How to Determine Your Career Path in College and Post Graduation
One of the trickiest parts of many individuals’ lives is what direction to go career-wise. To determine your career path in college you’ll need to reflect on what your goals are for one, but there may be other factors you may want to check out before deciding which direction is right for you. It’s easy to simply decide on a major, but it isn’t as easy to actually follow through. For instance, understanding who you are and what you value most will help you along your journey throughout college and afterward. Whether you value things like time, money, prolonged career goals, impact in the world, or any other area, it is important to reflect and understand what truly inspires you. Below are a few other areas to consider when determining a career path that I still use today post-graduation.
What Is a Career Path?
A career path is a terminology used to identify the way a worker will progress through their professional journey. A career path understanding can help determine job opportunities, salaries, and upward mobility aspects in their chosen field. Individuals are able to use the information gathered to determine whether their selected career has opportunities to align with their wants or needs in the future and how to achieve their goals based on the chosen career.
Career Path Example
Digital Marketing Director
If you wanted to become a digital marketing director you would first need to accomplish a few steps to help you gain the required knowledge the position would require. The direction of the career path will vary depending on your education and/or your own experiences outside of education. While education plays a role in learning about digital marketing, a digital marketing director could start as an analyst, a specialist, a small agency owner, or a freelancer. Below is a typical career path for a post-graduate.
Digital Marketing Analyst > Senior Digital Marketing Analyst > Strategist > Digital Marketing Manager > Senior Digital Marketing Manager > Director
This can hold true for most business jobs as well. Everything will depend on the career you choose.
How to Choose Your Career Path
Identify What You Enjoy Doing
Sometimes it is easier to begin by asking yourself whether you can find a career path in a field that you love. For instance, if you like graphic design, conducting experiments, or learning about trends online, the overall ability to find a job in the field is there. While the opportunities may seem limited, there are ways to blend the things you currently enjoy into more fulfilling career opportunities.
Ask Yourself Why a Certain Path Intrigues You
Sometimes there are external reasons why you may be drawn to a certain career path. So many tv shows show us different jobs that we may have never considered. For instance, Scrubs shows nurses, Big Bang Theory shows scientists, etc.
Another factor may be the people directly in your life. Parental figures, friends, and other adults may be influences in your life and play a role in how you choose to pursue different careers.
Think About the Timeframe You Want to Graduate
Timeframes come into place when determining a career path at times due to various reasons. Depending on the types of degrees offered at your institution, there may be some fields that require less time investment than others. for a bachelor’s degree, it can take 4 years or longer to attain. For those searching for shorter timeframes, it is important to consider what field you enter. A business degree will likely be quicker and/or easier than an engineering degree.
Talk to People Who Work in the Industry
Another method to try would be to try and contact those who are currently working in industries that may be interesting or on your shortlist. It is easy to see things from the outside, but talking to someone through LinkedIn or after a shift may help you narrow down your search. Another option would be to ask an AI tool such as Chat GPT for advice on how to start working in the industry. Any option you take is beneficial so long as you keep learning
Contact an Advisor at Your College or University
If you are currently an undergraduate at a university or college, talking to an academic advisor can help you identify a career path. There are plenty of resources that a career center may have that can be leveraged. If you are in a university you can even try and contact different colleges to learn more about their programs.
Conclusion
In reality, there are numerous different paths that you can take when choosing a career path. At the end of the day, just because you choose one path doesn’t mean you have to stick to it. You can start in sales and move to digital marketing, or you can work in nursing and learn how to code. The opportunities are there and no one is tied to one field.
