PERSONS AND CAREERS
WHAT IS A CAREER?
A career is defined as the combination and sequence of
roles played by a person during the course of a lifetime.
There are two other concepts that we often associate with
the concept of career. One is a job. A job is a position an
individual holds doing specific duties.
Another term is occupation. An occupation is defined as
the similar work for which people have similar
responsibilities and for which they develop a common set
of skills and knowledge.
WHAT INFLUENCES YOUR CAREER CHOICE?
Skills and Abilities - Considering your skills and abilities
and how they may fit a particular occupation comes out of
one of the earliest career development fields, Trait-Factor
theories, and is still used today. These theories recommend
creating occupational profiles for specific jobs as well as
identifying individual differences, matching individuals to
occupations based on these differences. You can identify
activities you enjoy and those in which you have a level of
competency though a formal assessment.
WHAT INFLUENCES YOUR CAREER CHOICE?
Interest and Personality Type - Holland's Career
Typology is a widely used to connect personality types
and career fields. This theory establishes a classification
system that matches personality characteristics and
personal preferences to job characteristics. The Holland
Codes are six personality/career types that help describe
a wide range of occupations.
WHAT INFLUENCES YOUR CAREER CHOICE?
Interest and Personality Type
Life Roles - Being a worker is just one of your life roles, in
addition to others such as, student, parent, and child.
Super's Lifespan theory directly addresses the fact that we
each play multiple roles in our lives and that these roles
change over the course of our lives.
WHAT INFLUENCES YOUR CAREER CHOICE?
Interest and Personality Type
Previous Experiences - Krumboltz's Social Learning and
Planned Happenstance theories address factors related to
our experiences with others and in previous work situations.
Having positive experiences and role models working in
specific careers may influence the set of careers we
consider as options for ourselves.
WHAT INFLUENCES YOUR CAREER CHOICE?
Interest and Personality Type
Culture- Racial and ethnic background, as well as the
culture of an individual's regional area, local community,
and extended family, may impact career decisions. Our
culture often shapes our values and expectations as they
relate to many parts of our lives, including jobs and career.
WHAT INFLUENCES YOUR CAREER CHOICE?
Interest and Personality Type
Gender - Both men and women have experienced career-
related stereotypes. Gender is a factor included in
multiple career development theories and approaches
including, Social Learning and multicultural career
counseling. How we view ourselves as individuals may
influence both the opportunities and barriers we perceive
as we make career decisions.
WHAT INFLUENCES YOUR CAREER CHOICE?
Interest and Personality Type
Social and Economic Conditions - All of our career
choices take place within the context of society and the
economy. Several career theories, such as Social Cognitive
Career Theory and Social Learning, address this context in
addition to other factors. Events that take place in our lives
may affect the choices available to us and even dictate
our choices to a certain degree.
WHAT INFLUENCES YOUR CAREER CHOICE?
Interest and Personality Type
Childhood Fantasies - What do you want to be when you
grow-up? You may remember this question from your
childhood, and it may have helped shape how you thought
about careers then, as well as later in life.
CAREER PATHWAYS
JOURNEY TOWARD YOUR CHOSEN CAREER
Step 1: Engage in Self-Discovery and Awareness
Your goals in life, personal qualities, interests, skills, and
values when put together can be your compass in finding
your own worth.
JOURNEY TOWARD YOUR CHOSEN CAREER
Step 2: Explore Different Careers
▪Consider the people you admire for their work.
▪Ask some people whose job is in your initial career option.
▪Consult a career counselor.
▪Visit internet career sites and check out career ads.
▪Research libraries and inquire in career centers.
▪Attend career seminars.
JOURNEY TOWARD YOUR CHOSEN CAREER
Step 3: Understand Other Factors that Can Influence
Your Career Choices.
▪Family
▪Finances
JOURNEY TOWARD YOUR CHOSEN CAREER
Step 4: Identify and Weigh Your Career Options
After considering personal factors, consolidating pieces of
advice from your parents and significant people, studying
the pros and cons of your career choices, what are your
choices/options now?
JOURNEY TOWARD YOUR CHOSEN CAREER
Step 5: Check Out Different College/Universities/
Technical Schools for Courses
Start looking for the best college/university/technical
school that offers the courses you are interested to take.
