It is time to begin our “Career Aspiration” project! I realize many of you already have certain careers in mind and we have previously taken a career inventory online in preparation for the presentation from the Secretary of Labor, but let’s take a step back! Step one of the Career Aspiration project is to indeed take a career inventory test and analyze the results. I have located one for you to take today in order to answer the questions below. Be sure to screen shot your results and save to your HARD DRIVE!!!!
Career Inventories Test: http://www.learnmoreindiana.org/careers/exploring/Pages/IndepthCareerInterestInventory.aspx
Questions: (record in a word document)
1. How do you feel about the results of your career interest inventory? How do these results affect the choice of career?
2. What career did you choose? What aspects of the career especially appeal to you and WHY? (You should be researching your career to answer this question properly!)
3. What will be your approximate starting salary? How important was salary when you chose your career?
4. What personal and professional qualifications will you need for this career? Explain them.
5. What will be your basic day to day duties in this career? (Be sure to consider all aspects of the work.) Explain them.
6. What will be the general conditions of your work environment? (Where will you work? With whom will you work? What will your work schedule be like?) Explain. What benefits or drawbacks are there to these conditions?
7. What are two or three aspects of the career that you think will challenge you the most? Explain.
8. How will you meet these challenges?
9. What is the current job outlook for people starting out in this career? What will you do if there is a shortage of available jobs when you are ready to enter the workforce? What other careers or jobs will you be qualified for with your background and training?
10. How might this career affect your personal life outside of work, especially regarding the time you will have for family, social activities, recreation, and other pursuits?
11. How will having this career allow you to contribute to your community, directly or indirectly?
12. The next step is to interview someone in your career field. Brainstorm 10-15 questions you will ask this person.
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Contact the high school you are most likely to attend. Explain the project you are working on, and ask for information regarding the school’s academic courses and extracurricular activities, such as sports and clubs. review the materials carefully and choose one course or activity that you think might help prepare you, directly or indirectly, for your chosen career. Write a paragraph or more in which you explain how the course or activity you have chosen might help you. Just as there are many different careers, there are many different career paths. (Remember, career path includes the education and training a person receives on the way to achieving his or her desired career.) Some career paths involve several months of occupational or on the job training, higher education, and one or more internships. Follow the steps below to create a customized flow chart showing the stages of education or training for your chosen career.
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Step 1: Consult your parents, high school counselors, teachers, people working in your chosen career, and reliable Internet and library sources to learn about the education or training you will need to prepare for you career.
Step 2: Decide how many stages of education or training you will need. (For example, if your chosen career is visual art, the first stage of your education might be three years of art school; the second stage might be a year of study abroad; the third stage might be two years of graduate study.) Record each stage, in chronological order, across the top of a plain sheet of paper.
Step 3: If you have more than one stage written across the top of your paper, draw a vertical line or lines to separate the stages. When you finish this step, you should have one or more columns, each with a heading that names a stage of education you will need.
Step 4: For each stage on the flow chart, consult reliable sources to compile a list of places (schools, universities, training centers) where you might like to go to receive training. Skip a line below each column heading and transfer each list to the the appropriate column. Leave room for one final choice at the bottom of each column.
Step 5: From your list of choices in each column, choose the one school or institution you think will best suit your plans and interests for that particular stage of education. Leave a line space, and then write the name of your choice at the bottom of each column.
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Step 6: Refer to your customized career path and contact the appropriate person at each school and training center. Explain your project and ask him or her to mail you all the materials normally sent to someone interested in applying for admission. (Most schools will have websites where these materials can be viewed online also. However, you should still call and request materials by mail.)
Step 7: While customizing your career path flow chart, what was one major decision you made when choosing from among your education or training options? Explain the reasons in detail for your decision.
- What prerequisites (prior knowledge or experience) will you need in order to begin your education or training?
- What stages of your education or training are you most looking forward to? Explain.
- What additional activities might you get involved in to better prepare you for your career? Explain.
- How long do you think it will take you to complete your education or training? What type of certification or degree do you hope to receive at the end of your education or training?
- What additional, non-required activities or training might you pursue to better prepare you for your career?
Step 8: Create an expense chart for the first year of each stage in your education or training. Each chart should show all the expenses you would be likely to incur over the course of a year. Estimate a total for each category listed that would apply to your situation: rent, food, tuition, books, supplies, and transportation (this is not your opportunity to dream big but to dream realistically!!!). Show a total for each kind of expense, and then show a grand total for all expenses. Be sure to include taxes.
Step 9: Use your first year experience charts to calculate the total amount you will spend during the entire time of your education and training. To accomplish this, multiply each first year total by the number of years required for that stage of your education. Think about and research different funding options that could help finance your education. What options will be available to you? What do you think you would choose? Explain why?
Step 10: Referring to your first year expense charts, create a computer-generated pie graph showing all expenses (grouped by category of expense) that you will incur over the entire time of your education or training. Be sure to give your pie graph a title and provide a key.
Step 11: Refer to your packet…………………………………………………
