields and job types is being caused by what many have termed, popularly, “The Great Resignation”. Economists have said, “Currently, jobs are chasing workers, workers are not chasing jobs,” which is leading to labor shortages, workplace disruptions, and better opportunities for negotiation for our clients. This is putting pressure on the minimum wage and employers to increase wages to attract the right talent. Common reported factors: Early Retirement, Work-Life Management Complexities, Remote Working Needs, New Job/Workplace “Wants” Given Pandemic Disruption/Re-Evaluation of Values, Minimum/Fair Wages. 
  • Hybrid & Remote Workplace – significant increases in hybrid and remote work options for many workers, resulting in organizations, leaders, and employees navigating new institutional and work culture norms, expectations, resource needs, and opportunities. The US workplace is currently grappling with questions around: What level of hybrid and remote work will continue, what happens to investments in offices/real estate/physical space? What does hybrid/remote work do to company culture and community building/relationships? What does leadership and management look like in a hybrid/remote workplace – what new norms, resources, and expectations are needed? How does hybrid/remote work options create increased flexibility for workers and employers – pros and cons? 
  • Skills of the Current & Future Workplace - employers in the US are increasingly emphasizing resilience, adaptability, and appetite for change as skills of the current and future workplace, and these previous “predicted skills” by futurists were significantly expedited by the COVID-19 pandemic where the ability to navigated change and uncertainty was experienced at rapid speed. It is anticipated that the speed of change, increase of Artificial Intelligence and connection to technology will continue at unprecedented rates, and current and future workers must be prepared to build and utilize these skills in order to survive (and thrive) in the changing workplace. 
  • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) in the Workplace – increased emphasis on and increased practices to support Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the workplace continue, including critical focus on both hiring processes to increase diversity (especially at leadership levels) and to increase inclusion and support within the workplace. 

Upcoming Opportunities & Resources 

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May 2021 USA Report

Uncertainty

  • NCDA conference A Kaleidoscope of Career Interventions in an Age of Uncertainty on June 29-July 1 will be fully virtual.
  • Dr Vernon Zunker (author of popular career development textbooks) and Sunny Hansen (created Born Free curriculum and career theorist) both passed in the last year.
  • HB Gelatt, creator of the concept of “positive uncertainty” in career development just released his book Future Sense which traces his 70-year career researching and changing ideas about decision making.

Diversity and Inclusion

Job Hunting

  • What Color is Your Parachute released its 50th anniversary book. With Dick Bolles passing Kate Brooks updates the annual updating. She also released What Color is Your Parachute for College.
  • Credentials with degrees, skills documented via internships, short-term training, and tech-enhanced personalized education are key phrases I hear over the last six months in the press, Biden administration policy ideas, and key leadership from influencers like Brandon Busteed (former Gallup and now Kaplan leader).

Trends

  • Work Disrupted by Jeff Schwartz from Deloitte, offers a most comprehensive review of the accelerated future of work.
  • Futureproof: 9 rules of humans in the age of automation by Kevin Roose offers keen insights in how tech is re-writing the rules of the economy but suggests ways to always put humanity first.
  • HumanWork: in the age of smart machines by Jamie Merisotis, former CEO of the Lunina Foundation, speaks to how the role of workers is being transformed and becoming obsolete by automation and AI.

Apprenticeships

  • With a lean toward middle America, social injustice, and economic disparity the Biden administration is using policy language around apprenticeship and career and technical education along with investments in community colleges.

Best New Free Resource https://www.opencampusmedia.org/category/newsletters/the-job/  weekly newsletter about connections between education and the American workforce. A veteran journalist’s (Paul Fain) take on postsecondary education and job training systems effort to better serve lower-income learners and workers.

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January 2021 USA Report

NCDA is evaluating the option of holding the June 2021 Atlanta Conference as virtual.  Other options are also being considered.

