Career choices and future prospects
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Career choices and future prospects

“You are now at a crossroads. This is your opportunity to make the most important decision... Who are you now? Who have you decided you really are now? … Who have you decided to become? Make this decision consciously. Make it carefully. Make it powerfully”.... Anthony Robbins

Post by on Wednesday, November 10, 2021

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The transition from high school to college is unquestionably one of the most exciting times in the life of a student; a time demanding big changes, careful planning, and importantly difficult decisions. Though many high school seniors believe they know what studies they want to pursue, surveys indicate that a college student will change major an average of three times. Today’s youth is flooded with numerous career choices. Correct and timely career counselling is the need of the hour. The fact that different skills require different schooling was understood by the British, that is why they administered some students in last year of primary education to what was called the 11-plus examination (derived from the age group for the test.), designed to test students in such areas as verbal reasoning, Mathematics, non-verbal reasoning, English etc to help them decide the career option best suited to them. This article succinctly describes some guidelines that can be helpful in the process of making career decisions:

Know yourself.

Take the time to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses, to identify the subjects and activities you enjoy and the ones you dislike, to determine your goals and expectations. Think about the kind of work you would like to perform, the working conditions and earning level you seek, and the implications on your overall lifestyle. Discuss these issues, as well as your plans and concerns, with your parents, teachers, counsellors and friends. Find out which career paths would most likely draw on your strengths, be of your liking, and meet your expectations. Unfortunately, the culture of counselling is not popular in schools and colleges in Kashmir but the good news is there are several websites where you can take a free interactive test, based on psychological models. Also many websites can give you information about your personality "type" and how well suited it is to particular career choice. The controversy, especially among scholars and career counsellors, arises over whether these free online assessment tests are reliable and accurate. Nevertheless, such tests can be good heuristics to better understand ones own self.

 

 

 

 

Expert advice

You probably have an idea what career or occupation you want to research. Who better to tell you what to expect from a profession than the people in it? Career counsellors aren’t the only ones you can go to for advice about studying and training. You can also talk through your ideas and concerns with a friend or family member, or maybe your teacher or another adult you trust. The possible questions that one might ask are: what training or education is required for this type of work? What personal qualities or abilities are important to being successful in this job? What are the ideal qualifications for someone in this job? What part of this job do you find most satisfying and most challenging? Is there a demand for people in this occupation? With the information you have about my education, skills, and experience, what other fields or jobs would you suggest I research further before I make a final decision?

 

Decision making

Often well intentioned parents try to choose a career and a college for their son or daughter without much regard for the student’s preferences and skills. This approach can put significant strain on family relationships and can be for the student a source of frustration for years to come. People who enjoy using their strengths in what they do usually have more successful and fulfilling careers. The only person who knows what’s right for you is you and it can be really hard when you’re under pressure from your parents or other people in your life to make a particular decision. This is not to undermine the expert advice but to emphasise passion for a particular field. If this happens you could ask them to come with you to speak to a career counsellor. Furthermore, the following steps may help arriving at a particular decision:

  • Define the decision to be made.
  • Gather the necessary information.
  • List all possible choices.
  • Consider possible outcomes for each choice.
  • Check out how you feel about each of the choices.
  • Relate the choices to your values and priorities.
  • From the possible alternatives, choose one.
  • Commit yourself to your chosen decision and disregard the others. Concentrate your energies in one direction.
  • Take steps to turn your decision into positive action.
  • Evaluate your progress from time to time. Change your decision if necessary. 

Last but not the least, after having spent sufficient time and effort to arrive at a particular decision, trust in God and expect the best of Him!

(Author is Educator and Career Consultant)

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