Career Counseling and Wellness: Recommendations for School Counseling Practice

Abstract

Amid the escalating concern about students’ mental health and overall well-being within the K–12 educational settings, the role of the school counselor has prompted the examination of fostering positive outcomes. Research has indicated that challenges to students’ mental well-being lead to adverse consequences impeding students’ long-term growth, impacting college and career readiness. Thus, addressing these challenges is crucial for long-term student wellness and success. With the increasing complexities faced by students today, there is a pressing need for school counselors to equip themselves with tools to effectively promote child and adolescent well-being and career readiness. This article emphasizes how intentional and well-implemented programs within a comprehensive school counseling program can cultivate students’ career readiness while fostering positive mental health. By highlighting the importance of college and career literature, this article outlines a method for implementing interventions for mental wellness and optimizing student/human functioning. School counselors are uniquely positioned to provide such services and interventions to support the well-being of students, and this article outlines recommendations for implementation to enhance comprehensive school counseling programs.