Choosing a Career Based Personality Matching: A Case Study of King Abdulaziz University

Traditionally, selecting a career involved matching the specific aptitudes and characteristics of an individual with a career which required or involved such factors. This particular approach has as its foundation the fact that certain careers have need of individuals with certain skills and attitudes, that is to say the individual is a ‘fit’ for that particular career based on their knowledge, skill and disposition. Many students have problems determining their college majors and a suitable career. This paper shows how to find a career that fits one’s personality, and aims to help students analyse their personalities based on the Holland personality test. This paper will identify the most suitable career for students by using a validated Arabic version of the Holland survey, which is one of the most popular models used for career personality tests. This study implements a new set of tasks, testing 117 students from King Abdulaziz University with the Arabic version of the Holland test. The test was applied to female students from three majors, computer science, information systems, and preparatory year distance learning students. The implications of the test results will help students to understand their personality types and determine a suitable career, as the results of the test suggest suitable careers for students which match their personalities. Ultimately, the results show a difference between computer science, information systems and preparatory year distance learning students with regard to personality types and suitable careers. Keywords—Holland’s Theory of Vocational Personalities; RIASEC personality and environment types; occupational interests; Career change; hexagonal model