Career planning is the process by which people choose and pursue the knowledge and skills necessary to do the work they will do in their adult lives.
Career planning is a lifelong process. It begins when you first decide the activities you like and dislike and when you discover the things you find difficult to do. Often the process repeats itself throughout your lifetime.
Step One: Self Assessment
Step Two: Explore Careers
Step Three: Decide on a Plan
Step Four: Follow the Plan
Step Five: Evaluate
Step One: Self Assessment
The first thing in the career planning process begins with learning about yourself. Interest inventories, aptitude tests, and personality indicators are some of the tools you may use to assess yourself. Ask yourself some of the following questions:
What do I like to do?
What things do I do best?
What type of work environment do I prefer?
Do I want to work with people, machines, or data?
What things are important to me on a job?
Step Two: Explore Careers
Learning about careers is the next step in the career planning process. Information may be obtained from written sources such as books, periodicals, computer programs, or the Internet; from people such as your parents, employers, career counselors, teachers, or neighbors; and from activities such as career days, job shadowing, volunteer work, internships, or part-time employment.
Step Three: Decide on a Plan
It is never too early to begin planning your future. A plan helps you to move in the right direction, reminds you of your goals, and allows you to thoroughly investigate your choices along the way.
A good plan for a middle school student must include:
Career decision making and career exploration courses
Assessment battery of interests and aptitudes with results interpreted
A four year high school plan
A career portfolio
Career Day activities
Volunteer work in career areas you are considering
A good high school plan must include:
Meeting high school graduation requirements
Meeting admission requirements for four year university/college and/or community/technical college, military, or apprenticeship programs
Updating your four year high school plan and career portfolio
Taking PSAT/SAT Accuplacer tests
Working summer and part-time employment in career areas you are considering
Participating in internships, service learning, and other valuable opportunities
Step Four: Follow the Plan
As you move through your middle and high school years, refer periodically to your four year high school plan. Use a Career Portfolio to keep you focused on your goals.
Develop skills in completing applications for employment and admissions to post-secondary institutions, write your resume, and learn interviews and communication skills. Take courses related to your career choices. Participate in extra-curricular activities. Search for schools and programs that provide you with the knowledge and skills to pursue the career of your choice.
Step Five: Evaluate
Career planning is a process; it is not an outcome. Your career plan is to be used in guiding you in the selection and pursuit of a career. It is important to periodically stop and assess the direction in which you are moving. Some questions you might ask yourself are:
Have I developed new interests or skills that might change my plan?
Have my priorities changed?
Have I set unrealistic goals for myself?
Have I over- or underestimated myself?
Have I acquired new information which might change my goals?