Key Reports

Key Book

Long Life Learning: Preparing for jobs that don’t even exist yet. Michelle Weise (video clip 35 mins) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bm1kiQbszuI

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October USA Country Report

NCDA

  1. Virtual Conference shows financial upside of Virtual Conferencing
  2. Virtual Career Practitioner Institute, Nov 10 https://ncda.org/aws/NCDA/pt/sp/cpinstitute
  3. 2021 Global Career Development Conference, Atlanta, Georgia, June 30 - July 2, 2021 (Virtual Still Possible) https://ncda.org/aws/NCDA/pt/sp/conference_home 
  4. NCDA President-Elect-Elect Lakeisha Mathews https://ncda.org/aws/NCDA/pt/sp/about_board

Key New Reports

  1. Career Coaching Can Help Workers Navigate an Increasingly Complex and Evolving Labor Market https://www.aspeninstitute.org/blog-posts/career-coaching-can-help-workers-navigate-a-complex-and-evolving-labor-market/
  2. Tracking COVID-19 Unemployment and Job Losses https://cew.georgetown.edu/cew-reports/jobtracker/
  3. The Overlooked Value of Certificates and Associate’s Degrees https://cew.georgetown.edu/cew-reports/subba/

Key New Books

  1. The Importance of Work in an Age of Uncertainty by David Bluestein and a video “Psychology of Working Theory” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1m6iXpvVYnU
  2. Designing Your Work Life by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans and a video titled “Designing Your Work Life”  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uNzK4KQQm4
  3. Human Work in the Age of Smart Machines by Jamie Merisotis and a video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQvilSfNly4
  4. Who Gets in and Why: A year inside college admissions by Jeff Selingo and a video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLveGvDbyBE
  5. Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World by Fareed Zakaria and a video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCIblGammf8

Watch the videos for items listed within Rich's book. Spotlight on credentialing and skills!

Advantages of COVID19 for Rich is to invest time in learning with video sessions from amazing professionals. Yevgeniya discussed the wide-ranging availability of professionals to reach out to, and for free, but she and Rich also cautioned to research the credibility of speakers.

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April 2020 Country report

  1. NCDA evaluating status of June 2020 Minneapolis conference as virtual and other options being considered
  2. Postsecondary education and secondary programs search for online delivery options with potential returning to face-to-face dates changing as new data collected
  3. Postsecondary career services innovating to provide virtual connections to undergraduates, expected graduates, alumni and employers
  4. Rapid expansion of tele-coaching and various forms of “information and connecting activities” provided by career coaches to support and attract clients
  5. Commercial vendors supplying virtual services or free resources to secondary schools to support teacher curriculum efforts
  6. Government policies designed to provide unemployment insurance to workers or subsidies to employers to (1) support economy and (2) maintain talent base tied to employers
  7. Covid 19 webinars and information programs being provided by most human resource and career related associations as way to support members
  8. Most predictions suggest education and transactional employment will adopt virtual services rapidly once the Covid19 economy abates
  9. Remote work will rapidly increase as companies cancel leases and close brick and mortar offices as a result of innovation experiments during Covid19 economy
  10. Skills based, competency documentation, and apprenticeship models will challenge traditional credential delivery models as cost reduction to training and ROI concerns are asked of campus-based education

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Losing a Dear Friend of Career Development: Martha Russell 

By Professor Rich Feller Ph.D., USA County Director

Many fondly remember Martha Russell's warm smile, kind heart and great commitment to APCDA. Martha served as our Bylaws and Policies Director when we first prepared our Policies Manual. Sadly, Martha passed recently and condolences may be sent to Harry Russell, PO Box 2647, Battle Ground, WA 98604. Martha served in many leadership positions within NCDA and ACA and was NCDA President in 2005-06. Martha provided rich consulting and wonderful insights about adult development, career transitions, and how to honor others.

By Martha Russell (written in 2014)

I embrace our work as career development professionals and the role of Career Development and all its complexities. I look forward to our future as our professional identity continues to grow and change. My own is a story of growing and coping with change. My career began by helping adults find work. The emphasis was on employment — matching job seekers with employers. My yearning to empower individuals to make their own informed choices led to a graduate degree in Career Counseling. Additional courses in organization development from the school of business helped me link the counseling and training roles in a meaningful way. Completing my master's degree was a milestone because I was already in my midlife and after having jobs for many years, I now had a career. My work quickly expanded to helping companies train employees to develop skills and manage careers, and then moved onto the focus of downsizing/redundancy, realignment and reshaping the social contract between employer and employee. I next found work in international opportunities and government contracts. Finding organizations that valued the role of development and individual empowerment meant my own career blossomed through two decades of practice.

Now I desire to reframe my work role while continuing to embrace our profession. As Career Development is defined by life roles across the life span, and how we live our later years is changing, we as a profession must embrace that change. As the Country Director of the US, I look forward to sharing information from my perspective as we honor the role Career Development plays in individual lives at every stage.


