lolo
How do you know what career you want after college?
How do you know what career you want? #college #business #student
3 answers
Arshia Malek, M.Ed.
Arshia’s Answer
You will want to do a lot of research online into your chosen fields and look into the pathways that allow you to get there. Look up professional associations, job descriptions, and sometimes you will have to work your way backwards- meaning look at the job posting and see what it requires and then go to school to work on that goal. Taking career and personality assessments such as MBTI and the Strong Inventory are very useful. Your higher education institution should have subscriptions to get you those tests free of charge or at very minimal prices.
Here is a free website in the meantime where you can begin learning about yourself: https://www.truity.com/test/type-finder-personality-test-new
My last piece of advice is to never stop reflecting inwards and always learn more about yourself. This way you will choose a career that truly make you happy regardless of the salary or status it may hold.
Arshia recommends the following next steps:
Ken Simmons
Ken’s Answer
Hi Lolo!
You asked a very important question!
- talk to your school counselor/academic counselor about becoming involved in coop, intern, shadowing, and volunteer programs that will allow you to see the inside of the career area to learn what people to, how they got there, and how you feel about it. Here is a good site for locating internships: http://www.fastweb.com/
- talk to the head of alumni relations at your school to arrange to meet and visit graduates of your school who are working in your career area of interest, so that you can learn from them.
- talk to the reference librarian at your local library to learn about and attend meetings of professional organizations to which professionals in your are of interest belong so that you can mix and mingle and learn more
Selecting a career area is like buying a pair of shoes. They may look great, but you need to try them on and walk in them for a while to determine proper fit and comfort. The most frustrating times I spent when I was doing college recruiting were the times when a graduate, finally upon entering the job, found it was not what he/she had thought it would be. Networking and career exposure programs are very important to avoid that from happening.
Here are some tips on networking:
http://www.wikihow.com/Network
https://www.themuse.com/advice/nonawkward-ways-to-start-and-end-networking-conversations
Best of luck! Let me know if and how this has been helpful. Keep me informed. I would like to follow your progress.
Rebecca Tang
Rebecca’s Answer
Also, you can consult the counselor or school teacher to seek their advice. Also, there are career exhibitions you can visit.
When you shortlist a number of career that you would like pursue, you could then explore any part time or intern opportunities. This could help you to understand how it works in real time. Sometimes, there may be difference between the real time and your expectation. You can decide to change early if you find it does not suit you.
Hope this helps!