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The Validity of Standardized Assessments in Career Planning

MULTI-2005-50 Prof. Korchak

The Validity of Standardized Assessments in Career Planning

2 The debate on standardized tests and its relevancy and adequacy has been going on for

generations. Tests, quizzes, and even exams have been a part of our lives since we could remember, and without them there would be no way of measuring a student’s progress for what they have or have not learned. On the other hand, different forms of standardized assessments are not meant to measure your knowledge; more so help you understand your values and beliefs which can progressively guide you down a career path that is best suited for you. Finding a career path that is financially rewarding and can satisfy your personal needs within a job, can be a tough process. The two standardized tests that are meant to ease this process is the Career Beliefs Inventory (CBI), created by John D Krumboltz, and the Self-Directed Search (SDS), created by John Holland. According to Krumboltz, The Career Beliefs Inventory is a tool used to “explore client’s assumptions, generalizations, and beliefs about themselves and the world of work… it will help clients discover new options and alternative ways of attaining their career goals”. Contrarily, the Self-Directed Search is described to “help you learn about yourself, discover your occupational and educational options, and inform your decision-making process” (Holland). Both these tests offer very different perspectives, but when comparing both the

reports, the results provided from the CBI report has a much greater validity and significance with my career planning, while motivating me to take more career assessments. Career Planning

To understand whether the CBI and SDS tests were accurate in the results for what type of career would conform with my career goals, I had to take a step back and compare both the tests and analyze whether they legitimately assisted me in my career planning. According to the SDS report, my summary code, which is a simplified combination of my personality traits based on my interests, is described as “ECS”, or Enterprising, Conventional and Social. This shows me

3 that based on how I answered the questions on the assessment, I enjoy seizing opportunities

when they are available, adhering to standards, and being around people. As a result, these interests are what make up my summary code, and can therefore give me an applicable list of occupations that match with my code. Unfortunately, I am pursuing a bachelor's degree with a

major in marketing, and with the occupations listed, only a few were career choices that made sense with the degree I am getting and where my career goals are at. For example, the occupation of Media Director and Manager of Advertising/Promotions were the only two that truly caught

my eye and is compatible with the type of career I am heading towards. Consequently, the results did not provide me with enough relevant occupations and information that could help expand my knowledge of what career choices are best suited to me. Therefore, the SDS report did not assist in moving me forward in my career planning. The CBI results were the most alarming, yet fairly accurate with what type of person I am and how it correlates to what I look for in a job. This assessment was based highly on what type of decisions I make, and what my values and beliefs are in and out of the workplace. The results were very specific and are categorized into groups that are necessary for me to understand what I require for my career. The results are a lot more clear-cut compared to the SDS, meaning that the report identifies my beliefs as they relate to occupational choice, rather than just giving me a list of contrasting occupations they think suit my interests. When analyzing the CBI results, I was able to recognize that there are several distinctive factors I was unaware I even had. For instance, the report was able to graph various circumstances where I am willing to initiate effort. These results gave me insight into different aspects about myself that are important for me to know when moving forward in my career planning. The report helps me understand what beliefs and

4 values I have that are possibly hindering me from gaining my full potential. As a result, the CBI

report proves to be incredibly helpful in my career planning and can assist me to continue recognizing, changing, and improving aspects of myself that will aid in my pursuit towards my dream occupation.

Impact of These Assessments Based on the results from the Career Beliefs Inventory and the Self-Directed Search report, the CBI results impacted the way I view myself and the decisions I make, while the SDS

results merely changed my mindset I have on different career paths. The CBI report impacted me by correlating values and beliefs with decision-making. For instance, under the “Factors That Influence Your Decisions” category it illustrates that I have a high need for the approval of others, and this shows me that it can take control over whether I make decisions for my needs, or the needs of others. Factors such as this are extremely impactful because it pushes me to look at what I value in life, and whether they are important my personal growth, and my career plans. On the other hand, the Self-Directed Search report changed how I view career paths that are different from the current one I'm interested in, but did not impact my choices as significantly as the CBI report did. After reading the SDS report and evaluating all the various occupations that relate to my interests, it showed me that I shouldn’t put so much pressure on one career. There are so many different ones that could potentially fit into my life if I wasn't certain with the one I

am pursuing. With that being said, the SDS results did not offer enough new information to change what career path I'm going down or directly impact the decisions I'm currently making. Future Assessments

5 Career assessments, such as the Career Beliefs Inventory and the Self-Directed Search,

are very informative standardized tests that I enjoyed taking and has swayed me to take different ones. The CBI test is very detailed and specific, and over time I would find it beneficial to continue taking the assessment to compare and analyze whether my values and beliefs are

changing. By doing this, it would show me whether I am taking the time to improve and change the aspects of myself that I wanted to change. In regards to the SDS assessment, I have taken it a couple of times at this point, and both times have given me results that didn’t help me as much as I hoped. That being said, I want to experience taking other career assessments and see whether they have different results corresponded with the SDS and CBI. Even though I didn’t have the best results with the SDS, I still believe that taking different career assessments would expand my knowledge of the various career alternatives and perspectives that I wasn’t aware of that could aid in my career development.

Conclusion Overall, both these tests offer very different outlooks, but when compared with the results from the SDS report, the results given from the CBI report has a much greater validity, and

significance with my career planning, and motivates me to take more career assessments. Despite the fact that I saw the most accurate and favourable results with the CBI report, I am open to trying out more career assessments in the future. The results given to me from the SDS report

prompted me to gain a higher understanding of different career paths, but the Career Beliefs Inventory had a larger impact on my perception of beliefs and values. Therefore, the CBI results had the most influence in my career planning by showing me the different aspects of my personality that hinders, or improves my work performance, while the SDS results only show me the occupations that might suit my interests. Both these tests were informative and convinced me

6 to be more open-minded about career paths, even when they might not coincide with my current

beliefs and values.

References Holland, J. (n.d.). What is the SDS?: Self-Directed Search. Retrieved September 23, 2020, from https://self-directed-search.com/what-is-it/

7 Krumboltz, J. D. (n.d.). Career Beliefs Inventory. Retrieved September 23, 2020, from https://

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