The key to a successful career search effort is to balance what you can and want to do versus what employers expect in specific career fields. The only way you can reconcile this dilemma is by first conducting an extensive self-assessment, and then researching careers that match your personal profile.
(Need help gathering career information? Use the Career Exploration Summary (See the Career Exploration Summary) located in the Toolkit.)
Using self-assessment and career discovery books
Career research and decision-making books fall into four general categories: 1) those that help you assess your personal arsenal of skills, abilities, knowledges, values, and interests, and which suggest careers that might suit you; 2) those that describe careers in a specific work environment, such as the film industry or local government; 3) those that describe careers suited to people with particular skills or education, such as history or science; and 4) those targeted to people with practical experience who want to change careers. Each type has value for career seekers at different stages of the decision-making process.
Using career planning and counseling agencies
Another way to develop a useful self-profile is to work with a career planning specialist. Virtually every two- or four-year college in the United States has a career counselor, as well as self-assessment and career research resources.
Career counselors do just that — they counsel and advise, based on what they know about you (or what you’ve told them). Good career counselors can’t and won’t make a career decision for you, but they can direct you to and assist you in accessing special resources you may not be familiar with. Generally, you can meet with a career adviser employed by your community college or your local bureau of employment services free of charge. Other career counselors are employed by placement agencies or operate their own counseling firm, and usually charge a fee for their services.
If you’re a student, take advantage of all the services your career planning office offers. If you’re not a student, your community college career counselors may be willing to administer one or more self-assessment tools, which are designed to help you identify careers that match your strengths, interests, and values.
Private career counselors perform services similar to school-based counselors, and often their training and education will be similar. There are at least 165,000 private counselors in the United States, and many of them charge between $70 to $120 per session. Using a private career counselor can be costly but effective, particularly if you need highly specialized assistance or if you’re truly stymied in your career research. Take time to verify the credentials of any counselor you choose. The National Board of Certified Counselors (910-547-0607) will provide a list of accredited counselors in your area.
Using computerized career-matching programs
Today, most college career offices also offer computerized resources designed to help you assess your career potential and evaluate employment data through structured interaction with a custom program.
Computerized career research has advantages and drawbacks. The computer program will ask you questions about your interests, abilities, values, and experiences; based on your replies, it will suggest career fields that might suit you.
This approach can shorten the research path and provide you with an immediate list of options to explore. However, since these programs usually provide a straight path between your interests and potential careers, they eliminate those accidental, thought-provoking discoveries that occur as you browse through a book full of career descriptions. As a result, computerized career matching is more valuable once you’ve narrowed your range to just a few career fields.
Use books, magazines, journals, federal and state employment publications, and computerized resources for the best mix of targeted information and intriguing discoveries. As you conduct your self-assessment, keep in mind the basic qualities and competencies that employers value, and see how closely your profile matches today’s workplace expectations.
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What’s the difference?
Career planning, counseling, or advising – People or agencies performing these functions will help you assess your skills, interests and abilities, and guide your research into careers that match your unique personal qualities.
Job placement, outplacement, head hunters, search firms – People or agencies performing these functions help you search for a job in the particular career field you’ve identified.
Basic workplace know-how
Resources: Able to identify, organize, plan, and allocate resources such as:
-Time
-Money
-Material and facilities
-Human resources
Interpersonal skills: Able to work and communicate with others, which includes the capacity to:
-Participate as member of a team
-Teach others new skills
-Serve clients/customers
-Exercise leadership
-Negotiate
-Work with diversity
Information: Acquires and uses information, which includes the ability to:
-Acquire and evaluate information
-Organize and maintain information
-Interpret and communicate information
-Use computers to process information
Systems: Understands complex inter-relationships, which includes the ability to:
-Understand systems
-Monitor and correct performance
-Improve or design systems
Technology: Works with a variety of technologies, which includes the ability to:
-Select technology
-Apply technology to tasks
-Maintain and troubleshoot equipment
(Adapted from US Department of Labor SCANS Report, 1991)
RESEARCHING CAREERS IN THE INFORMATION AGE
Even though books remain one of the largest career reference categories, today’s technological world provides new ways of researching careers. Well-recognized publications such as the Occupational Outlook Handbook, which summarize jobs by different categories and provide brief job descriptions, are already available online.
Electronic and written forms of career information are also readily available. Public and college libraries and your local bookstore all contain impressive quantities of career information. Career services offices in high schools, colleges and universities also contain amazing research resources. More and more libraries and career service offices also provide access to electronic databases, which allow you to tap into potentially unlimited career information resources.
Researching careers online
The greatest advantage of online career research is that you are able to enter a key word combination and conduct a search for articles related to your field of interest. For example, you could conduct an online search for careers in advertising and identify hundreds of articles and books that contain information on these careers. A second advantage of online research is the ability to access these sources relatively easily and download or print articles from magazines and journals. There are a number of excellent resources available on electronic job searching, including the Guide to Internet Job Searching, by Margaret Riley.
