Career success according to new graduates: Implications for counseling and management

Abstract

Qualitative research on career success has been encouraged across different category of workers. This qualitative research sought to explore how do new graduates define career success and also highlight some implications for career counseling and Human Resources management. Sample included nine new graduates from two different regions of Brazil, divided in two focus groups. Discourse analysis based on interpretative repertoire approach was used for the data analyses. The graduates' definitions emphasized both subjective (confidence in the future, career planning, professional identity construction, work adjustment, and satisfaction with the career path) and objective (work in the area of graduation with a good salary, financial independence, social recognition) career outcomes. The meanings identified in this study reinforced the multidimensional nature of the construct and also could help career counselors and human resources managers better plan their interventions contributing to new graduates' career success during university-to-work transition.