What is the Difference?
Career development professional titles.
You likely heard one or a few titles such as: Career Advisor, Employment or Career Consultant, Career Counsellor, Career and Employment Specialist, Career Practitioner, Job Coach, Workplace Inclusion Specialist, Job Developer, Workforce Advisor, and the list goes on. There is a lot of confusion around these terms. As a result, it isn't surprising that people I come across throughout my career simply ends up grouping them all together. In this blog, I like to share some insight so you can be educated in understanding the core differences.
Coaching, Consulting, Counselling & Educating Definitions
Although some aspects of services can overlap, each title operates with a different lens, background and approach.
In the diagram above lists 4 main disciplines:
Career Coaches role is to challenge and assist clients to discover their own approach and desired career goals through non-directive and future oriented methods.
Career Consultants are past oriented and makes use of a directive advice or opinions for a solution-driven approach. It is up to the client to decide on what fits them best.
Career Counsellors focus on providing career guidance through the utilization of both career development theories and counselling techniques. They also tend to focus on drawing past events to discover career focused solutions.
Career Educators (typically in school settings) are future oriented and help clients find answers in a directive way. They are mainly focused on academic scores and achievement, and utilize career assessment tools such as Myers Brigg.
"No matter what our specialty, Career Development Professionals work should revolve around enabling clients to take charge of their own career development. We facilitate this by assisting them in the process of identifying and access resources, planning and managing their career and work-life." - CPC Career Foundation
Do your Research And Obtain The best Career coaching Results
No matter what the Career Development Professionals title is, I always encourage people to do their research before they decide to invest in both time and money.
"My passion lies in life-long learning and connecting with others through the world of employment with joyful glee and excitement." - Yules Chan
If you have not already, check out my blog on, Am I the Right Coach For You? You can also check out my accreditations on my LinkedIn account.
Yules Chan (BFA, CWS, CCS) is a CPC registered career development professional in Calgary who is motivated in providing holistic excellence by finding your hidden genius through the world of employment.
For more information go to Brilliant Person Career Coaching or call +1 (403) 891-2673 for a 15-minute complimentary consultation. We provide both in-person and online services.