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Career Development Report from the United States

by Rich Feller, US Director

NCDA continues to show leadership with a new commitment to certifying career services providers. The following credentials are now available:

  • Certified Career Services Provider™ (CCSP) -- a credential for individuals from an array of backgrounds, to deliver services and demonstrate core competency in the field of career services.

  • Certified Master of Career Services™ (CMCS) - a new professional credential intended to recognize the contributions of non-counselors who have mastered a variety of roles within the field of career services.

  • Certified Career Counselor ™ (CCC) - the new standard of professional excellence for individuals trained as counselors, who will specialize in the delivery of career counseling services.

  • Certified Clinical Supervisor of Career Counseling™ (CCSCC) - a new professional credential to recognize the contributions of individuals who serve as clinical supervisors to career counselors and other practitioners who provide career services.

  • Certified Career Counselor Educator™ (CCCE) - a new professional credential intended to recognize the contributions of individuals whose primary focus is on the training of new counselors who will specialize in the field of career counseling.

To find out more about the NCDA credentialing process, consider connecting to NCDA's Introduction to Credentialing, and reviewing the short video provided to establish a credentialing application request.

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Celebrating the life of Dick Bolles 

by Rich Feller

Find this article here under Some Updates from Career Development in the USA. 

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The Challenges of Serving the Career Services Needs of International Students in the US

by Julie Neill


One of the most pressing challenges that university career services offices in the US face, particularly those that serve graduate-level students, is the placement of their international students. In recent years, the record increase of international student enrollment has almost completely transformed the demographics of the some American campuses. For example, at three of the universities I have worked at in the metropolitan Washington DC area, close to 90% of the students enrolled in specialized master's degree programs were from China alone.

In late 2015, it was reported that the US experienced the highest rate of growth in international students in 35 years, an increase of 10%, bringing the total population of international students in the US close to 1,000,000. China and India together accounted for 67% of the increase, and students from these two countries constitute nearly 45% of the total number of international students in the US. While China remains the top country of origin of international students in the U.S., India's growth outpaced China's in 2015, with students from India increasing by 29%.

Out of the top 25 countries of origin for international students, 11 of the countries are in Asia. Listed below is the country's ranking and total number of international students from that country in the academic year 2014/15:

#1 China 304,040
#2 India 132,888
#3 South Korea 63,710
#7 Taiwan 20,993
#8 Japan 19,064
#9 Vietnam 16,579
#18 Indonesia 8,188
#19 Nepal 8,158
#20 Hong Kong 8,012
#22 Malaysia 7,231
#23 Thailand 7,217


* This data was pulled from The Open Doors® report which is published annually by the Institute of International Education in partnership with the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

In addition to some of the cross-cultural communication challenges American career center staff encounter when advising international students, an arguably greater challenge is helping these students find employment in the US upon graduation. While international students are eligible to work in the US for 12 months on a student visa, also known as Optional Practical Training or "OPT" (and those graduating from STEM-related programs, i.e. science, technology, engineering and math, were recently granted an additional two year extension for a total of three years), after their OPT runs out, these students must be sponsored by an employer for an H1-B visa in order to remain in the country. However, finding employers who are willing to sponsor these temporary work visas is incredibly challenging.

One reason is that there is no guarantee that the application of sponsorship will be granted by the US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) since it is a completely random selection process, hence why it is referred to as a lottery system. Thus, the employer is taking a gamble when hiring an international student since they may or may not be able to retain that worker beyond one year if hired. The total number of H-1B visas issued annually is capped at 65,000 with an additional 20,000 set aside for advanced degree holders, i.e. master's degree or higher, bringing the grand total to 85,000 H-1B visas issued each year. With close to 1,000,000 international students in the country, one can quickly see that the numbers simply do not add up.

The great irony is that the vast majority of international students decide to study in the US expressly because they desire to work and remain the US upon graduation. Far more often than not though, students only come to the realization that this might not be logistically feasible far too late in the game. So while career services staff try their best to assist these students with their US-focused job searches, we must also help students figure out a "Plan B" or alternative option. One of these options is inevitably returning to their home country. But of course, the challenge here is that often US universities do not have relationships with employers in students' home countries, although this is now changing. For example, at the University of Maryland's Smith School of Business, staff from Career Services now visit China annually with the express purpose of cultivating relationships with employers there and building recruitment pipelines. Many other schools have also begun to devote resources to similar efforts.

