BIOGRAPHICAL QUESTIONNAIRE
In order to make wise career choice decisions, it is important for you to have as much insight into yourself as possible. Besides giving essential information, the biographical questionnaire which follows is designed to get you to think about yourself and your life, and to arrange your thoughts in an orderly way.
Please complete the following questionnaire on the computer (the tables and blocks provided will expand as required) or by hand. If you are answering this questionnaire by hand, please use extra paper for answers requiring more space than has been provided and label them accordingly.
Client Information
Surname / Name:Gender / Date this questionnaire was completed:
Date of Birth / Age in Years:
Parents / Guardian details:
Mother: Name and Surname / Father: Name and Surname
Contact Telephone Number / Contact Telephone Number
Email address / Email address
Postal address / Postal address
FOR OFFICIAL USE: Client Assessment Details
Assessment appointment date: / Interview appointment date: / Feedback appointment date:
Billing Information
Full name, surname and title of the person responsible for payment of the accountEmployer: / Relationship to Client:
Postal Address: / Telephone: Work
Telephone: Home
Cell Phone:
Please complete if you would like to try to claim back from your medical aid
Medical aid and scheme / policy name / Medical aid number / Surname and initials of principal member
Referring Agent Information
Name of person who referred you (e.g. parents, school, doctor, psychologist, friend) if applicableSchooling
School / GradeIf you have repeated any Grades / Classes/ Yearsplease list them below. Write down what you remember of this/these Grades/ Classes/ Years:
What school are you currently attending?
How do you/ did you feel about school and your school work?
Please give details of any learning problems or disabilities you may have experienced at school (e.g. reading, writing, listening, spelling, concentration or other learning problems):
School subjects:
Subject / Most recent mark / Like / Dislike/Neutralabout subject (state)
8.
9.
Your favourite subject and why
Your second favourite subject
Grade 9
If you are in grade 9, please complete the following: What subjects are you considering taking in grade 10? What has attracted you to these subjects?
Grade 12
If you have completed grade 12, please indicate the year you wrote and what you achieved (for example,National Senior Certificate, National Certificate (Vocational), IEBNational Senior Certificate, ASLevels/ ALevels, O Level/GCSE/IGCSE, HIGCSE/NSSC HL, or IB SL/ IB HL):
If you achieved a National Senior Certificate, did you meet the requirements for higher education? What type (e.g. bachelor’s, diploma, higher certificate)?
National Benchmark Test (NBT)
If you have written the National Benchmark Test please indicate your results:
Post School Qualifications
If you are currently enrolled at a university or college please provide the following information:
Where are you studying? / What year are you in?What course are you doing? / How successful have you been (i.e. what proportion have you passed?)
What do you like about your course
What do you dislike about your course
What led you to choose the course you are doing?
Health
How would you describe your health? Please place an X in the block that best describes your health in general.
Excellent / Good / Average / PoorDo you have any conditions that would affect the sort of work that you might choose (e.g. epilepsy, paraplegia, blindness, deafness, reading difficulties, weak eyesight)?
Are you aware of experiencing much stress in your life? What causes it and how do you handle it?
Family History
In the table below, give details of yourparents, brothers and sisters in order of their age. Include yourself, step-parents and step-siblings and half sisters and brothers, if applicable. Indicate deceased family members by a (D) in the age column.
Family Member / Age / Highest level of education / OccupationWhat particular aspirations do your parents have for you, if any?
Social Interaction
Do you prefer to interact with many people or a few?When you go out, where do you choose to go (e.g. movies, restaurant, parties, clubs, theatre)?
Would you be comfortable introducing yourself to someone that you did not know?
List any social networks or internet facilities you make regular use of:
Criticism
How do you handle being criticised? Does it make you work harder to prove them wrong or does it demotivate you?
Religion
If you are committed to a religion, will this affect your career choice? If your answer is “yes” what religion do you follow and how will it affect your career choice?
Sport
What sport do you play?For which team do you play?
Would you describe yourself as competitive?
What sport have you played in the past that you do not play now?
Hobbies and leisure activities
What hobbies or leisure activities do you enjoy doing currently?
What would you do if you had more time or facilities?
Cultural
Do you belong to any societies/clubs? Name them. (e.g., drama Christian Union, interact, Scouts / Guides)
Altruism
Are you involved in any service clubs like Habitat for Humanity or Interact?
