Counseling, Higher Education & Special Education

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2226

The departments within the College of Education were reorganized and renamed as of July 1, 2011. This department incorporates the former departments of Counseling & Personnel Services; Education Leadership, Higher Education & International Education (excluding Organizational Leadership & Policy Studies); and Special Education.

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Subject: search.filters.subject.career development

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    Negotiating Values: A Narrative Study of Career Indecision for First-Generation College Students of Color
    (2022) Cho, Jeffrey; Turner Kelly, Bridget; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    The prevailing narrative surrounding higher education in the United States is that completion of a bachelor’s degree leads to socioeconomic mobility through the attainment of a well-paying job. First-generation college (FGC) students of color are particularly attuned to this “promise of higher education,” but little is known about how they make career decisions during college and how they navigate challenges in career decision-making. This study sought to understand how FGC students of color experienced the phenomenon of career indecision under the broader scheme of their career development. Using a tripartite conceptual framework composed of social cognitive career theory, the four-factor model of career indecision, and community cultural wealth, this study was guided by the following research questions: (1) how, if at all, do undergraduate FGC students of color navigate career indecision? (2) In what ways, if any, do racial cultural values these students hold shape how they make meaning of their career indecision? Using narrative inquiry, this study adopted an asset-based lens to portray the stories of six undergraduate FGC students of color from a variety of racial and career backgrounds and their experiences with career indecision. Semi-structured interviews and document analysis revealed the racialized nature of occupational decision-making for participants. Furthermore, they needed to balance familial expectations for socioeconomic mobility through career success with their own personal occupational interests. This study’s findings provide implications for future interdisciplinary research that further investigates the roles intrapersonal and environmental factors play in the career indecision of FGC students of color during college and as they transition into the workforce. The findings also suggest ways in which colleges and universities can better support these students during their career development in ways that align with the latter’s cultural values.
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    The Work Life and Career Development of Young Working Women Who are Breast Cancer Survivors: A Qualitative Study
    (2013) Raque-Bogdan, Trisha Lynn; Hoffman, Mary Ann; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Breast cancer survivors represent the largest proportion of cancer survivors, and the rate of young breast cancer survivors who are diagnosed before the age of 40 is increasing. Cancer survivorship has begun to address many aspects of survivors' quality of life, yet the role of work and career issues have been understudied. To explore the work lives and career development of young breast cancer survivors, this study consisted of qualitative interviews with 13 young women who were diagnosed with breast cancer before the age of 40. Participants also completed the Quality of Life-Cancer Survivors (QOL-CS) Breast Cancer Version (Ferrell, Dow, & Grant, 1995). The qualitative data was analyzed using Consensual Qualitative Research Methodology (Hill et al., 2005; Hill, Thompson, & Williams, 1997). The 11 domains that emerged from the data were: (1) discovery of breast cancer and the navigation of treatment; (2) career development: influences and sacrifices; (3) cancer-related work challenges; (4) coping with cancer-related work challenges; (5) re-appraisal of career development after cancer; (6) components of career and life satisfaction after cancer; (7) impact of breast cancer on life outside of work; (8) lessons learned from breast cancer; (9) thoughts about the future; (10) advice for other survivors; and (11) participants' feelings about participating. Overarching themes of re-appraisal and meaning-making appeared across the domains. The experience of breast cancer before the age of 40 intensified most participants' need for purpose in life. Many sought work that provided a sense of meaning, yet their need for financial security and insurance prevented some of them from having the freedom to make that sense of meaning the primary focus of their career or from redirecting their career paths to one that better expressed their re-appraised life meaning. Findings are integrated with literature on women's career development, Career Construction Theory (Savickas, 2002, 2005), and Social Cognitive Career Theory (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994, 2000, 2002) and implications for research and practice are discussed.