|
Exploring Majors and Careers
YOUR
CAREER JOURNEY...begins here!
Are you headed along the right path to your dream
career? Like any adventure, your career journey is certain to be much more
exciting and satisfying if you have a destination in mind. When you are focused
and know your strengths and interests, you can target the industries,
organizations and positions that best match your talents and personality. Your
immediate goal should be to make the best career choices possible at this point
in your life. Keep in mind, it’s only natural that your dreams and aspirations
may change over time. Changing interests and personal circumstances, combined
with the rapidly evolving nature of the world of work, will require you to make
numerous career-related decisions throughout your lifetime.
Discover the Real You
Self-assessment requires a hard look at yourself
and an honest evaluation of your strengths and weaknesses. It is one of the most
challenging pieces of the career puzzle, but also one of the most important.
Explore the Options
Familiarity with different career fields, and
knowing the responsibilities and skills required for different jobs, will help
you determine options which are compatible with your interests, values and
skills.
-
Resource
Guide for Liberal Arts Majors
-
Career
Exploration Links- choose a general career field and you will find
numerous links to help you explore your educational and career
options.
- Occupational
Outlook Handbook- General Occupational Information. Great resource
for researching career options.
- O*NET
Occupational Information
-
CityTownInfo.com contains a
Career Directory that offers an extensive set of employment data
organized by both profession and city location. You can explore career
options by: Finding cities offering the strongest opportunities for a
selected profession; Finding professions in a city paying the best relative
to national trends and that are most popular; Learning about a city's
demographics, economics, culture, schools, housing, climate, and more;
Discovering new relocation possibilities through CityTownInfo's innovative
PlaceMatch feature.
- Career Overview - Offers a wealth
of useful and reliable career and job information provided by the US Bureau of
Labor Statistics and other primary resources
- Mentor Network Program-Speak
to a UNCA alumnus about their career field
-
Vault Online Career Library
Vault is generously
sponsored by UNC Asheville parents of current students and alumni!
Comprehensive career exploration resource. Including employer
profiles, top employers, company research area, company discussion areas,
career advice, industry overviews, occupation profiles and more! (Current
students click on the Vault link above and then choose Get Your Password Now;
Alumni can email career@unca.edu for the password)
- Use
Leadership Involvement
on-campus as a way to explore career options and develop your leadership
networks.
-
College Foundation of North Carolina Career Center
-
Margaret Riley Guide
-
America's Career Info Net
-
Richard Bolles:
What Color is Your Parachute?
-
JobWeb
Career Library
Know the Job Market
The more you know about industry and occupational
trends, the better you can assess what skills and qualifications employers are
seeking, evaluate your odds of entry and success, and learn how to market
yourself.
A
FOUR YEAR CAREER PLAN
Attend career-related
workshops regardless of your year in school.
Check out
the Spring 2006 Calendar of Events.
Freshman Year: A Time of
Self - Discovery
“Who am I?” “What’s my
niche?” “What do I do best?” “What major should I choose?”
As you begin your college education,
it’s perfectly OK not to know what you want to do later in life. Take time now
to learn as much as you can about your skills, personality, lifestyle
preferences, interests and values. This information will help you choose a major
and begin to explore the exciting world of career possibilities awaiting you!
Sophomore Year: Expand Your Career
Horizons
“I know my major, but what can I do with
it?” “What career options do I have with my major?” “What’s out
there?” “What can I do with a liberal arts degree?”
Continue to explore and gather information
about career fields. The best resources are people who work in the career
fields that interest you. Summer jobs, internships and volunteer activities
will provide first-hand insights.
- Continue to expand your knowledge of career
options. Make a list of the ones which sound interesting.
- Learn more about the job market by browsing
through the Occupational Outlook Handbook. Research other materials at the
Career Center Library and on the Internet.
- Conduct informational interviews with people
who work in career fields of interest to you. Spend a day on the job with
a professional.
- Pursue internships, part-time and summer
jobs and volunteer activities to gain work experience and to learn more
about your work preferences.
- Attend career fairs and other career-related
programs to increase your knowledge of the full range of jobs that people
perform.
- Begin to develop your resume. Review
the Career Center
Resume Basics handout.
Junior Year: Narrow Down the Options
“I’m looking at several career options --
which is the best for me?” “What do I need to do to prepare for this
career?” “How have my interests changed since my freshman year, and how
will this influence my present actions?
Internships and summer employment will help you
acquire new skills, learn more about careers and develop a network of
contacts. Aim for outstanding academic performance, especially in your major.
Now’s the time to go back and once again ask and answer the questions “Who
am I?” and “What do I want?”
- Narrow down your choices and discuss your
career ideas with a career counselor. Are you satisfied with your early
decisions?
- Start preparing for graduate school if your
career choice requires an advanced degree. Check admission requirements,
testing dates and timelines for applications.
- Research companies and work environments.
Pinpoint organizations with job titles that use your skills and for which
you believe you are a good match.
- Begin to establish professional contacts to
assist with your job search campaign.
- Continue to gain career-related work and
leadership experience.
Senior Year: Make a Career Decision
“What types of jobs are available?” “How
do I find the job that’s right for me?” “Should I go to graduate school
now or later?”
Plan ahead and set reasonable career goals for
yourself. By now you are facing a transition from college to graduate school
or a career position. Graduate school applications, letters of reference and
test scores must be submitted early. Career Center Online job listings at
www.uncacareercenterpostings.com and career fairs
will help you identify prospective employers and career positions.
- Discover the ABC’s of a successful job
search by meeting with a career counselor at the Career Center.
- Prepare for your first job.
Finalize your professional resume. Talk with UNCA
alumni about their first year on the job and some of the challenges you
can expect.
- Use your contacts to identify job
opportunities and get referrals.
- Explore all opportunities. Attend career
fairs and employer presentations. Check
www.uncacareercenterpostings.com job listings.
- Confirm your remaining degree requirements
at the beginning of the year so there are no “surprises” when it comes
time to graduate.
HELPFUL
CAREER EXPLORATION WEBSITES
FOCUS
A computerized career guidance system that generates lists of occupations
relating to your skills, interests, and values.
Career
Development eManual 
An online career self-assessment and decision-making program. Several
interesting tests. Since this was developed by the University of Waterloo, some
resources are Canadian. Regardless, you will find it very useful.
Career Planit
Rocket yourself to a new great career with this Web site from the National
Association of Colleges and Employers. You'll find the "Resource
Mining" section most useful for planning your career.
Career Zone
Select Assess Yourself to get a list of careers based on your interests.
Career
Exploration Links Presents detailed description for a broad
range of occupations to help you decide if they are right for you and make the
appropriate educational choices. Extremely informative.
Occupational
Outlook Handbook A searchable database of information from the
U. S. Department of Labor on over 200 occupations, discussing the nature of the
work, training required, average salaries, and future outlook. An ideal starting
point if you already have some career possibilities in mind.
What Can I Do
with a Major In...? series of handouts created by UNCA Career Center.
What
Can You Do With a Math Degree? All about careers in math and
statistics in business, industry, operations research, science, computer science
or consulting.
Why Study
History? The American Historical Association explains the
valuable and versatile career preparation provided by majoring in history (or
any liberal arts major for that matter).
Careers
in Psychology Psychology isn't just for psychologists! This site
lists specific skills taught by employers and shows how you can develop them
with a major in psychology or other social science.
If you need individual
assistance to help you make your career connections, please contact the Career
Center (251-6515) to schedule an appointment
with a Career Counselor.
|
