Defining a clear mandate for career and employment counsellors raises two issues:
The CLFDB's recent survey showed that counsellors do not receive support and recognition commensurate with the essential role they play in helping people to assess their own situation, aptitudes, skills, and opportunities when facing a transition problem. It also showed that counselling is not systematically evaluated -- and often not evaluated at all. The difficulty of evaluation in this area is certainly one reason for this lack. However, a fundamental misunderstanding of the counselling function is also responsible. Our ability to measure economic or tangible outcomes is well developed, but counselling must be evaluated in terms of "learning outcomes," the precursors to socioeconomic outcomes. Learning outcomes include self-awareness, opportunity awareness, decision-making skills, and transition skills. A clear link between these outcomes and subsequent career satisfaction and success has been demonstrated.
Improving preparation and in-service training for counsellors
The perceived lack of professionalism in counselling is seen as a major hurdle to assuring quality and expanding the service. The CLFDB survey revealed that the best trained counsellors are in colleges, CEGEPs, and secondary schools; those with the poorest training are in community agencies. Except in Quebec, any person can establish him- or herself as a career counsellor with no specific accreditation. As the report of the survey states:
There is a need to establish a minimum standard of competence for people providing career and employment counselling to others. There may be a need to make arrangements for the registration or certification of career and employment counsellors.