One of my main objectives in getting involved in APCDA, aside from my interests in learning more about career development issues globally, is to explore how American universities might partner with career development professionals in Asia to forge mutually beneficial partnerships in order to better serve the needs of international students whether they remain here in the US or return to their home countries. If any APCDA members are interested in further discussion and/or potential collaboration, please feel free to reach out to me directly at jneill@rhsmith.umd.edu.


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The Call for Social Justice at Moorpark College: It takes a Village

by Danita Redd


"I said to my children, "I'm going to work and do everything that I can do to see that you get a good education. I don't ever want you to forget that there are millions of God's children who will not and cannot get a good education, and I don't want you feeling that you are better than they are. For you will never be what you ought to be until they are what they ought to be."

~Martin Luther King, Jr.

Moorpark College (MC), USA, has a campus wide call for Social Justice that has contributed to its nationwide fourth place ranking for community colleges. Community colleges in the USA provide freshman and sophomore university level work at a low cost. They are great societal equalizers in making sure that the neediest people receive a post-secondary education.

Moorpark College's approach of educating students is reminiscent of the African Proverb, "It takes a Village." Dr. Lori Bennett, Vice President of Student Learning at MC says, "To meet the needs of our students, I believe it truly 'takes a village,' which requires instruction and student services working together to support students in achieving their goals and to support student success."

Moorpark College, our village, has a mission statement that says "Students First" in the opening phrase. For us this means that faculty, staff, administrators, student workers, and student leaders put students' needs first and that all of us have a priority in helping the ones who are most at-risk (disenfranchised and discouraged). From counselors, including career counselors, meeting weekly to implement intrusive strategies, to all job classifications (Administrators, Faculty, Classified, and Student Leaders) receiving professional development, there is assurance across departments and programs that the strategies for helping the most at-risk students are utilized for all students. Campus educational reforms have helped tremendously in our performance. These reforms have included increased intrusiveness in getting students to counseling sessions and providing campus-wide professional development.

Counselors of The Village

All Counseling Faculty, across programs and services meet weekly. All counselors recognize themselves as part of the same group, "Counselors," and take equal ownership of helping students. In fact, counselors are academic department liaisons. We recognize that counselors must be connected to all programs and services to coordinate common goals. Weekly meetings allow for sharing ideas and strategies. The meetings also help in the understanding of what each program and service is doing to assist students and allows for accuracy in direct explanations and referrals.

A unique task of Moorpark College career counselors and other counselors is to serve on hiring and tenure review committees for most classroom faculty across all disciplines. This helps the campus hire and retain people who have a deep commitment to being student-centered educators. Counselors help in the awareness of the campus wide goal of having every classroom professor ask every student, several times throughout their studies, "What is your Major? What is your career goal?"

This allegiance to student-centered educators is most notable at Moorpark College in its work with professional development. The following list has examples from our ongoing training for all employees:

The Village

"What the heck is wrong with these students and why aren't they doing
what it takes for them to be successful here?"
~ From On Course Training Materials


On Course: Founded more than 20 years ago by Skip Downing, it teaches in-class and campus wide strategies for ensuring student retention and success. Two day and four day training sessions, some targeting faculty and administrators, others targeting classified staff, elucidates how each person be they maintenance, office worker, or classroom teacher is responsible for the atmosphere of welcome and safety on our campus. Other strategies target instruction, collaborative learning, and learning styles. The training focus is on how to help our students to take responsibility for their future.

M2C3:The ongoing work on our campus by Drs. Frank Harris, III and J. Luke Wood teaches us strategies to increase African American and Latino male student recruitment and retention. "The Minority Male Community College Collaborative (M2C3) is a project of San Diego State University . . . The goal of the project is to partner with community colleges across the United States to enhance access, achievement, and success among minority male community college students. M2C3's research and practice agenda prioritizes men who have been traditionally underrepresented and underserved in postsecondary education."

Growing Roses in Concrete: Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Ph.D., spent a day training us how education helps heal students from difficult life situations and experiencing Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. The entire campus community was part of the training.

Safe Zone: After training, Safe Zone members are given a rainbow designed placard and other items to hang near their desk or office door. It indicates they are allies to Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender and Gay students and that their work space is free from homophobia, heterosexism, and transphobia talk and behaviors.

Consulting Psychologists Press: All counseling faculty and many classroom faculty completed training for using the Myers Briggs Type Indicator and Strong in understanding students and helping them choose majors. The MBTI has implications not only for major and career selection but for cognition and learning styles.

