Career Planning
Career Planning & Choosing a College Major - Steps to Exploring Careers
Making decisions about your college major and career can be overwhelming. The first step in exploring careers and deciding on a major is to take time for self-exploration. Begin to ask yourself questions:
- What is most important to you?
- What careers are interesting to you?
- What do you want to major in?
How can LSC Career Services help you?
We suggest you try to break down the process into steps so that it won’t feel so “overwhelming.” Here are some steps to help with your career exploration process.
STEP 1: Assess Yourself
Assess your personality, interests and values before exploring different careers to learn which careers would be more satisfying to you. Career assessments are available through Career Services to help you identify your personality type and career interests.
Please schedule an appointment with an LSC career counselor after taking career assessments to help you with your career exploration process.
STEP 2: Self-discovery
Career exploration is a journey to self-discovery. Ask questions about yourself to help you discover your career interests. As you develop more self-awareness, you will begin to clarify and determine your career goals. Take time to discover who you are and what you want to be. Here are some questions to consider:
Information about yourself:
- What are you capable of doing? (Abilities, skills and achievements)
- What motivates and excites you? (Interests)
- What is important to you? (Values)
- Why you do the things you do? (Personality)
- What work environment do you want to work in? (Environmental Situation)
- What are your challenges? (Physical or emotional limitations)
Quintessential Careers has great steps, exercises and tools for career planning.
STEP 3: Explore Career Options
Take time to investigate the world of work. Make a list of different careers you are interested in and research them. You can learn more about careers by researching information online and talking with others. Here are some important things to consider in your research:
Information about the world of work.
- Occupational title (nurse, teacher, lawyer, etc.)
- Nature of the work
- Work environment
- Education, training and/or certification
- Salary
- Job market – current and future
- Related careers
Use our listing of career resources to help you research occupational information, salaries and employment projections.
