THE SUNDAY TIMES MAGAZINE

GOOD CAREER GUIDE

Rosemary Franklin, 32, is a researcher with The Sunday Times. She was brought up in Torquay and now lives in Acton, London. She left school with five "O" levels and studied shorthand typing at technical college. Her first job was with an insurance company in Torquay. She then took the plunge and went to London to work for a publisher. Apart from an exacting year working in a Chicago advertising agency, she has lived in London, working chiefly for The Sunday Times.

PROBLEM "I am looking for something else as I feel there is more to life than newspapers. I would like to work with people, perhaps on a community project. However, I have no idea whether I would be any good at it so I need some guidance."

Going back to college tempts her, but she has no regrets about not staying on at school. The psychological tests by the agencies depicted her as assertive, lively and imaginative, but also emotional and impetuous.

Career Counselling Services,
46 Ferry Road,
London
SW13 9PW

"Very professional and caring. Before going I had to write a 700-word essay on my `Good and Bad Points' and fill in a 12-page questionnaire. Over a number of sessions at a house in Barnes, south London, I did a barrage of tests. A two hour taped interview with counsellor Robert Nathan followed and the recording was given to me to play at home.

That was very useful as you tend to forget things. He drew on the tests and started thinking about suitable jobs. Then more homework: 1 had to draw up a list of 30 positive moments in my life and I could only find 19. "He showed a blend of interest in my career and personality, my family and educational background.

Very clued up on both education and careers, he had pamphlets on everything and prospectuses for nearly every college and university. He spent 10 hours with me."

Verdict "The best of the bunch and very good value"

Career Guidance Ltd,
20 Bloomsbury Square,
London WC1


It was quite impersonal, we got straight into tests with no cup of coffee. First of all general knowledge: what did Madame Curie invent? Where does the sun rise? Then pattern making with blocks, which I was very bad at, and making stories out of cartoon pictures. All very slick and pat. I felt the questions invited obvious answers: eg, Would you rather (a) visit a chemical factory, (b) go to a battery hen farm, or (c) go to a concert? With that choice it was easy to be thought of as musical! I avoided all the questions about sex such as: `I like to read about the lives of famous men, or I like to get sexually excited.' The woman interviewer pointed out that they were more geared towards school and college leavers than people like me. strengths and weaknesses so I could make up my own mind."

Verdict "Not very good value."

Career and Educational Counselling,
BCM Box 9309,
London
WC1N 3XX


"The principle here is counselling and you pay for as long as it takes. You sit in a tastefully furnished room in Frognal, north London, with big pink chairs and a bookcase straining under the weight of Freud books. David Sonnenberg is a rather intimidating man, very large and very quiet, with a beard. He was interested in my family, school, relationships, sex, rather than my career up to now. He didn't ask many questions so I tended to gabble to fill in the silences. I found myself revealing far more than I intended, probably because he gave off sympathetic waves. After an hour and a half I felt drained and exhausted. The next meeting lasted an hour in which we discussed the results of the test I had done.

"Verdict "He's a nice person who helps people to come to decisions on their own."

National Advisory Centre on Careers for Women,
Drayton House,
30 Gordon Street,
London WCIH OAX


"'The centre is a registered charity and the interview took place in a quaint old building, part of London University, with an elderly lady. A degree was recommended as a solution to everything. She said a commitment to learning was essential and English and history degrees Quite helpful in practical terms. she thought about how I would live, what kind of life I would have staying at home or on a campus."

Verdict: "Nothing startling and rather old-fashioned."

CONCLUSION

"Like the girl with the curl in the nursery rhyme, so with careers advice. When it is good it is very, very good and when it is not it is expensive. Some of the agencies just went through the motions, telling me what I told them and what could be surmised from my curriculum vitae. The tests which demanded an either/or response for reading about famous men or being sexually aroused strike me as a case of the clock striking 13.

But I would not dismiss the value of seeking careers advice for anyone who was unsure about the next step in their lives. Although much of the advice is just a question of common sense, a long session with a careers adviser could provide that boost in confidence which makes all the difference at an interview. it is best to have as clear an idea as possible of what you want from a career adviser, otherwise you can end up floundering."