Career Exploration and Planning
Career planning is a lifelong process of making important decisions about your professional goals and how to achieve them. It requires thinking carefully about your interests, abilities, and values, and choosing opportunities that are likely to be satisfying to you. The SMCM Career Development Center, or "CDC," offers a wide range of traditional and Internet-based services, tools, and resources to support your career development.
SMCM Career Planning Timeline
This "checklist" will help you assess your current position in the career planning process and will provide you with ideas for activities to include in your own unique action plan.
FOCUS V2
SMCM holds a license for a comprehensive career planning program called FOCUS V2. It includes self-assessment tools and occupational information that can help you make educational and career-related decisions and plans. Click above to get started, then make an appointment for interpretation of your results.
MyNextMove.org
This great new user-friendly DOL site allows you to explore careers based on keywords, interests, or industry. Provides information about future job growth and green jobs.
Guide to Exploring Majors and Careers
University of Missouri has developed a useful handout that can guide you through the process of making important career-related decisions.
What Can I Do with a Major in _____ ?
Clicking on a major will bring you to a list of related career titles, each of which links to a summary page as well as a list of relevant professional associations. A similar resource can be found here.
Professional Links by Major
This enormously helpful UMBC tool directs you to professional associations and organizations related to majors of interest. Follow the links to learn about occupations, graduate study, internships, jobs, and more!
Federal Jobs by Major
There are government jobs available for all majors and all settings. To assist students in selecting a career field, the Government has created a list of common Federal jobs for various majors. Note that the top of the list includes several administrative jobs suitable for students with a degree in any area.
ExploreHealthCareers.org
Everything you need to know about health careers, including traditional occupations such as nursing as well as those you may not be aware of, such as art therapy and biostatistics.
Article: What Can I Do with my Liberal Arts Degree?
This article can open your eyes to the many options open to liberal arts grads. Many employers care more about candidates' skills and experience than their major. And the skills employers want most--such as communication and critical thinking--are those for which liberal arts students are known. This article also provides tips on how to focus your career goals, gain relevant skills, and market yourself to find the job you want.
US News "Best Careers"
This annual review provides a brief but thoughtful overview of some "in demand" occupations that are associated with high job satisfaction. Also includes info on the most "overrated" occupations. Worth a look!
Roadtrip Nation
Witness groups of college students touring the country in an RV, interviewing everyone from hip hop stars to members of congress in order to learn about their career paths...and perhaps figure out what they want to do with their own lives.
US Dept. of Labor Occupational Exploration Resources
The DOL and Bureau of Labor Statistics publish several print and Internet resources that are sure to prove valuable in your career exploration.
O*Net Online: The DOL's primary resource includes comprehensive information on the nature and outlook of hundreds of occupations
Occupational Outlook Handbook: Details, resources, and employment projections for hundreds of occupations
CareerOneStop Videos: Hundreds of quick, informative videos on a wide range of jobs
Occupational Outlook Quarterly: This great resource includes current articles of enormous value to those exploring careers as well as those looking for employment; check out the most recent issue and browse the archive with keywords
We also have many print resources and tools available in the CDC to assist you with your exploration and planning!
