Career planning and personality assessment

By Hina Malik



Making important decisions in life also require knowing thyself. The selection of a life partner is one important decision that a person makes in his or her life … another equally-important decision is selecting a career for oneself through self assessment of one’s personality.
Personality assessment is primarily a process in which an individual takes the help of information regarding different areas of one’s personality on the basis of several parameters such as likeness, strengths, weaknesses, competence, adjustability, socialising skills, extroversion, introversion, etc.

This knowledge can play an important role in the life of the students as it may identify their needs and areas of improvement at an early stage, preferably the class seven or eight level. The early identification would not only give them a chance to improve on their weaker areas but also open future opportunities for them.
Students in our society start thinking about their careers usually after Matriculation or O-Levels. The challenge for them comes at the time of making the final decisions which is when they need to rush and hence make career decisions on the basis of unrealistic grounds such as market trend, parental influence, course with short duration of study, lack of interesting courses offered by recognised and top institutions, salary and benefits after graduation, and the cost of the course. Those who select a career on the basis these facts have no specific focus. They usually stay confused and are bound to face difficulty in finding a suitable and stable job for themselves.

Knowing thyself and awareness about your personality can minimise the outcome of such challenges. This would identify the needs of students at an early stage; provide them room for counseling and space for reflection and thinking. It also provides insight to teachers and parents to channelise children’s talent in a positive manner. Therefore, the people working with the students should pay attention to their unique profile of strengths and weaknesses, be ready to support their natural gifts and help them deal with any special challenges that they might face. It is also wise to give special attention to their individuality.

There are several personality tests and psychological inventories available in the market as well as online. The procedure is simple. You are just required to provide your email address and respond to the specific set of questions given to you. The report or outcome of your responses would either be given to you at the time of the test or by email later on. It is also recommended to consult a trained psycholoisgt or qualified career counselor for your personality assessment before making your career choices.
The writer is an industrial psychologist and career counselor.

First published in Dawn Newspaper
http://www.dawn.com/2011/01/02/career-planning-and-personality-assessment.html