The identification of positive and negative characterists of the Intelligent Careers Card Sort(tm) as experienced by university students

• Main Author: Wnuk, Susan Margaret
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/12739

The purpose of this study was to learn about the experiences of university students who completed the Intelligent Careers Card Sort™ (ICCS) exercise, a new career exploration instrument developed by Arthur, a professor of Management in the School of Management at Suffolk University, Boston and by Parker, a lecturer at the University of Auckland. The card sort is based on the Intelligent Careers model, which suggests that there are three career competencies or 'ways of knowing' that individuals need to consider to successfully face the changing workplace. These competencies are 'knowing-why', 'knowing-how', and 'knowing-whom'. The card sort is a self-assessment and exploration instrument, which allows clients to see to what degree and how they express these competencies. This study was completed in two phases. During the first phase, the ICCS was administered to 28 students who were participants in Career Development Groups at UBC's Counselling Services. These students also completed a brief demographic questionnaire. During the second phase, 20 of those students who completed the ICCS participated in a 30-minute focus group interview that took place three weeks after administration of the card sort. The focus group interviews were audio-taped and transcribed and the contents were analyzed for common themes. Seven different themes and 33 sub-themes were established. The students in general thought the ICCS was a useful part of the Career Development Groups, and they also made constructive suggestions for improving implementation.