CAREER EXPLORATION

The Career Exploration/Development Process can be used to help make important decisions about choosing a major and deciding on a career path. This process will help you learn information about yourself, various career options, how to market yourself, and gain valuable experience. Exploring all of these components will allow you to make a more informed decision about your future.

Career Services offers help to students and alumni during all stages of this process:

Part 1: KNOW YOURSELF

Before you can decide on a major or career path, you need to assess these areas about yourself to help find the right “fit” both academically and professionally, including:

• Personality

• Interests

• Skills

• Values

Contact Career Services regarding assessments for the

• MBTI: The MBTI helps people identify their personality type which can help one identify job families and occupations that are a good fit, ultimately assisting them in becoming more satisfied and successful in their career.
  
  

• STRONG: Is a tool that can be used to help you make satisfying decisions about your education and career. It is designed to compare your interests with other professionals in various occupations.

Part 2: GATHER INFORMATION

Doing research about majors and career options is an important part of this process. The more information you have, the more confident you can be making a decision. 

Majors:

• Course catalog –Review the classes offered for each major of interest.

• What can I do with this major?

• Ask questions – professors, students currently enrolled in the program

Careers:

• O*NET

• BLS

• Career Stories

• Informational Interviewing

• Alumni Mentor Program

Part 3: DEVELOP SKILLS AND TOOLS

The goal of this portion of the process is to help you learn how to market yourself in today’s competitive job climate.  

You will need to create your VIP documents:

• Resume, Cover Letter and References

• Portfolio of work samples

And develop skills in the following areas:

• Interviewing

• Job Searching

• Networking

• Professionalism

Part 4: GET EXPERIENCE

An essential part of Career Exploration is getting hands-on experience in the fields that interest you. Experience can come in any form (internship, jobs, volunteer work, campus activity, etc.) and will help you learn more about yourself, clarify your interests, and help develop professional skills.       

Throughout each experience, it is important to reflect on topics such as: 

• Did you like this experience?

• If not, what didn’t you like about it?
• What have you learned from this experience?
• What will you do differently next time?

• How has this experience clarified your career goals?

ASSESS

Pay attention to how you feel in your experience. Reflect on your accomplishments or failures. Remember that any step forward is an accomplishment. If you discover that the path you have chosen does not quite fit, you may need to change your goals.The career development process continues throughout your career as you continually reassess how things are going, making changes and adjustments as situations require.

Remember that career counselors are here to help you through this process.