Evidence-based career development courses can enhance college students’ preparation in successfully applying the knowledge and skills gained in undergraduate psychology coursework to the world of work. Given that fewer than 40% of colleges and psychology departments offer such courses, research can inform improved practice in this area. This article examines 208 published articles from over 45 years about the development and effectiveness of these courses with special attention to those appearing in the past 5 years. The review is delineated in two parts. Part One includes 62 reports of undergraduate career courses in psychology and other disciplines, the development and management of career courses, main elements of a career course, and career courses internationally. Part Two includes reviews of 116 studies regarding the effectiveness of career courses and summarizes eight meta-analytic studies of these interventions. A review of these research results is framed in terms of career course outputs and outcomes. Output studies used measures developed by psychologists of career thoughts, career decision-making skills, career decidedness, vocational identity, and the like. In this analysis, we found 93% reporting positive gains in measured variables, and 7% reporting no changes. We also reviewed results of career course outcomes such as persistence (retention) in college, graduation rate, cumulative GPA, and job satisfaction or satisfaction with field of study. In this analysis we found 95% reporting positive gains in measured variables, and two reporting no changes. These reports can inform the work of teachers in psychology and other disciplines.

The interconnected aspects of career and mental health posit career as a central feature of human functioning. A perceived lack of control within career and work exacerbates existing challenges associated with COVID-19. Focusing on enhancing agency within the realm of career and work is imperative within counselling. Cognitive Information Processing (CIP) accounts for the complexity of career concerns by enhancing agency in career decision making, with problem solving serving as a conduit between uncertainty and empowerment. The current state of employment, threats to agency within career development, and specific CIP-based interventions to enhance agency are discussed.

College students today face numerous pressures, which complicate a student's career decision-making process and make it imperative that career development practitioners utilize interventions that are empirically proven to enhance outcomes related to career development. This study examines a theoretically based career course and assesses negative career thoughts and metacognitive knowledge of students at the beginning and end of the course. Rooted in cognitive therapy theoretical concepts, cognitive information processing theory highlights how negative thoughts can have a detrimental impact on one's behavior and emotions. The best-fitting mixed linear model with random intercepts for 78 students with complete data observed significant improvements in negative career thoughts without being differentially impacted by instructor effects. Additionally, students with lower estimations of their career-related knowledge at the pre-test had smaller changes in negative career thoughts at post-test. These results are unique because despite various instructors teaching, the reduction in negative metacognitions remained stable across all sections. K E Y W O R D S career courses, cognitive information processing (CIP) theory, college student career development, metacognitive knowledge, negative career thoughtsToday's college students face numerous pressures. In addition to typical developmental challenges (e.g., choosing a major/occupation and workforce preparation), students experience high levels of student debt (Bleemer et al., 2017), rising rates of mental health distress on college campuses (Center for Collegiate Mental Health, 2021), and a changing career landscape characterized by rapid technological innovation, increasing globalization, and a growing gig economy (Callanan et al., 2017).

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