Student SDS®

Student Self-Directed Search®

Details

Purpose

Helps students explore interests for educational and career planning

Authors

John L. Holland, PhD, and Melissa A. Messer, MHS

Administration Formats

Print

Additional Details

Paper and Pencil Career Test for Students Grade 6 to 12

The StudentSDS is a career assessment and exploration tool designed and tailored specifically to middle school, junior high, and high school students.

Expand all Additional Details

A revision of the SDS Career Explorer (CE), the Student SDS is based on data collected for the SDS Form R, 5th Edition (2013). The new Student SDS allows students to learn about programs of study and careers that best match their personalities. 

Watch this video to learn how
the SDS can help you
explore educational
and career options.
 
 

 

Features and benefits

  • Includes activities for classroom use. 
  • Captures students' personalities, skills, and interests. 
  • Guides students as they explore occupations and programs of study that might best suit them and lead to job satisfaction.
  • Includes a Professional Manual with Teacher's Guide to assist practitioners with administration, scoring, and interpretation.
  • Developed using the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) National Model and aligns with eight Individual Career and Academic Plan (ICAP) Quality Indicators: self-awareness, career awareness, postsecondary aspirations, postsecondary options, environmental expectations, academic planning, employability skills, and financial literacy.
  • Online administration and scoring and interactive digital reports (see sample reports under "Resources" tab) are available via the mobile-friendly Self-Directed Search website, which generates a fully customized report that allows users to sort, filter, save, and print results.

Resources

A presentation from NCDA 2019, Develop Your Students' Passion for Career Exploration: The Student SDS, is available in the Resources area. 

Collapse all Additional Details
Photo of Student Self-Directed Search ®
Grade Range Grade 6 to Grade 12
Admin Time 25-35 minutes
Qualification Level A

Shop by Bundled Kits

StudentSDS Kit

11261-KT
$350.00
11261-KT
What's Included

StudentSDS Replacement Kit

11262-ST
$225.00
11262-ST
What's Included

Shop by Items

FAQs

What is the technical information of the Student SDS®?

Test structure

  • Includes an assessment booklet that asks students about their occupational daydreams, aspirations, activities, competencies, interest in a variety of occupations, and self-estimates and calculates a customized two-letter Summary Code based on the student's responses.
  • Features a Career Finder for students to explore occupations based on their Summary Code and an Educational Opportunities Finder for students to explore programs of study based on their Summary Code.
  • Includes a You and Your Future Workbook, which uses bold graphics and imagery designed to engage students in the career-discovery process.

Technical information

  • The StudentSDS uses a subset of data from the SDS Form R, 5th Edition (2013). It was standardized on 318 students ages 11 to 17 years.
  • Coefficients for the Activities, Competencies, and Occupations scales range from .71 to .92, and summary scale coefficients range from .88 to .93.
  • Test-retest reliability ranged from .82 to .96 on the overall sample, indicating that summary scale scores have substantial ability over time.