Placement Counseling: Focus on the Community College

Abstract

Because of the vocational emphasis in the two-year college, placement is even more important here than in other institutions. Statistics accentuate the employment needs of two-year college students during their attendance at college and after graduation. Despite the needs, placement services have not been adequately developed. Counseling needs in the two-year colleges are varied and complex. There is a need for career counseling, counseling for career flexibility, preparing for the job interview and how to keep a job, follow-up, counseling and developing opportunities for minorities as well as concern with handicapped, veterans, and marginal students. Community awareness and participation is essential. To accomplish this, an adequate, well-prepared staff is required.Everyone recognizes the importance of student personnel services in the twoyear colleges but as O'Banion points out the recognition is "more in the rhetoric-than it is in actuality." He further quotes a study by the National Committe for Appraisal and Development of Junior College Student Personnel programs which found that "when measured against criteria of scope and effectiveness, student personnel programs in community junior colleges are Placement is generally accepted as an important aspect of student personnel services in most post-high-school institutions. In the two-year college, because of the vocational emphasis, it is even more important than in other institutions. If you train people for work, it is important to help them find jobs. 32 JOURNAL OF EMPLOYMENT COUNSELING