The extent to which career resources predict career adaptability among university students who have experienced an earthquake

The primary aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between career resources and career adaptability among university students who were directly affected by the earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş on February 6, 2023. By exploring the impact of traumatic life events such as natural disasters on individuals' career development processes, the study seeks to contribute to the field of career counseling with a specific focus on crisis contexts. Utilizing a correlational research design within the framework of quantitative research methods, data were collected from 1124 university students enrolled in various higher education institutions across Türkiye who experienced the earthquake firsthand. Career resources were examined under four main dimensions: human capital resources, motivational resources, environmental resources, and career management skills. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation analyses, multiple regression analyses, and significance tests. The results demonstrated statistically significant and positive relationships between career resources and career adaptability. Among the environmental resources, job developmental potential emerged as the strongest predictor of career adaptability, accounting for approximately 35.9% of the variance. Among the motivational resources, career confidence explained 27.7% of the variance. In terms of career management skills, learning accounted for 25.2%, while helping skills classified under human capital resources explained 22% of the variance in career adaptability. Additionally, social career support significantly contributed 12.9%, whereas institutional career support exhibited a negative predictive effect, accounting for 11.4%. The overall model explained between 14% and 24% of the total variance in career adaptability. Furthermore, socioeconomic status was found to be a significant determinant of career adaptability, whereas other variables such as gender, financial loss, and bereavement due to the earthquake did not yield statistically significant differences. These findings underscore the importance of providing multidimensional support mechanisms to foster the career development of university students during periods of crisis. Based on the results, practical recommendations are presented at the individual, institutional, and structural levels.