Required skills and training needs of recent counseling psychology graduates.

Surveyed 183 recent graduates (mean age 38.2 yrs) in counseling psychology to determine which activities and competencies were important for effective job performance and to what extent doctoral training programs provided adequate training in those areas. Responses indicated significant differences between ratings of importance and adequacy of training for several competencies. Although overall discrepancies between job needs and training needs were moderate, it is suggested that training efforts should extend toward competency building in the less traditional areas (e.g., consultation, special population) without jeopardizing effectiveness in traditional curriculum areas. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)