My occupation requires me to counsel people in their vocational paths and help them achieve their occupational goals. Typically when I see people, they have already worked for several years and need to be retrained or returned to a different career that involves a less physical type of activity. Almost everyone wants to attend a training program to learn something different.
Training programs of all types are available for people; on-line, night classes, two-year, four-year and correspondence courses to name a few. Narrowing down these option is something that I struggle with as I work with my clients, and I am considered a professional. To do this for yourself without professional help, it is important to gain knowledge about the potential jobs and educational paths.
I believe there needs to be a system in place that allows students in high school (or those looking at going back to school for re-training), to adequately research careers and the costs involved. According to any news source, college loan debt is at a disastrous level.
Three initial steps should be considered when doing research on careers, and in any order:
A) Job Availability in Career Path, Following Completion of Training Program
In order to get an adequate feel for how employable your degree path will make you, it is important to look at the current economic conditions of an industry and future growth potential. This information is provided for free by the government, through the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
For instance, here's a job listing for Electrician and all of the information that it includes:
B) Career Research to Determine Fit for Interests, Salary Requirements, Abilities and Job Setting
Many people are attracted to jobs based on salary potential, but they often find that their interests do not always fall in line with those occupations. Some examples that I have heard from many people include Salesman and Attorney. In these occupations, stress and long hours can outweigh the potential at high earnings.
1) Informational Interviews
To find out more about a job, the best thing to do is talk to somebody who currently works in that field. One method I have done with Veterans to help with their choice of careers, is to have them call businesses and ask to talk to somebody in their field of choice. It may require some patience to get somebody on the phone, but people usually enjoy talking about their job . Firsthand knowledge is invaluable and you will likely learn more about the profession then you can find on the internet. You can gain inside knowledge for hiring practices, preferred colleges, and career outlook. Also creating networking connections that can be revisited once you graduate.
Here's a link that helps explain the process: http://www.quintcareers.com/informational_interviewing.html
2) Site Visits
A little tougher then just talking to somebody on the telephone, but you can get into a workplace and witness a job first-hand. To do this, contact businesses directly that offer occupations like the one you are hoping to find out about and just ask if you can tour the facility. Often businesses cater to students in ways they would not with other people, so tell the company that you are a student and you wish to see how a business operates.
3) Internships and Internet Research
If you are serious about a career, try an unpaid internship with a company. These are often offered during the summer around school breaks, and can lead to future employment if everything works out. Alternatively, if none of these options seem possible for you, check out websites that detail occupational options. One website offered by the Federal Government is Career InfoNet and links up with various other labor market data sources to provide a range of detailed information.
Other websites for Career Research:
http://careerkids.com/careers/ This site is youth-oriented and offers videos for some occupations
http://www.insidecareerinfo.com/ This site offers first-hand reviews of 285 different jobs
http://www.thecareerproject.org/ This site offers first-hand Q&A's with people in occupations
C) Discover Training Costs and Requirements
The variance in costs of training programs is extremely large, ranging from apprenticeships to four year private colleges. The cost for college seems to be ever-increasing, as does the resulting student loan debt. It would be assumed that salaries for college graduates are increasing at a similar rate, but that is not always the case. The college you attend does not determine tuition based on potential salary with your degree. It is increasingly important to make your college decisions with all of these factors in mind.
Here's a chart from CollegeBoard.org and their 2011 Trend in College Pricing:
Without a doubt, the four year college experience is going to cost a lot of money. There is cheaper options in terms of four year colleges, and that should be a factor when deciding when and where to earn your education.
There's a ton more to discuss on each of these topics and they will probably be broken down further in future posts. Please add any questions or suggestions in the comment section below.
-Jesse
The On-Line Job Search
With technology making the job search process easier, actually getting a job has become much more difficult. It seems that with every job opening you can find on-line through monster.com, indeed.com, careerbuilder.com, or other websites, that same job is posted on all of the rest as well. There is even job websites that are available to help you search out jobs within those websites that end up reposting the same job opening as well.
Submitting an application or resume to those job openings can feel like an exercise in futility. Given that much exposure, there is likely to be many thousand of resumes and applications to sort through and yours may not even get looked at with human eyes. Many of the websites now ask for scannable resumes, which are basically resumes without any of your fancy formatting that may have helped your resume standout. The scannable resumes reduces your resume to a search for buzzwords that the HR computer believes strongly fits that job opening or the search criteria the company hopes to find.
Searching for Job Openings Directly Through the Company
One way around this method of job search is to seek out companies individually. Since almost every company has a website these days, you may be able to find job openings directly from the source. Look at company websites and find links for Careers, or Employment. Sometimes these links will be hidden in the About Us link, or Corporate Information.
Search for Job Placement Companies and Recruiters
After many of my friends graduated from college and graduate school, they often ran into trouble turning that degree into a job within their field of choice. It seems many majors at college do not lead to obvious employment options, and most employers want some level of experience for job openings. Job Placement agencies are often the answer. These agencies often have relationships with a variety of employers and usually large employers with a wide range of job openings. Many times these companies will work to improve your resume if it does not meet their standards.
This is an easy way to bypass the time spent searching and applying for jobs on-line. Placement agencies set-up interview with companies that they deem to be fits with your skills and background, and allow for feedback to help steer your search in the right direction. Every major metropolitan area has plenty of these companies that can be found with a simple google search of "placement agency" or "(job of choice) recruiter".
Using Social Networking to Find Employment
With the wide range of Social Networking that is available these days, there is no limit to how you can use or abuse your free time. Most companies realize this and have their own presence on facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and others. The most important part of using this method is to create your on-line presence in a manner that will be attractive to future employers. Take down pictures of yourself that are not professional flattering, remove questionable posts and group affiliations, and remove any political or controversial posts.
Once your profile is clean and ready to be viewed by employers, seek out companies that offer the jobs you want and start networking. Some companies offer services through LinkedIn that will post appropriate job openings directly to your profile. Many companies use Twitter to post jobs and there are many job search aggregate websites that pour job openings on Twitter. Often times companies will have their HR department or Specialist on Twitter to interact with people.
Another method of using Social Networking is to combine it with traditional methods, including Job Fairs. Every time an HR person from a company gives you his or her business card, find out if they are on Twitter, or LinkedIn and connect with them. Keep everything professional, but let them know it was nice to meet them and inquire about job openings as you would at a Job Fair.
Links to Websites Offering Advice and Strategies
BankRate.com has a list of testimonials that different people offered as strategies they used to find jobs outside of the normal methods. They mainly consist of people bypassing the normal methods of submitting resumes and cover letters, by trying to find a more personal method.
JobHuntersBible.com is a website that offers continually updated information in the basic areas of job search. This website is a supplement to the book What Color is Your Parachute? that is annually updated and re-released.
Monster.com has a Job Search Strategy checklist that is much aligned with what I have found works well. This list coincides what I have written above and offers an overall narrative that discuss post-graduation options, and career goals.
Next: Creating a Resume that appears professional and clearly demonstrates your skills and attributes.
-If there are any questions regarding the information posted, write it the comments and I'll answer them.
