The Career Key®

Solutions for Parents of Community College Students

Download free resources like "Choose a College Major Based on Your Personality"

Are you wondering how you can help your son or daughter make good decisions – about career pathways, future schooling, and career direction? Career Key can help.

Our respected career personality test, career information, and career advice are based on the best practices and science of career development. And they are very affordable.

I recommend,

1. Focusing your efforts. Get sound advice from our online article Parent’s Role. Some of the advice applies to parents of younger children, but most of the same principles apply to college-age students. It is the key to making the best use of our site.
   
   
2. The Career Key personality test to assist in career exploration and good decision-making. Persons taking the Career Key test assess their six Holland
   personality types, identify career opportunities that match, get full and accurate information about each one, and download a 4-page interpretive booklet – encouraging career exploration.

   Research shows that a good personality-career match predicts better grades and higher career satisfaction (if you use a valid career test).

   Our paper-pencil version is available through our eBookStore.

   Simplicity, practicality, and validity are Career Key’s strengths. It takes about 15 minutes; results are immediate; and there are no complicated tables or abstract concepts to understand. It also provides a gateway to services unique to Career Key, like the following:
   
   
3. Choosing a Career Cluster, Career Field or Career Pathway that fits your child’s interests. This interactive article clarifies the often confusing concepts of “career clusters and “career pathways”, and helps students match their interests to career clusters and pathways (a close match is a predictor of academic success). It includes a downloadable map showing how the Holland personality types are related to these clusters and pathways.
   
   5 Steps to Choosing the Right Career Cluster, Field, or Pathway provides the full, detailed information needed in a e-book, PDF format.

   This is a major decision that will affect your son or daughter’s future. This research-based system is unique to Career Key (read about our ground breaking research in NCDA’s Career Convergence).

   
   
4. Strengthening job skills. Job skills are what count in the workplace. Period.The Foundation Skills: Job Skills All Workers Need article describes those that are essential. And, in The Free Agent Outlook on Work students learn why marketable skills are the key to success.
   
   
5. Choosing a College Major or Training Program that fits you child's personality. In this article students learn how to make this match following a 4-step process. A close personality-major match is vital. It is one of the predictors of academic success and satisfaction - grades earned and graduation (more . . .). The companion e-book, Match Up! Your Personality to College Majors, links the Holland personality types to all 1300+ college majors and training programs. It is the first to do this (more on our ground breaking research).
   

   “Match Up! encourages a learner-centered interaction between understanding one's key personality types and occupational and training information… [It] will be of great use to students and counselors who need to provide a list of options related to personality in a quick manner... It is a great resource that provides solid information necessary for making effective career decisions.” Read more. Debra Osborn, Ph.D. President-Elect, 2010-2011 National Career Development Association

   
   
6. Making good decisions. Our article Decision Making Process teaches students this essential life and work skill. The ACIP method is practical and based on numerous research studies.

   Is your son or daughter undecided? Our article Undecided should help.
   
   

7. Visiting our eBookStore. We offer many high quality publications. All are offered in a “green”, sustainable PDF file that you download to your computer. Your purchase is an important way to support our efforts.
   Here are a few of our titles:
   Choosing Your College Major
   The 2010 What Job is Best for You?
   What Color are Your Feathers?  Holland’s Theory and Your Career
   How Parents Can Help Their Children’s Career Development

Lawrence K. Jones, Ph.D., NCC President, Career Key.