With a "students first" philosophy and thorough integration of instruction and student services, Moorpark College empowers its diverse community of learners to complete their goals for choosing a major and career, academic transfer to a university, basic skills, and career technical education. As a Moorpark College counselor, I feel empowered and constantly inspired to do a better job due to the campus-wide commitment to "students first" and making the needs of the most at-risk students the top priority. I very much realize I am a member of a progressive educational village. Please feel free to visit our campus year round.

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Danita Redd, M.A. has been counseling faculty at Moorpark College, California, USA, for 22.5 years and is the 2014 -2015 recipient of its Academic Senate's Outstanding Faculty of the Year Award. Also, she is the Communications Officer for the California Career Development Association. She specializes in Health Sciences, STEM, and Career Counseling. She is an ambassador for Shared Hope International which, "strives to prevent the conditions that foster sex trafficking, restore victims of sex slavery, and bring justice to vulnerable women and children." She has been an international volunteer since 1981 and has provided supplies to susceptible groups of people in Egypt, Peru, and Mexico. Since 2002, she has provided ongoing service related to education, small business, and career development in Mexico. Professor Redd may be contacted through her STEM and Career Development Website for Students and Colleagues: please click here.


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Career Services for Chinese Students at Home and in USA

by Ellen Weaver Pacquette

China is currently experiencing the results of the "one child" policy (1979) at the same time that economic growth has created many wealthy parents who can provide for their young adult with ease. The future of these young adults (over 325 million ages 15-29, according to the 11/2010 census) is crucial for China's future, as their career success will provide the leadership for the next generations. Firms such as PAC, New Elite Development Plan, Suzhou Success Partners Consulting and Beisen which are based in China have recognized the need for strong career services and products. For international Chinese students attending universities in the United States, the transition can be daunting. Many international students wish to find a job after graduation, but find considerable obstacles that reduce their viability.

In an effort to assist Chinese international students secure employment after graduation, many US universities offer extensive career services to their international students and international alumni, even extending partnerships with international student offices and organizations. However, resources are always a concern and it may not always be possible to provide the depth of services required by many Chinese international students who are increasing in number every year. As of right now, one in three international students in US colleges and universities are from China. Moreover, Chinese students are attending high school in the US, hoping to increase their chances of entering a US university.

Orion Career Consulting, based in Beijing and in Boston, offers full services to high school students in China through graduate students in the US. As a division of the high tech firm Creative Star Solution, Orion offers both high tech and face-to-face services designed to minimize the impact of the cultural divide for new college graduates. From visa conversions to "Boot Camp" skill immersion to parental pressure on new graduates, Orion's team of high powered and credentialed employer recruiters and career consultants strive to make the hopes of working in the US become a reality.


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Career Development in the United States

by Martha Russell

Describing Career Development in the United States can be difficult because there is often confusion regarding professional identity and work practices. Some practitioners focus on career during their education and in their work roles (ex: career counselors, GCDFs, career coaches) while others include career as part of other practices (ex: job developers, therapists, school counselors). There are differences in service delivery as well as ways these individuals are licensed or certified. Continuing education and professional training are needed so that services meet the needs of emerging trends. and societal situations can be overwhelming. Through all these challenges, career development is deeply embedded in our culture. Our profession has a rich history, vibrant presence and an exciting future.

It is this past, present and future continuum that Dr. Mark Savickas focused on when he compiled data identifying significant core concepts and practices in the field of career development. His findings were presented during the 2013 National Career Development Association's (NCDA) 100th anniversary. Dr. Savickas identified 10 key ideas that describe the field of career development - Career Counseling, Matching, Career Adaptability, Vocation Guidance, Career Education, Social Justice, Congruence, Career Construction, Career Stages, and Happenstance. Ten Ideas that Changed Career Development contains essays by current practitioners asked to reflect on a specific value. The monograph is available via this link. Each one page essay provides us with information and tools that help practitioners move from the past to the future.

Dr. Spencer Niles (Career Counseling essay) states that shifts in the nature of work have a significant impact on our work. That impact makes a strong case regarding the link between career development and human development and our need to develop theories, training and practices that acknowledge that link. This " . . .evolutionary shift empowers clients to seek their own solutions to their career dilemmas as they define it within their respective cultural contexts."

Ms. Carol Vecchio (Happenstance essay) pointed out that events in life and work often result in uncertainty for individuals. Happenstance provides a foundation for practitioners to help clients navigate the unplanned and uncertain events taking appropriate action along the way rather than making a single career decision. Future US articles will explore how that movement helps clarify our professional identity.


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