Page 62 - Professionalising-career-guidance-practitioner-competences-and-qualification-routes-in-Europe

the transition from training and education to work, are now of greater importance in training
career guidance staff.
The Bologna process, in relation to training career guidance professionals, has been
reflected in the rewriting of the curriculum in terms of learning goals and outcomes (see
example in Figure 1 above), quality-assurance systems and continuous evaluation of specific
courses. Other overall Bologna process policy goals, for example relating to mobility and
transferability of competences across national borders, have been of less importance, as few
Danish guidance counsellors travel with their profession across any kind of border, be it
geographical or sectoral.

4.3.6. Entry requirements and alternative routes to entry and qualification
Candidates for these training routes must hold qualifications at least within the first cycle of
higher education; more for higher-level courses. All candidates must have at least two years
of professional experience, and most have more.
Since 2007, access through APEL is an option: for entry, for elements within the course,
and as an alternative route for full course qualification. Interestingly, the APEL route is not
seen as an alternative: it is an integrated part of the continuous upgrading of the
competences of guidance counsellors. This implies that already-employed guidance
counsellors are routinely engaged in their personal APEL to fulfil the qualification
requirements of their present working position. Some find this aggravating, as it may imply
that they are not capable and need more training to do their daily job. A highly detailed APEL
procedure has been developed for this purpose by the same expert group. It includes
portfolio methods, self-evaluation, observations, essays, and in-depth interviews, all with a
view to the candidate demonstrating relevant career counselling and guidance skills, and a
general overview and understanding of the guidance field, its methods, policies, and
challenges.

4.3.7. The course teaching methods
Little use is made of e-learning methods, which are limited to ICT platforms such as
Blackboard, which allows for group emailing, streaming, group discussions, etc. More
sophisticated distance learning modes have not yet been developed as part of these
courses, and there are no plans to develop them. This is often explained by the small size of
country but distance learning these days is not only about distance: it is about flexible
learning modes, a view developed in the Nordic region, particularly in evaluations of national
and European projects which demonstrate that training, reflective exercises, essay writing
and assessment can all be delivered by these means.
Practicum periods are not included in the present courses, as the proposed bachelor’s
degree mentioned above does not yet exist and, on the whole, there is an academic drift at
all levels: the thesis requirements in terms of the level of abstract thinking and rigorous
academic analysis have been growing in recent years, even at the diploma level. This is one
of the – possibly inevitable – consequences of a higher degree of professionalisation. One of
the few places where work-based experiences are used as the basis for assessment of the
competences of guidance staff is as part of the above-mentioned APEL procedure.

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