1. Career Exploration Career Exploration Getting Started

2. Assess Yourself Assessing yourself is the first step of the career exploration process. To find a career that’s right for you, it’s important to know a lot about yourself. Know everything about yourself already? It can be surprising to discover what you may have overlooked or taken for granted. Assessing your past and present will help you make the right decisions about your future

3. With the Interest Inventory, did you learn anything about yourself? As you have gotten older, have you discovered new things about yourself? Do your interests change?

4. It’s possible to quickly choose a career. To find a career that’s right for you, it’s helpful to slow down, give it some thought, and take the time to get it right Career exploration is not the same as job searching. Job searching is short term and career exploration is long term Why would you quickly choose a career? Money, Fame Job is immediate, Career is sustaining

5. Identify Accomplishments Make a list of all your important career events. Group them by categories like tasks, responsibilities, awards, and accomplishments Start in chronological order from middle school through the point in your life that you are at now List middle school activities High school College courses, activities

6. Assess Yourself: Take Assessments Assessments are tools to help you explore yourself. They can be based on your skills, interests, values, or other traits. These traits are then matched to a broad list of careers. You have taken an interest inventory Only one of many What are other types of assessments?

7. Time management In an era when everyone feels crunched for time, it’s the people who plan who make the most of the time they have. Whether you have 10 minutes or 10 years, knowing how you want to spend your time-and your life- will help you make the best career decisions

8. Directions Make a list of two short term, intermediate, and long term goals Short term-1month Intermediate-6 months to a year Long term-5 years Imagine you are graduating from college this spring. Make a list of 5 accomplishments you had for each stage of your life-Middle School, High School, and College.