An Examination of School Counseling Interns\u27 Satisfaction With Their Career Choice as Predicted by Self-efficacy And Roles Performed in Internship

The existing literature indicated that job satisfaction among school counselors was impacted by a variety of factors. Included among those factors were self-efficacy and activities performed on the job. The aim of this quantitative research study was to determine the future job satisfaction of school counseling interns based upon their feelings of self-efficacy and the difference between their preferred and actual activities performed in internship. The broad objective of this study was to advocate for the transformation of counselor education preparation programs to include interventions within the curriculum to minimize the differences between counseling preparation and practice during students\u27 academic preparation. Quantitative research methodology and multiple regression analysis were utilized in this study. The findings of this study revealed that school counseling interns\u27 self-efficacy with regard to the following constructs: Personal and Social Development; Leadership and Assessment; Career and Academic Development; Collaboration and Consultation; and Cultural Acceptance did not influence job satisfaction. The results also indicated that the differences reported between school counseling interns\u27 preferred and actual duties performed in their internship with regard to the following roles: Curriculum; Coordination; Counseling; Consultation; and Other roles were significant. Implications for future practice and research were also discussed