In some cases, you’ll be able to access career information more rapidly when the publication is distributed electronically. In other cases, the hard copy of the magazine will be at the library or in your mailbox before the electronic version is available.
(Need help gathering career information? Use the Career Exploration Summary located in the Toolkit.)
HANDS-ON JOB DISCOVERY
Once you’ve identified a general career field or a specific occupation, it’s important to learn as much as you can about the practical realities of working in that arena.
There are a number of ways you can accomplish this research and discovery phase. You can find full- or part-time employment, or work as a volunteer in that field or industry. You can arrange to complete part of your educational requirements in a specific work environment, through internships, co-operative work programs or practicums. You can interview, observe or shadow practitioners.
Gaining paid or volunteer work experience
Working in your targeted career field is the best way to test how well you match the real requirements. If you’re still in the research and discovery phase, you may not qualify for the actual position you desire. However, often you can land a full- or part-time position working in a less specialized position within your targeted work environment.
Volunteer experiences deliver similar value, but they often have an additional advantage. If you’re trying to reposition yourself for a new career path, or you’re trying to test out a career field for which you’re not yet fully qualified, many organizations use more flexible criteria for unpaid assistance, and often they’ll provide basic training in vital areas.
Volunteer opportunities are boundless. Each year, millions of hours are contributed by unpaid workers in the United States. To find out more about opportunities in your community, contact a specific organization directly or get in touch with your local city government, the Red Cross or the United Way.
Combining work and education
One of the best times to gain direct work experience is while you’re still in college. There are many ways to do this, but some degree programs actually offer the opportunity to earn college credit while you gain hands-on experience through internships, co-operative education programs or practicums. This combination of work and education is the ideal way to spot matches or mismatches between your education, abilities and preferences, and real work expectations.
Participating in co-operative education programs
Co-operative education programs typically emphasize an extended work experience with one or more employers. Many colleges require co-op experience for graduation from specific programs, particularly in technical fields such as engineering and computer science. Students are placed in an ongoing position with an employer, in a field related to their long-term career goals. The employer, faculty adviser and student work together to determine the type of on-the-job training and experience most valuable to the employer and the student.
Co-op students may study for one quarter, then work full-time the next quarter, and so on throughout their college career. Other co-op experiences are structured to allow students to spend roughly half their time in class and the other half on the job. The goal is to balance work and education, and to provide co-op participants with a realistic view of their career in action. Many co-op positions are paid, and many students use co-op earnings to pay for all or part of their college education.
Participating in internships and practicums
Internships and practicums are usually approached differently than a co-op experience. A company or organization will identify a specific project they want completed, and will work with the faculty of a local college to identify students capable of successfully tackling all or part of the project. The students will complete the project tasks under the guidance of their faculty advisers and under the supervision of the organization.
Internships and practicums typically require a time commitment, whether it’s one quarter or several, but usually the scope of the task is limited to ensure a clear beginning and ending point.
Often, students receive credit toward their degree program in lieu of compensation; in some cases, however, they receive both. The organization wins, because an important project has been completed. The students win because they’ve gained hands-on, practical, guided experience in the real world. And the school wins because their students have acquired a more fully developed education/work experience and are therefore more employable upon graduation.
Internships and practicums are becoming more common as both educators and employers seek ways to close the sometimes enormous gap between education and work. Internships and practicums are typically available at four-year colleges, but some of the most progressive two-year colleges are revamping their technical programs to incorporate internships and practicums into their already strong co-op tradition.
INTERVIEWING, OBSERVING AND SHADOWING
If you want to explore careers unrelated to your work or volunteer experience, or you’re working in the right field but you want to learn more about future career realities, develop a personal campaign of informational interviews, job observation and shadowing experiences. You can choose to do just one type of exploration, such as informational interviews, or you can pursue some combination of the three.
Conducting informational interviews
Informational interviews are pre-scheduled interviews that you conduct with one or more persons employed in the field or fields you have targeted. The purpose of the informational interview is to learn the “straight scoop” from an actual practitioner. It’s wise, therefore, to complete a substantial portion of your career research legwork before you begin scheduling informational interviews.
Informational interviews can be conducted over the phone or in person, but usually a face-to-face meeting is more valuable. Why? Because a face-to-face session provides the opportunity to form a genuine, solid connection with someone in your potential field and see the environment where your career is performed. Plus, you might have the opportunity to meet other people in the organization and gain a plant or facility tour.
You should never just walk into a company and ask to “speak with someone in Engineering.” It’s imperative that you approach the informational interview in a mature, professional manner, which means calling a pre-identified person, introducing yourself, explaining why you’re calling, and arranging a time to meet.
Informational interviews are valuable experiences if you plan well. Typically, your contact person will rely on you to ask the questions and lead the discussion. Before the interview, outline the specific questions you want to ask and write them down. The person you speak with will not mind if you take notes during the interview; it shows that you are prepared and professional. Don’t tape record informational interviews without specifically asking the contact person if it’s okay.
Be sure to ask any questions about this career that have been puzzling you. While each of you will have different specific concerns, there are some core facts and questions you should consider including in your interview. First, you want to verify facts related to the person you’re interviewing, such as name, job title, company name, phone number and address.