Leadership
Do you (or did you previously) hold any formal leadership positions? Name them (e.g. committee member, prefect, sport captain, SRC representative, club chairperson, scout/guide patrol leader):
Do you prefer to be in a leadership role or to be a loyal member of a team?
How often are you the person in your group of friends who comes up with ideas and plans?
Reading
Do you enjoy reading? How much do you read (for example, hours per week)?
What sort of material do you read (e.g. magazines, online articles, newspapers, books)
What topics/genres do you enjoy reading?
If you don’t enjoy reading, what do you do instead of reading?
Television
How many hours of TV/DVDs do you watch each week?What are your favourite programmes?
Creativity
If you enjoy being creative please provide details (e.g. drama, drawing, painting, sculpture, music, singing, decorating, handwork, writing, computer graphics, film or video making, photography):
Do you believe that you possess above average artistic / creative ability. Who are you comparing yourself to?
Would you like a creative career? What career are you considering in this area?
Technical and Engineering Aptitude
Do you enjoy fixing or building things, taking things apart or finding out how things work?What things do you like fixing (e.g. wooden, electrical, mechanical, electronic)?
What things do you like building?
What things do you like taking apart?
If you would like an engineering, technical trade or building career; what career are you considering?
Computers
How computer literate are you?Would you like to work with computers in an IT environment? If you answered yes, provide details of your IT aptitude (e.g. programs, apps, websites, games or databases you have created or helped set up):
Would you like to work with computers as a tool? If you answered yes, provide details of what programs you enjoy using?
Do you like helping people solve their computer problems, set up software, printers or networks, or assemble/repair computers? If yes, what do you enjoy doing?
Would you like a career in information technology (IT)? What IT related work would you like to get involved in?
Nature
On a scale of 1-3 (with 3 being high), how much do you enjoy:
Nature / Domestic Animals / Wild Animals / Farm Animals / Plants / Ocean / Marine AnimalsIf you would like a nature, marine, farming, forestry, equine, veterinary career; what career are you considering?
Work Environment
On a scale of 1-3 (with 3 being high), how much do you enjoy:
Outside all day / In an office all day / In a laboratory all day / A mixture of outside and in a laboratory or office / Working in the city / Working in a rural environment / the bushChildren
Would you like to work with children? / What age?Do children like you and respond positively to you?
Business
On a scale of 1-3 (with 3 being high), how much do you enjoy?
Accounting / Economics / SellingWould you be open to working in an office as a key part of your daily work?
Would you like a business career? What career are you considering in this area?
Transport
On a scale of 1-3 (with 3 being high), how much do you enjoy?
Sailing / Flying / DrivingWould you be open to working away from home on a regular basis?
Cooking
How good a cook are you? Describe how you cook (e.g. family meals from a recipe, create flavours, bake cakes and puddings)
Do you have any interest in the food industry? If yes, what food-oriented careers are you considering?
Achievements
Describe any personal achievements that have been memorable for you. These do not have to be school related; they may relate to any area of your life. Think about occasions when you felt happy or proud. What activities were you involved in at the time?
Ten-year Vision
How would you like your life to be in ten years’ time (e.g. married, living in SA, living standard, etc)?
Career Exploration
Place an x below the one that applies to you the best.
I am only now starting to think about career choices / I have done a fair bit of research and have some career ideas / I am pretty sure that I know what I want to doWhat careers are you currently considering?
Careers / What attracts you to this career?Fantasy
If you could do absolutely anything you wanted, what would your dream job be?
Job Shadow
Give details of any job shadowing experience that you have had and whether you enjoyed it:
Work Experience
What work experience have you had? Give details of any part-time, holiday or full-time jobs and highlight what you enjoyed:
Things you definitely DO want in a future job
Things you definitely DON’T want in a future job
Dress
When you imagine yourself going to work, how do you imagine yourself to be dressed (funky, uniform, casual, corporate, etc)?
Gap Year
If you intend taking a GAP year after school, please indicate what you intend to do during the year / if you are taking a gap year, please indicate what you have been doing:
Education Institution
At what institution would you like to study? For example, CPUT, Stellenbosch University, learn-on-the-job.
Role Models
Who is, or has been your role model? It can be anyone, even a cartoon character. What do you admire about this role model?
If you could be a super-hero what would you like your name to be? What super-powers would you like to have?
Self-description
I want you to know that: … Tell me anything you would like me to know (e.g. “I am a happy person,” “I am hugely money driven”, “I am allergic to dust”, I don’t handle being under authority well”. All inputs are valuable.
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