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7.2 The Career Development Process

Finding the right career, however, often does not happen overnight. Achieving this goal is a
process that requires focused efforts in several important areas. The Ashford University
Career Services department suggests that these efforts can be categorized into seven specific
steps outlined in Figure 7.2.

Figure 7.2: Career development process

To understand the career development process, refer to this flow chart from the Ashford University
Career Services department.

From “The Process,” by Ashford University, n.d. (http://www.ashford.edu/student_services/process.htm).

As you can see, the steps of the career development process are circular in nature. This is not
a linear progression where once you’ve checked all the steps off the list, you’re guaranteed
a great new lifelong career. Rather, it is a continuous process of personal development and
self-improvement that will help you discover and take advantage of opportunities throughout
your lifetime. By engaging in this process, you will learn a great deal about yourself, your
career options, and the evolving professional landscape. As you move through your career,
you can use this process to assess where you are in the present, where you want to be in the
years that follow, and how to get there.

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