Master’s Students’ Rehabilitation Counselor Identity Formation: A Descriptive Study

Purpose: This article aims to advance understanding of professional identity by exploring the process by which development occurs. Drawing on Hall’s model of professional identity development that explores the structural and attitudinal changes that occur in the identity development process, this study describes master’s students’ developmental process in rehabilitation counseling.

Method: Data were collected through 5 open-ended questions, which formed part of a survey questionnaire.

Results: Using grounded theory analysis, findings indicate that both structural- and attitudinal-level factors impacted master’s students’ professional identity development. Students described their professional identity as not yet defined, connected to their counseling competencies and skills, or reflective of their personal qualities.

Discussion: Implications of these findings for counselor training and evolution of the field toward a strong and unified professional identity are discussed.