Plan Your Career Path - Simmons College of KY

EXPLORE YOUR CAREER PATH

Exploring Majors, Careers & Jobs

Exploring college majors and career fields of interest, to explore, choose and clarify, or change your college major, and to determine your career/job interests, as well as, graduate/professional school interests and plans, are key components of the career development process.

The 4 key steps in the Career Development Process encompass:

• Knowing Yourself

• Gathering Career Information

• Making the Career Decision

• Conducting the Job Search

You exploring majors, careers, internship/co-op jobs related to majors and careers, as well as, the matching professional job opportunities, is one of the most important steps you will take as you pursue your college education, and your plans to earn your college degree, and pursue graduate/professional school degrees, and professional careers after college graduation.

Career assessments, career coaching and career advising, as well as, excellent career resources, are among the valuable tools you can conveniently access at your college career center and among the best career tools you can begin to use, and will ideally use often, (freshman – senior) year, and as a graduate student and alum. The career center also offers job listings for local, regional and national job opportunities and/or global operations.

The majority of job listings today, are posted at both the major job listing websites, as well as, the companies/organizations job listing websites. Major job listing websites and the companies/organizations websites, are among the most valuable, career & job resources, you can begin to use to explore majors, career fields and jobs of interest to you & to apply for jobs.

To begin, to explore your interest in various majors and career fields, always review the college catalog of majors and degree programs which are offered at the college you attend or plan to attend. You will also want to maximize your use of your college career services office, which offers career coaching/career advising; career assessments information and job listings posted by employers to recruit college candidates for jobs including:

• Part-time Jobs

• Summer Jobs

• Temporary Jobs

• Internship Jobs

• Full-time Jobs

• Professional Jobs

Among the next key steps as you continue to explore your interests in majors and careers are, reading, reviewing and researching information on academic majors, career fields and the many career/job options for majors. There are several, excellent career resources you can use to explore majors, career fields of interest to you, and jobs including the following:

What Can I Do With This Major….. (Highlights the many career/job options by major)

Occupational Outlook Handbook and Onet on-line
Learn How To Become
Career One Stop
My Next Move and Myplan
Career Profiles
Big Future Careers
Get That Gig and Buzzfile

You can complement your career exploration research on majors and career fields of interest, by also exploring college majors, careers and jobs by:

Visiting the Career Services Office for Career Coaching, Taking Career Assessments,

(i.e. MBTI and Strong Interest Inventory) and Maximizing Your Use of Career Resources)

Conducting Informational Interviews w/faculty & professionals already in career fields
Job Shadowing – observing the professional work for the career fields/jobs of interest
Finding Internships and Co-op Jobs – jobs related to majors and careers of interest
Attending Career Events including Employer Career Panels, Career Days, etc.
Attending Career/Job Fairs and Job Expos (see job fair success tips
Optimizing Use of LinkedIn Professional Networking & Job Listings

Maximizing Use of Major Job Listing Websites to Find Jobs and Apply for Jobs including the Following and Many More…