Cover the traditional “who, what, when, where, why and how,” but don’t forget to ask how much. Focus on the obvious topic areas, such as education, personal qualities, job experience, career path, pay ranges and working conditions.
(For a complete list of questions to ask during an informational interview, please refer to the Informational Interview Guidelines, located in the Toolkit.)
After about an hour, thank your contact person for their time and the valuable information they’ve shared, stand up, and shake their hand. If you have a current resume, this is a good time to give it to them, then exit rapidly but with grace. In a day or two, send a brief thank you note (a handwritten note is fine).
Generally, it’s a good idea to talk to two or three people in your target career field. An accountant in a not-for-profit organization or in city government may not perform the same duties as an accountant in a corporation. Speaking with people in different organizations will help you piece together a more realistic picture of the profession.
Participating in job observations and shadowing experiences
Job observations and shadowing experiences are different from informational interviews in critical ways. Both involve a larger time commitment — from you and from your contact person — and both provide a direct encounter with the job as it’s performed on a daily basis. A job observation experience involves watching someone in your target career field perform a typical series of tasks. For example, you may observe a lawyer present a case in court or ride along with police officers or firefighters to see them in action. The observation session can last a couple of hours or an entire work day. Traditionally, you’re there solely to observe and ask questions (when it’s not disruptive).
A shadowing experience, on the other hand, may extend over a period of time — from several days to a week or more. When you shadow someone in a particular job, you follow them throughout every event of their day. You have the chance to see how they plan their day in the morning and how they lead a problem-solving meeting in the afternoon. You may be invited to assist with routine paperwork or listen to non-confidential phone conversations.
In both situations, take extensive notes and be as unobtrusive as possible, unless you’re specifically invited to contribute your thoughts and talents. At the end of your time together, request a debrief session, so you can ask about intriguing points or perplexing situations.
Observation and shadowing experiences are invaluable. They allow you to see real people performing real work in a field that interests you. Once you’ve had this type of exposure, you’re much more likely to know whether or not you’ve chosen a career that genuinely suits you.
ADDITIONAL CAREER RESEARCH RESOURCES
RESEARCHING OCCUPATIONAL DESCRIPTIONS AND TRENDS
The federal government has produced the Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT) for more than 50 years. Originally designed to help employers standardize requirements among similar jobs, the DOT is a valuable resource for career seekers. It lists over 20,000 jobs and provides a brief description for each. This description includes a nine-digit occupational code, the occupational title, the industry where the job occurs, alternate occupational titles, and a summary of tasks performed in this job.
The DOT is organized by job grouping, with similar jobs clustered together. Reading through the tasks associated with the jobs you’re interested in will help you determine which jobs you will want to explore in more depth.
This is where the Occupational Outlook Handbook is useful. It describes more than 250 job categories in detail. Like the DOT, occupation descriptions are clustered into similar categories.
Each listing includes this standard information:
-The occupational title
-DOT codes
-Nature of work
-Working conditions
-Employment
-Training, other qualifications, and advancement
-Job outlook
-Earnings
-Related occupations
Sources of additional information
Using career description books
Books that describe occupational opportunities in a specific field or area of personal passion are worth reading, since most of us have no concept of the varied, fascinating array of jobs available in any given field. For example, the next time you view a film, study the list of credits at the end. What’s a gaffer? A key grip? A scumbler? A face caster? What do they do? To find out, examine one of the many industry-specific career books.
Books that describe careers suited to people with specific skills or education are helpful if you have or intend to pursue a degree in a particular field. These books will help you recognize the many ways your unique cluster of skills, knowledge, and abilities can be applied in the work world.
Many companies and governmental agencies maintain internal libraries, so if you’re employed, don’t forget to check your organization’s library for information about related careers. On the other hand, mainstream business magazines, professional journals and industry publications consistently produce articles summarizing new career opportunities, growth fields and changing employment trends. Professional and trade associations maintain career information related to their specialty; many will fax or mail career information and employment criteria if you request it.
Using college career services offices
Community college career offices are among the best — and often least acknowledged — resources available. While most four-year colleges focus on providing assistance to their own graduating seniors and alumni, community colleges often provide a wide range of services to both students and the public.
Typically, the career services office will have copies of the DOT and the Occupational Outlook Handbook along with many specialized books on skill and interest assessment, and careers suited to specific degree fields. In addition, you’ll also find data on local employers, plus regional and state employment trends.
Current job descriptions and recruitment notices can give you a good feel for what employers are seeking in applicants. Magazines on careers and job search strategies will help guide you through the career search process. Plus, many career services offices will share the names and phone numbers of alumni willing to answer questions about their chosen profession or arrange a job shadowing or observation experience.
Using public employment agencies
Virtually every state operates some form of public employment services bureau. Employment bureaus can typically provide data on local employers and regional employment trends, such as which jobs are increasing and which are on the decline. These agencies, however, may be able to provide more productive assistance when you’ve finished your research and are actively involved in a job hunt.
