Abstract:
There is mounting pressure for higher education to provide career training that moves beyond technical knowledge into the commonly referred to �soft skills� of professional development. Although most would argue that universities are not in the business of providing specific job training, sufficient room likely exists in most curricula to include vocational development without losing disciplinary strength. To meet this challenge, a new course in career development was launched in 2003 within the Department of Soil Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This required course of all soils majors couples traditional job search skills with vocational identification in an effort to help students transition into satisfying careers. Annual summative assessments have consistently led the department to where this course now attracts students outside the major. Five years of personality data gathered in the course revealed that student temperament distributions were consistent with the generalU.S. population, but unlike those typically found within the physical sciences. These data were also related to teaching effectiveness and job search skills. Although this course garnered much success among students, pedagogical challenges that jeopardize its broader implementation are discussed.
Keywords:
vocation, occupation, physical science, personality, career development
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