How to choose the career for you?

National Careers Week is here and so is Tiffany to tell you how to find the right career path for you.

​As you may (or may not) be aware of, it’s National Careers Week! National Careers Week is all about celebrating excellence in careers education and connecting young people with resources to help guide them forward on their professional journeys. This is such an important time of the year as it can help propel you towards your goals and future aspirations, and that’s why this blog post is focused on how you can begin to prepare yourself for a career you’re interested in.
 
It’s so important to take every opportunity you have to expose yourself to industries, companies, organizations and information as it can make a world of difference in your decision making process. It’s never too late to start but the earlier the better! 
 
Often, at times it can be difficult to figure out what career suits you best. We usually hear the same few pathways drilled over and over again. But what if you don’t want to be a doctor, lawyer or engineer? And more so, what if those careers aren’t right for you? 
 
This is why I think taking personality tests can be a great first step in thinking about a future career. A job should be something you enjoy doing - something you wake up excited and enthusiastic about, not something arduous. If it feels like a chore, chances are it isn’t right for you. Playing to your strengths and aptitudes is imperative, and not just academic. Websites like Unifrog are excellent resources for helping you align your personal traits with careers, academic pathways and more. You simply create an account, take a personality test and the website uses metrics from this to determine options that suit you based on your skills, talents and interests. 
 
Another great way to start thinking about careers you may be interested in, is to think to your time at school. Are there any subjects you enjoyed doing? Why? What did you like about them? Were there any you just couldn’t stand? I personally loved my maths lessons. I would always come into class excited to learn and would often do extra work outside of lessons. This was something that helped me realize I would enjoy a career that allowed me to think quantitatively. Alternatively, you might prefer English - perhaps journalism would be a good fit for you? Or you might have a passion for music, theatre, or art. Spending time getting to know yourself, what you are interested in and what drives you is imperative.
 
The next thing I’d recommend is checking out websites like Prospects. This is a huge directory containing vast amounts of information on higher education pathways, apprenticeships and careers. You could start by searching up a job you’re interested in and seeing what typical entry requirements are and a breakdown of the role. Or, you could type in your qualifications and have a look at some of the jobs you could be eligible for. Spending some time browsing through each week, will help you to gain awareness about potential career options for yourself, and will help you align yourself with your goals. 
 
Once you’ve got an idea about what you might like to do, it’s a good idea to get some work experience. This is a great way to put everything you’ve read into practice, and really immersive yourself in a role. It can be quite tricky to find work experience, so I’d recommend starting early! Young Professionals organize work experience opportunities and insight days across the country every month - it would be a good idea to check out their Instagram page and stay updated.  
 
Engaging with professionals in your industry of interest is so so important. Hearing about something, or indeed reading about something, simply isn’t enough. It could be through YouTube or social media - I find watching ‘day-in-my-life’ videos has been really helpful. You start to think to yourself – ‘is this a lifestyle I’d like to have?’ If you can, it would be great to get into contact with someone who has a similar job to what you’re exploring. Emailing them any questions you have and hearing their story and how they got to where they are today can be immensely helpful. 
 
If there’s one thing you take away from this it should be that proactivity is key! It’s a good idea to try and get your foot in the door sooner rather than later - not only will it help you get a leg up in the world of work, but it will probably result in you finding a career you love a lot earlier on. 
 

Author

​Tiffany Igharoro is a sixth form student. One of her favourite pastimes is writing as it helps her organise her thoughts creatively and dynamically. She has won awards and prizes for poetry, academic and scientific writing and short stories. Recently, she won a nationwide historical essay competition that opened her eyes to the importance of how things are told, and the impact ordinary people have on the world. She studied art GCSE and believes there is something incredible about finding links between drama, art and maths.