The findings of this study entail that the choice of career is affected by social, academic and other external influence which signifies apparently the need for counselling students in the college. It points out the areas of concentration by guidance and counselling personnel who are interested in giving vocational guidance to
105
prospective students in the college and other institutions of learning. The findings pointed out some of the factors responsible for the inappropriate choice of career among students of Federal College of Education (Technical), Gusau.
This finding has enormous implications for students, parents, counsellors and significant others in terms of planning, monitoring and evaluation of the outcome for educational programme. To start with, the study implies that students are more externally controlled by significant others like parents than their internal self. Students with external locus of control towards occupational choice do believe that career choice is the question of luck, chance and fate as under the control of powerful others or external circumstances. This calls for counselling that requires appraisal services for students’ self understanding and identification of their personality. When this appraisal services are given to individual student in couselling session by cousellors they will have better understanding of their strengths and weaknesses with a view to improving on their areas of weaknesses. It also implies the need for guidance counsellor to impart the knowledge of career guidance and encourage students to be self- directed and develop wise decision and intelligent choices.
The finding of the study also implies the need for guidance counsellors to give career guidance and counselling to parents and teachers in relation to the career aspirations of their children. In terms of educational background of the parents, parents stand a better chance to reap immensely from the study by understanding the implications of imposing or influencing their children to pursue a career that does not match with their abilities and interest. Thus, with this awareness, parents would appreciate more truly the level of seriousness, encouragements and support needed by their children that would promote their academic performance and realities of life in relation to career guidance and aspirations.
106
Another important counselling implication for the study is directed towards guidance counsellor who will be more equipped with full and comprehensive understanding of the nature of career development and how individual student gets career awareness, prepares for it, enters into it and progress in it. It also widens the scope of counsellors’ understanding of various careers and career choice based on individual abilities and interest rather than interest by parents and significant others.
Other counselling implications include concrete or drastic measures that counsellors need to take into considerations as follows:
(i) Planning for career need must precede the design of career counselling program.
The need for career counselling becomes evident. The studies implies that an overwhelming number of students express a desire for career advice and relevance of their selected courses to future careers. It was also clear that there was almost nothing like career guidance. Therefore, emphasis on career education should be placed on occupational flexibility, decision making skills, self concept and the inclusion of leisure time and interests in a persons’ career.
(ii) Career counselling should be practically given to students to prepare them for life. This should be from directed adults who understand their own values and behaviours and are able to set realistic occupational goals. Students need better understanding of themselves to choose an occupation that closely fits their values, goals and life style preferences. They also need knowledge of the job market and prospective demands for their skills.
(iii) Counsellors should design and monitor courses in effective personal and career decision making. Such counselling exercise can change students’ mental health
107
or orientation from irrational choices and train their minds to make realistic choices.
For more practical counselling implication, career forum therapy and career games are very effective and can be used in modifying students’ appropriate occupational choice behaviour. However, group counselling therapeutic procedure will be more effective and superior in modifying the students’ behaviour for appropriate career choice and aspirations, and it can therefore be employed to students in F.C.E.
(T.), Gusau. This may encourage students to aspire for career they have technical knowhow or interest and thereby avoiding external locus of control to overtake their decisions and choices. Finally, the study would be of tremendous assistance to future researchers who may like to investigate in the related area of studies.