Background: Successful entry into the labor market is a critical stage in students’ professional development, and targeted educational interventions can enhance their career optimism and readiness for transition. This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of flourishing training and transactional analysis on students’ career path optimism and readiness for the transition from university to the workforce.
Methods: The study employed a quasi-experimental design with pretest-posttest and a control group. The population comprised all unmarried final-year students enrolled at Golestan Azad University during the 2023–2024 academic year. Using convenience sampling, 45 students were selected and randomly assigned to two experimental groups and one control group. The first experimental group received flourishing training, while the second group received transactional analysis training in ten 60-minute sessions; the control group did not receive any intervention. Data were collected using the Rottinghouse Career Path Optimism Questionnaire (2005) and the University-to-Work Transition Readiness Questionnaire (Sadeghi et al., 2017) and analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) with SPSS-26
Results: Both flourishing training and transactional analysis significantly improved students’ career path optimism and transition readiness (p<0.05). There were significant differences in effectiveness between the two interventions, with flourishing training demonstrating greater impact on both outcomes
Conclusion: Flourishing training enhances students’ sense of competence, self-management, and self-awareness, promotes positive perception of abilities, and fosters optimism, thereby facilitating successful transition from university to work. Implementing such educational interventions is recommended to better prepare students for entering the labor market.