“After being used more than 300 times with young adults at the college level, the AFC Holland tool is highly valued, as it enables, amongst other things, the student’s interests to be explored, whilst also assessing their own perception of their skills and abilities, and exploring their personality and employment needs. The career fields section is also very useful, as it helps to distinguish between personal and professional interests and provides potential career avenues to explore further with the client. This stage can even enable students to discover new fields of study that they might not otherwise have considered.

In addition to using the test for individual guidance, I also use it as part of the guidance approach with 1st-year CEGEP students in various technical programs such as childhood education, civil engineering, forestry, special education, etc., to help them get to know themselves better, identify their strengths and weaknesses, and raise their awareness of their choice of study program and/or career. This reflection process helps them match their interests and aptitudes with the qualities and characteristics sought in their chosen trade, so they can identify the strengths they can leverage in future employment, as well as the elements they need to develop further to better meet the requirements of the targeted occupation.

The AFC Holland team is always available when we have questions and is very open to suggestions, while continually improving the quality of their psychometric tools to meet users’ needs. Our experience with the test and our opinion are taken into consideration, which is very enriching and gratifying as a professional.

In short, it is a simple, comprehensive, and effective tool that I would have no hesitation in recommending to any career guidance professional who wishes to help their clients develop self-awareness and explore career fields using the Holland typology.”

Nadine Leblanc is a School Counsellor at Cégep de Baie-Comeau and uses AFC Holland in individual counselling as well as in group counselling with college students.