Full Careers

Career Counseling?

I would some assistance on what career/job I should go into. I went to two years of college, but am still undecided on my major. Has anyone sought a career counselor before? Does it help or are there any other ways to help me decide what career to go into?

Public Comments

1. Try going to the college's career counseling center. It should be free to you. What you get at the career centers that you pay for is much the same, they just might have a few more resources and some more experience. But their primary clientele is business people. At your college's career center, their primary clientele are students. That means they actually have more experience in dealing with people like you. So go there first and then try the other places.
2. just major and concentrate on something that you really like doing. As long as you enjoy something, you are bound to be successful in it and be happy.
3. Deciding your future is a very tough decision. I know, i'm basically there. However, I have made my decision and am well on my way. With that being said, I know a great way to look into careers. Go to the bureau of labor statistics. They provide a detailed description of every career, the average income, the best education to get for each specific career and related careers. It's a great site if you're looking for detailed information about careers that interest you. Best of luck!
4. A good way to figure out what you want to do is do an internship. Offer a company or hiring manager yourself for free and you shouldn't get turned down. Another way is to look up a list of alumni from you school who works in a field you're interested in. Talk to the alumni and maybe "shadow" them for a few days. Career counselors can help. They have psychology tests that help steer you towards certain fields. But I've found them to be really generalized. All the professions that showed up for me were really obvious: left-brained, analytical...A major place to start is to figure out if you're a left or right brained person and go from there. Do you like helping people? Are you super competitive? Do you like working in an office? Do you want a huge house and ten kids? Do you value driving a nice car over having a life outside of work? Another thing to keep in mind is that money shouldn't be a driving factor. I got a job paying a lot of money but realized how much I hated what I was doing. The money will not make up for a terrible boss or stressful work environment. Also don't forget your best friends and family. Ask them what they see you doing in ten years. What kind of profession do they see you doing. The sad thing is the job you get after graduation is a big indicator to what you're going to be doing forever. It is actually hard to change careers after a few years because hiring managers always what experience. Also, most people keep get jobs and promotions by 'knowing' the right people. Almost every career is shaped by your relationships with people and "networking". The best thing is to start working early doing internships and then landing a fairly certain job after graduation. Finally, have the most fun you possibly can in college (sex, drinking, traveling, drugs, dorm life, making new friends...). Most people who find jobs think that college experiences are the best times of their lives.