Users Guide to the Principles for Professional Conduct
| Index to Ethics Guide |
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Principles for Career Services Professionals
1. Counseling without bias
(Intent / Rationale / Scenario / Resolution / Resources)"Career services professionals, without imposing personal values or biases, will assist individuals in developing a career plan or making a career decision."
All students, regardless of race, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, etc., will receive assistance that respects their right to pursue a future based on their aspirations.
Respect for the human right of autonomy, allowing students to function independently, serves as the foundation of this principle. Individuals whose autonomy is respected will be asked questions, provided information, or directed to resources that they can evaluate and use in making career decisions. Career services professionals recognize that they are often regarded by students as experts, and thus their suggestions or comments may carry considerable influence. This places a responsibility on the career services professional to be aware of his/her values or biases and to make a concerted effort to keep them out of dialogue with the student.
The notions of agency and fidelity also enter into this rationale. The career services professional is the agent of the student, not unlike the way an attorney is the agent of a client. An agent is expected to work in the sole and best interests of his/her client, placing all personal needs aside. This implies a faithfulness to the client. According to human development theory and decision-making models, fidelity to the client consists of providing assistance that permits full expression of the individual’s potential. The imposition of personal biases violates this role.
A career services counselor working with ___________ [gay, African-American, learning disabled] students hints that they might set their sights on __________ [types of jobs] because of the roadblocks and low odds of being hired in positions they truly aspire to.
A career services counselor advises a gay student that she is probably not suited for an education career (because she doesn’t think gay students should teach).
Even if the odds are truly against the individual, the counselor can address this issue without imposing a particular point of view. An approach would be to explore the challenges the counselor sees in pursuing desired careers or positions and examine what it will take for the student to meet these challenges. The counselor could present potential roadblocks in a way that simply adds to the student's information. The information should not be phrased to dissuade the student from a difficult course.
Behrens, Troy and Altman, Brian. "Counseling Mid-life Career Changes." Journal of Career Planning & Employment, Winter 2000.
Collins, Mimi. "SUCCESS—Stanford University Career Counseling & Experience for Stanford Students With Disabilities." Journal of Career Planning and Employment, Fall 1990.
Principle 2. Knowledge
of the field and educational institution, possession of requisite
skills
