Kuder Career Search

Kuder Career Search (KCS) represents the third generation of interest inventories known as the Kuder Preference Records. First was the Kuder Preference Record—Vocational, which gave scores on 10 vocational interest scales. Next was the Occupational, which reported occupations that were similar to the inventory takers' interests.

The KCS consists of two kinds of scales. One, the Kuder Career Clusters, reveals the similarity of the inventory taker's activity preferences to those of people in certain clusters of occupations. The unique second score gives Person Matches, which reflects the similarity of the inventory taker's interest profile to each person in a pool of some 2,000 employed adults.

Available only online at http://www.kuder.com, the KCS is suitable for middle and high school students, 2- and 4-year college students, and adults. Individual purchases are available, but the inventory is typically administered in school as part of a career development program. The reading level is approximately sixth grade, and administration time averages 15 to 20 minutes. The inventory consists of 60 triads of activities: draw sketches of birds, build boats, sort mail in a post office, and so on, which the respondent rank-orders by preference. Scoring is instantaneous with the last response, and an online report yields a profile of cluster scores plus the job titles of the top 12 Person Matches.

Supporting materials for the KCS include two other assessments, the Kuder Skills Assessment, in both school and college or adult levels and the Super's Work Values Inventory, occupational and college information, a portfolio that can be made to generate a college or job application and an administrator's management system.

The KCS report emphasizes ranks, not scores. Mature users who are motivated to study their results and seek further information may use their results independently. High school and middle school students, especially those who are little motivated to consider their future careers, will benefit from competent attention.

The materials lend themselves to both individual and group applications. They may be used in individual counseling, in school settings as a component of an ongoing advising or career development program, or as an instructional unit in the regular classroom. Individual or small group interpretation may facilitate students in identifying diverse ways of realizing an occupational goal, such as nursing, teaching nursing, or becoming a nursing administrator.

Lower reliabilities for interest measurement at middle school ages suggest that the KCS is best used to develop or clarify an occupational self-concept or to prioritize several possible career paths. In high school, the KCS supports more refined career exploration such as making plans for a college major and selecting valid occupational possibilities. At the college level, the inventory may be used with individuals who have not chosen a major field of study or with those who need to replace an unsatisfactory choice. Among adults, the KCS may suggest career possibilities to replace a lost job or to suggest more satisfying occupational roles.