Growing up I always wanted to be a palaeontologist.   I don’t remember what first sparked my interest, but it was very clear to me that dinosaurs were the most interesting thing on the planet.  All of my school projects were devoted to dinosaurs and their skeletal remains, especially the Archaeopteryx—a feathered dinosaur generally referred to as the oldest known bird.  And of course, my most prized possession was a faux tooth from a Tyrannosaurus Rex from the Royal Tyrrell Museum. 

However, somewhere along the line my passion for this profession dwindled, and I was suddenly at a loss for what I wanted to be when I grew up.  This never seemed to be a problem until I was faced with the important decision of choosing a specialty in university.  It was quite a stressful time, because I was faced with deadlines and difficult questions that I had never really thought about.  In the end, I wish I had taken more time to research potential career options before plunging down the path to a B.A. without much thought or direction.   

That being said, your career choice is going to have a major impact on your life so it’s vital that you take some time to discover what career path you’d like to take.  It’s also important to reach for the stars.  If you really want to be a lawyer, don’t let the admission requirements, lengthy education, and LSAT discourage you.  Make it happen.  If you don’t try you’ll likely regret the fact that you never gave it a shot. 

However, remember to be smart about your decision.  If you’re afraid of heights it’s probably not a good idea to pursue flight training.  Or, if you simply can’t commit the time, energy, and money into the required training for a specific career, you should probably look at another option.  In any event, if you are unsure about your career path and you’re wondering what you should do, this guide will hopefully be able to offer some assistance.

Exercise: Brainstorming

Step 1: Before you start researching careers online or in the library it’s a good idea to make a list of every single type of career that you find interesting.  This list may be short and non-specific, but it’s important to help you recognize which professions or fields you find appealing. 

Step 2: Your family and friends are always a great resource so ask them what sort of work they think you’d enjoy.  Some of their ideas may not be ideal, but they may help jog your memory to think of careers you hadn’t previously considered.

Step 3: Broaden your search.  Use the internet and library to look at jobs of interest.

• WorkBC is a fantastic resource to explore careers.  Our career profiles index has over 500 careers that you can search through.  Each profile shows the average salary, occupation size, job stability, duties, working conditions, workforce projections, employment outlook, related occupations, and links to education programs, as well as actual job openings.
• If you’re a visual learner visit CareerTrek to explore 53 videos highlighting a variety of jobs throughout the province.  You can search for careers by salary, field of work, or education level.  Each job also details which skills are important assets to have for the job in question.  CareerTrek is expanding next year so check back to see new videos.
• Education Planner is another fantastic resource.  Although they don’t list actual careers they do have a training program search that you can peruse by subject.  Each subject you search for will list available training programs which may help spark some career ideas.
• The library is a great place to research careers.  Most people only search online, and while the internet can be a great resource, it’s not the only one available.  There are many books out there that offer personality tests that can help match you to specific careers.  There are also lots of books that will outline specific careers in detail so you can make a more informed decision.
• Google is your friend!  Figure you’re a scientific genius? Try typing “What can I do with a science degree” in Google to find websites that list applicable careers.  There are lots out there.

Step 5: Look at job boards.  Sometimes we know we want to work with computers, but we don’t know what types of computer jobs are out there.  By visiting a job board, like WorkBC, you’ll be able to get really specific career information--including a list of duties and qualifications.  These qualifications can be a great way of determining what sort of training program you apply for. 

Step 6: Narrow down your list!  By now you’ll probably have a list that’s over a page in length.  Ideally, you’ll want to narrow this list down to 5 or 6 options.  Highlight your favourites and speak with your family and friends.  See if they can offer any advice that will help reduce your list.  Maybe they know someone who is a dentist (for example) and can put you in touch with them to help make your decision.  Ultimately, it’s important that you keep a few options open, and it’s even more important that you make the final decision yourself.

Step 7: Research your top 5 careers extensively.  See which ones make the most money, have the best opportunity for advancement, offer the best job satisfaction, are the most flexible, have the best prospects, offer a good balance between work and play, etc...  A lawyer may make a lot of money, but they also work a lot of hours, and they are usually involved in stressful cases, which begs the question, is this still something you want to do?  Don’t rush this part of the process, because once you commit to something it’s tough to go back.

Step 8: Narrow down your list to 3 and start researching the education requirements of each career.  Maybe the training is only offered in Europe or maybe the program is too long for you.  Whatever you discover, use this information to help make your final decision. 

Step 9:  Apply for training for your top 2 career choices.  If you get into both training programs, you’ll obviously have to choose one, but if you miss out on one opportunity it’s important to have a backup!  Just remember to apply for admission well in advance, because it can take up to a year to get into some programs, and you may find out that you’re missing some of the entry requirements. 

Step 10:  Write to us and share your success!  We’re always interested in hearing from people looking for work so if you found a job through WorkBC we’d really like to know how it all worked out!  We may even feature your story on the webpage! 

Got any tips to add?  Do you have an alternative method of career research that you found helpful?  Please share your thoughts below?