In Your Career Questions Answered, Sam Muriuki cites the three career developmental patterns, attributed to Ginsberg (1951). The three stages include: the fantasy phase, the tentative phase and the realistic phase.
- The Fantasy Phase
Children go through this phase when they are between 6-11 years old. These are pre-teens (tweens). They are at the elementary levels of study. At this stage, children do not attach any dedication to careers they are thinking about. Mostly, children dream of belonging to attractive, famous professional groups.
They pick up such from television, stories and observations they make daily. Children tend to admire, adore or idolise careers they perceive to be glamour-tinged. They engage in such admiration even when they have scant knowledge about the training and challenges pertaining to such careers.
- The Tentative Phase
Coinciding with adolescence or teens, this is a more serious phase. These are students in high school. At this stage, they begin to internalise the requirements, demands and rewards of the different careers. They begin to pursue what they like and what they are interested in doing. They observe professionals, and they decide whether they like them or not. As the clock of age ticks and clicks, they begin to hone their skills and point out their limitations. They listen, explore, and ask quality questions.
They begin to identify themselves with some professions or occupations. Sometimes, this is also a stage of confusion, where students have no specific profession in mind. It is easy to meet a student at this stage who yearns to be a lawyer, and at the same time, a journalist. This is where suitable career awareness and awakening programmes are very useful and helpful.
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- The Realistic Phase
This is the phase from 17 years onwards. By the time teens complete high school, most of them make realistic career choices based on their situation, abilities, preferences and performance. At this stage, the young adults tend to be specific in nature. They choose one line of interest, which could be different types of Engineering: electrical, civil, marine, et cetera.
By Victor Ochieng’
The writer guides students on how to make informed career choices.
vochieng.90@gmail.com. 0704420232
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