6.2 – Engage in Lifelong Learning

Purpose & Context

Career Development Professionals (CDPs) engage in continuous learning to achieve successful intervention outcomes. CDPs develop an individualized training plan to build on their key strengths and address areas needing improvement.

Effective Performance

Competent career development professionals must be able to:

P1. Identify own strengths and areas for improvement, for example:
- Solicit feedback from colleagues, managers, community partners and clients
- Use assessment tools to identify strengths as well as skills gaps
P2. Establish a professional development plan:
- Identify development needs and potential barriers
- Identify learning opportunities
- Formulate action plan with measurable goals
P3. Engage in learning opportunities and developmental experiences, for example:
- Participate in conferences, seminars and workshops within community of practice
- Enrol in formal education
- Participate in informal learning opportunities, e.g. training sessions led by colleagues, volunteering, online
  communities of practice
- Join professional associations and organizations to advance the field of practice, e.g. Provincial Career
  Development Associations, Canadian Council for Career Development (3CD)
P4. Measure personal and career growth:
- Measure progress
- Document learning
- Evaluate and review learning plan
- Seek funding for professional development activities
P5. Share experiences, for example:
- Present to colleagues
- Present at industry events

Knowledge & Understanding

Competent career development professionals must know and understand:

K1. Self-assessment principles and tools
K2. Learning opportunities, including online resources to aid development

Contextual Variables

Competent career development professionals must be able to perform this competency in the following range of contexts:

Availability of learning and development opportunities will vary depending on the CDP’s area of practice.

Glossary & Key References

Terms

Industry-specific terms contained in the standard defined here, where applicable.

None

Information Sources and Resources for Consideration

None

Context Rating Scales

Criticality

Q: What is the consequence of a professional being unable to perform this skill according to the standard?

Moderate risk: CRITICAL

Frequency

Q: How frequent and under what conditions is this skill performed?

Occasionally, e.g. generally several times in a month

Level of Difficulty

Q: Under routine circumstances, how would you rate the level of difficulty in performing this skill?

Moderate difficulty or complexity

Time Required to Gain Proficiency

Q: What is the average length of time or number of repeated events that are minimally necessary for an individual to become proficient in performing the skill to the standard?

To become fully proficient in this competency, a career development professional requires a minimum of one year of experience of identifying and addressing their learning needs.

Autonomy

Practitioners typically perform this competency with and/or without supervision, and alone.

Automation

It is unlikely that this competency will automate.

Requisite Work Aids, Tools, Equipment or Materials

None