College students are often confused or uninformed about choosing a major and the career planning process. They often have no idea where to start, where to find the resources available to help them, or how to proceed once a decision is made. Advisors can help students begin looking at majors and careers and can help students understand the relationship between educational choices and career choices. 

Many students enter college believing that they must choose a major that will guarantee certain employment opportunities after graduation. Students get confused between choosing a major and choosing a career. They see these two areas as inevitably linked together and they frequently decide what job they want and then they come to you to ask what that major would be. They get very frustrated if they are interested in a specific area of study but can't see a clear relationship between their studies and a career. This is often the case when their interests are in subjects such as English, history, sociology, and philosophy. 

The students may also hear their parents and other students say, "You'll never get a job with that major." These students fail to recognize that a college education is not job training, but it is an opportunity to become a well rounded individual with a repertoire of skills and knowledge that can take them in a number of different directions. 

It is important for the student to understand that a good career decision is based on knowing a lot about oneself and about the world of work. Advisors can start the process of career exploration with the student by asking probing questions aimed at forcing the students to take a good look at who they are. The advisor can then suggest actions the student can take to follow up on the discussion. 

Advisors can help students gain awareness of the options available to them. It is helpful to direct students to the various resources on campus that provide assistance with career exploration. Students can be helped to recognize the importance of being actively engaged in the process early in their college careers. 

It is important for the advisor to help the student understand that the career decision they make now is most likely just the first of many career decisions. Changing careers and occupations during one's lifetime is a natural occurrence, and students need to develop skills in adjusting to inevitable changes. Just as education is a life-long process, so also is career growth and change. 

Your questions will help you and the student focus on possible majors. This will not be a one-time session. You may meet with the student several times over one or two years, or even longer, to help the student clarify goals. Once the student has chosen a major, the student may still need your suggestions about steps to take to help insure that he/she will find employment. 

Some students wait until they are seniors and are about to graduate before they even think about a job. They seem to think that a degree entitles them to a job in their field of choice. That's far from the truth. Finding the right job is a process that can begin as early as the freshman year. Waiting until the month before graduation and then sending resumes is not the way to approach job seeking. You can suggest strategies the student can begin as early as the first year. 

The student can meet major department faculty members and ask questions. 

• What internship opportunities are available?
• What are some of the jobs your prior graduates have found?
• Where can I learn more about career opportunities with this degree?
• What specific courses should I take to increase my employability?
• Who should I talk with to learn more about my specific area of interest?

Advise students to take courses that will help them in personal skills. Employers look for people who can write well and speak well. Encourage students to take a critical look at who they are and, if needed, take classes which will enhance and improve these areas. 

The Peer Career Center (Plemmons Student Union) and the Career Development Center (Thomas Hall) are valuable campus resources that should be part of the students major and career planning process throughout their years at Appalachian. 

  

The Academic Advising Center has current check sheets for each major and information about careers.  Advisors can use these resources to help students with major and career exploration.  It is important to help students keep in mind the following tips when helping them to make a decision:
 

• College isn't designed as four years of specific job training.  It is a time for students ot gain a breadth of knowledge through a variety of learning experiences.

• Employers want to hire people who have performed well in college and who can talk knowledgeably and enthusiastically about a variety of subjects. 

• Employers look for marketable skills when hiring new personnel.  They want employees who can communicate well and have analytical and technical skills combined with an appreciation for diverse experiences and cultures.  The University requirements are designed to increase skills in theses areas.

• Choosing a major only because it seems directed toward plentiful and/or high paying jobs doesn't guarantee that the student will get one of these jobs.  The major should reflect the student's interests.

• A student's major should incorporate courses and activities that the student enjoys and is successful in.  In addition to making better grades in such a major, the student will enjoy the process of making those grades.

• Most people change jobs and careers throughout life.  Many people have 7-10 different jobs and just as many different careers.

Self Exploration 

• What subjects did you enjoy in high school? In what subjects were your best grades?

• Are your strengths in the math/science areas or in the social sciences? Both?

• What extra-curricular activities did you do in high school? Which were the most enjoyable? What did you learn about yourself from them?

• What personal qualities do you see as your strengths? Limitations?

• In what kind of work environment do you picture yourself?

• If you have a spare time, what do you do?

• Why are you in college?

• What does a college degree mean to you?

• What academic areas are you considering? What do you like about these areas?

• What do you want to learn more about?

• What occupations are you considering? What is it about these occupations that attracts you?

• How do your abilities and skills fit the tasks needed to succeed in those areas?

• Will those occupations provide the rewards and satisfactions you want? Why?

• What are the differences between the majors/occupations you are considering? The similarities?

• Who has influenced your ideas about these alternatives?

Decision Making 

• Do you ever have trouble making decisions? Little ones? Important ones?

• How do you generally go about making a decision? Describe the process.

• What specific strategies do you use?

• Do you make decisions by yourself or do you need other people's opinions first?

• Are you feeling anxious about deciding about a major? Pressured?

• Have you set a deadline for making your choice of a major?

The world of work changes each year. Careers are now available in fields that didn't even exist a decade ago. Encourage students to equip themselves with transferable skills that will help them secure a wide variety of positions.

The questions are adapted from Virginia Gordon's Academic Adviser's Pre-Service Training Manual. 
 
 

Students who are undecided about their major plans can be referred to the Peer Career Center (Student Union - 2nd floor) where they will be assisted in taking interest inventories and learning how to use career planning materials.  This is an excellent place for students to start the major exploration process.  Trained Peer Counselors will assist the student through a four step process of self assessment, information, decision making, and career planning.  Resources include self directed searches, computer career guidance programs, assessment inventories, and information about majors and careers.  Students do not need an appointment and may go as often as needed.
 
 

After a major has been chosen and the student is seeking information about internships and career opportunities the student will want to go to the Career Development Center in Thomas Hall where information and assistance about starting a job search, resume writing, interviewing and career planning can be obtained.  The center offers information on employment including trends, salaries, recruiting, training needed, and application information.  There is a career library as well as information about specific employers in North Carolina and elsewhere.  Individual career counseling is available. 
 
 

What Color is Your Parachute: Job Hunting Online http://www.washingtonpost.com/parachute 

The Career Interest Game (an interactive internet activity based on Holland’s theory) http://www.missouri.edu/~cppcwww/holland.html 

Exploring Occupations http://www.umanitoba.ca/counselling/careers.html 

Career Development Manual 
http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infocecs/CRC/manual_home.html 

Catapult Career Choices http://www.jobweb.org/catapult/choice.htm 

JobWeb http://www.jobweb.org 

Academic & Career Counseling Site http://volvo.gslis.utexas.edu:80/~acadres/acr.html 

Jobs by Major http://www.nyit.edu/stdaff/stdaff_02.html 

Career Exploration Links http://www.uhs.berkeley.edu/CareerLibrary/links/careerme.htm 

Transferable Skills Survey http://www.d.umn.edu:80/student/loon/car/self/career_transfer_survey.html 

Choosing & Using Your Major gopher://minerva.acc.Virginia.EDU:70/00/pubs/career/handouts/1/6 

What Can I Do With a Major In . . . http://www.utexas.edu/student/careercenter/major/index.html