Abstract

Student-athletes identify themselves as athletes first and students second and experience identity foreclosure in which they rarely consider other possibilities for their career besides professional athletes. There is a gap between the career education that college student-athletes and regular students get, so we conducted this study to test the effectiveness of a career education program. The proposed career education program was based on Super and Ginsberg’s career development theory and Holland’s career choice theory. Data were collected from 13 college student-athletes using a pretest-posttest research design and analyzed using a t-test. The program was conducted in the form of 90-minute weekly sessions over 3 weeks. The program’s effectiveness was measured in terms of participants’ stress from a lack of career information, career preparedness, self-understanding, and career decision-making self-efficacy. The results showed that each variable, except stress from a lack of career information, was significantly improved after the program compared to before the program, indicating that the program was effective. Theoretical and practical implications regarding career education for student-athletes are discussed in this paper.