The Mental Health and Career Development Nexus

Book Review by Danielle Irving

This review examines The Mental Health and Career Development Nexus and its contribution to understanding the convergence of mental health and career development. The review highlights strengths, limitations, and the book’s emphasis on ethical considerations, mental health conditions that influence career decision-making and workplace functioning, and practical applications.

Beyond the Screen: Equipping Future Career Counselors with Practical Tech Competencies

By Lisa Cardello and Regina Gavin Williams

Counselor educators must equip students with digital competencies as career counseling becomes technology-driven. This article presents four strategies for integrating practical, technology-based assignments into counselor education curriculum. These course activities prepare future practitioners to ethically support clients in digital landscapes.

Before Prescribing: A Three-Gap Lens for Diagnosing a Stalled Job Search

By Eman Alraddadi

When a client’s job search stalls, the barrier is not always insufficient qualifications. This article introduces a Three-Gap Lens—Ability, Connection, and Expression—to help career practitioners distinguish between development, access, and communication barriers before selecting interventions. The framework supports more accurate diagnosis and more targeted career support for stalled job searches.

Using Counselor-Led Groups to Bridge SEL and Career Readiness in Middle School Settings

By Arthur J. Roman

This article explores how counselor-led groups can connect social-emotional learning (SEL) and career readiness in middle school settings. By focusing on self-awareness, decision-making, emotional regulation, self-advocacy, and goal setting, counselors can help adolescents build future-planning skills through developmentally appropriate group activities.

Navigating Parental Involvement in Career Conversations with College Students

By Mackenzie Fisher

Parents and families often support their children as they transition from high school to higher education. Their involvement may extend into career conversations. Career service practitioners can use the practical and ethical strategies included in this article to leverage and navigate this support.

Reigniting Careers After 50: Strategies for Job Success

By Heather Hopkin

Older workers continue to represent a critical and growing segment of the American workforce, and career transitions after 50 are increasing as lifespans increase and workplace demographics shift. This article explores factors influencing these transitions and offers strategies to help workers navigate challenges and leverage new opportunities while remaining competitive in evolving workplaces

Career Development Needs a Voice in Public Policy

By Steven Thomas and Sarah JanTausch, NCDA Government Relations Co-chairs

Government relations connects practitioners’ daily experiences to the decisions that shape education, employment, workforce systems, and access to opportunity. NCDA’s mission to support advocacy is embedded in the work of practitioners.

Do you share data snapshots or reports from your outcomes or other surveys? Use templates (found in PowerPoint, Word or Excel) to ensure you have clear, consistent language that always accompanies your visuals to provide context. Try to include when your report was run, the source of your data, populations included, or other relevant details. For example, your senior outcomes data visualization might include the dates of survey collection and if you excluded or converted international salaries, state that adjustment.

Tech Tip submitted by Jess Perlus, Assessment, Evaluation & Outcomes Committee Member, jgp66@cornell.edu