Deciding on a career path related to your field of study
There are a variety of career paths leading from all university courses. With some, the choices are clear cut, with others, the options are more varied so more research is required.
- your general career direction, and
- the sorts of jobs which could get you started
Career direction
This refers to what you would like to be doing and where you would like to be doing it - in the foreseeable future. The foreseeable future might be 2 years, 5, 10 or more. The important thing is to think beyond your first job.
Some examples:
‘I’m aiming to work as a brand manager in marketing strategy in the retail sector, preferably for a national organisation’.
‘I’m hoping to work in environmental sustainability, preferably in a ‘bigger picture’ role such as policy or planning’.
Note that career direction has two aspects:
- an occupation or work role - what you actually want to do in your work?
- an industry, sector or setting – where do you want to do this work? For whom?
In the first example, the role is marketing strategy, and the industry is retail. In the second, the role is policy work, and the industry is environmental sustainability.
The role or occupation should reflect your strengths (‘what sorts of tasks do I tend to do well and enjoy doing?’), and the industry should reflect your interests (‘what do I want to be part, what do I want to contribute to?’).
It is not always this neat of course, but it’s a helpful way to think about careers.
If you are uncertain about what you want to do
It is not unusual not to know what you want to do. It can be challenging because there are so many choices.
However, it is usually very motivating to have some career ‘vision’, and this in turn is very appealing to employers.
You may not think you are able or ready to decide on a career direction, yet students are often surprised by how much can be resolved by doing some research and reflection.
Remember that choosing a career direction does not lock you in; it doesn’t prevent you changing your mind if you come across an interesting opportunity which doesn’t fit with your plans!
Consider the following:
- Do some self-assessment. In particular, clarify your interests and strengths and see what ideas they suggest.
- Refer to careers information for your field to read about career possibilities and what others have done. Always consider what would work for you - are you motivated to work in this field? Does the work role itself play to your strengths?
- If you are having having trouble deciding, check out some strategies which might help.
- Make a Careers Consultation appointment.
What job (s) will get you started?
New Gen grads need to consider whether graduate study is required or useful, or whether immediate employment is a good way to go. Refer to Next Steps for New Gen grads.
For grads going into employment, there are usually a range of jobs which could get you started in the direction you want to head.
Having a career direction gives you a basis for identifying suitable jobs and targeting your job search.
Using the examples above:
‘I’m aiming to work in marketing strategy in the retail sector, preferably for a national organisation………….to get started, I’m hoping to gain a Graduate Program position with a large company or a marketing assistant position anywhere in retail’
‘I’m hoping to work in environmental sustainability, preferably in ‘bigger picture’ role such as policy or planning……………. but first I’d like to get some experience with environmental policy in action so I’m thinking about environmental officer positions in local government, or project work with an NGO.’
To find out about career-entry jobs in your field
- Talk to those in the field – academic staff, employers, representatives of Professional Associations (Informational Interviews can be helpful)
- Refer to careers information for your field to read about career possibilities and what other have done
- Review advertised jobs
- Make a Careers Consultation appointment