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Relating Your Major to the World of Work
Career Planning Process
Self-Exploration
Researching Careers and Academic Programs
Decision-making, Goal Setting and Action-steps
Experiential education
Effective job search strategies
Before You Begin Your Job Search: Self-Assessment
Skill preferences Transferable skills / Skill set Work and Personal Values Attitude Work / Life Balance Self-care strategies Interests Personality Strengths Aptitude
mY oFfiCe
#1#2#3#4#5#6#7
Pay attention to your interests, strengths, aptitudes, and preferences. Factor them into your education and
career decisions. They are what make you unique and valuable!
#8#9#10
• What are your interests?
• What are your natural talents?
• What classes have you enjoyed in school?
• What have you dreamed about doing?
• What are your hobbies or things you like to do for fun?
• What life experiences/activities have you had that you enjoyed?
• What are your favorite subjects to discuss?
Explore Who You Are…
Types of Majors
Broadly speaking there are three types of majors:
Applied Majors, e.g., Accounting, Computer Science, Graphic Design
Liberal Arts Majors, e.g., Communication Studies, Humanities and Religious Studies, Ethnic Studies
Either Applied or Liberal Arts, depending on what field and/or occupation is pursued
College Majors:
● Help you develop valuable transferable skills that employers seek, such as
● Communication
● Organization
● Leadership
● Time management
● Research
● Working with others
● Writing
● Technology
Choosing a Major First
What are my career options?•Careers that require any BA/BS degree•Careers that related directly or indirectly to your major, coursework, or concentration•Teaching: college or K-12•Other: Graduate school, add a certificate, Peace Corps, JusticeCorps, AmeriCorps, start you own business, vocational training
Use GE to Explore Career Options
Career CE 1A: Civil Engineering Seminar
RTPA 1: Orientation to Recreation, Parks and Tourism
Administration
NURS 10: Health Care Issues & Delivery Systems (GE)
ANTH 3: Introduction to Archaeology (GE)
CRJ 1: Introduction to Criminal Justice and Society (GE)
INTD 20: Design (GE)
SWRK 96: Introduction to Social Work
Activity #1: Brainstorm a List of Key Search Words
Brainstorm a list of 8-10 key search words or phrases related
to your interests. Your interests might include:
Topics related to your major
Class topics you enjoyed
Activities you enjoy doing or reading about
Fields or industries
Natural talents
Topics you like to explore
• Government: City, County, State, Federal
• Association Management
• Non-profit Organizations
• Distributors / Wholesalers
• Supply Chain Industry
• Non-governmental Organizations
• Small and Medium Private Companies
• Colleges and Universities
• Multinational Corporations
• Start-up Companies
• Entrepreneurs
Many Opportunities Exist in the World of Work
For All Majors
Remember the Power of Liberal Arts Majors
Humanities and Religious Studies English Psychology Communication Studies Ethnic Studies Women’s Studies Sociology Anthropology Asian Studies Liberal Studies
Sample of Liberal Arts Occupations
Account ExecutiveProgram ManagerSales RepresentativeBookstore ManagerBuyerExecutive AssistantFinancial Aid CounselorGovernment serviceHuman Resources AssistantInsurance AgentClaims RepresentativeUnderwriterLoan OfficerLobbyistManager Trainee
Marketing AssistantMass Media AssistantProject ManagerPublic Relations AssistantResearch AssistantSpecial Events CoordinatorSpeech WriterStockbrokerPress SecretaryOperations ManagerMedia SpecialistParalegal AssistantStaff AssistantReal Estate Broker
Occupations may require additional training and/or experience*
Don’t forget emerging occupations:
Astrobiology Behavioral Geneticist Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Business Ethics Carbon Management Consultant Computer Animation and Digital Imaging Data Mining Emergency Management Specialists Green / Environmental Career Fields Health Informatics Specialist/Manager Human-Computer Interaction Immigration Specialist International Logistics Manager Materials Science Personal Chef Sub-orbital Space Flight Wellness Coach
Think about Combining Your Choice of Major with Who You Are….
Relating Your Major to Interests
Identify your career and/or educational goals. The student who is very creative who majors in Interior Design.
The student who enjoys leading and becomes President of a student club majors in Business Administration with a concentration in General Management.
The student who loves hiking and the outdoors and majors in Recreation, Parks and Tourism Administration.
The student who loves to speak in front of groups who majors in Communication Studies.
Activity #2: Occupations or Fields of Interest
List or discuss
with someone 2-3
occupations or
fields you would like
to research or learn
more about
Many positions within the same industry…
Marketing
Human Resources
Nursing
Training and Development
Finance
Medical Records
Physicians
Accounting
Sales
Administrators
Customer ServiceInsurance
Distributers
Lobbyists
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
English careers
allintitle:”marketing careers”
allintitle:”careers for engineering majors”
sociology inurl:careers
allintext:”computer science careers”
#1: Identifying Career Options for Your Major: Use Google and type in the following search strings…
Creating Career Options for Your Major……Strategies
Anthropology association OR society OR council
“graphic design” association
California “civil Engineering” association OR society
Professional associations will often have career information on their website
#2: Locate Professional Associations or Societies related to your major, career field of interest, class or concentration: Use Google and type the following:
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
Go to: www.csus.edu/soal to search for student clubs and organizations on campus.
Student clubs will often have mentoring programs, guest professionals from the field, or field trips to companies/industries.
#3: See if there are student clubs or organizations that relate to your field or area of interest.
#4: Informational Interviews/Job Shadowing: Meeting and/or observing professionals in the field is a great way to learn about career options related to your major.
Professional associations
Faculty contacts and referrals
Linked In and other social networking sites
Career Fairs and other Career Center events
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
Activity #3: Informational Interviews
What person or
profession would
you like to speak to
about what they do
in their job or field?
#5: Attend Employer lectures and Panel events: Academic departments, student clubs and the Career Center sponsor employer career panels and lectures.
Career Center website: www.csus.edu/careercenter
Student clubs and organizations
Professional meetings
Conferences and trade shows
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
#6: Meet with Faculty Advisors in your academic department of interest: Faculty and academic departments are excellent sources of career and major information.
Career Center website: http://www.csus.edu/academics/AtoZ%20academic%20departments.html
Department website
Faculty with knowledge and/or experience in the field
Alumni
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
#7: Job Listing Websites: Utilize job listing websites to search for your major and see what occupations appear.
www.indeed.com
www.simplyhired.com
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
#8: YouTube: Use YouTube to search for videos on your career field of interest. Search on the following:
Biochemistry Careers
A day in the life of a technical writer
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
#9: Conferences and Trade Shows: Search conferences and/or trade shows near where you live. Often volunteering at the conference will result in a reduced registration fee. Use Google to search for the following:
Writing conference 2013
Interior design trade show OR conference 2013
Search old conference programs to learn about a field: Sociology conference 2012
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
#10: Social Networking Sites: Gather career and major information through social and professional networking sites:
www.linkedIn.com
www.facebook.com
www.twitter.com
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
#11: Experiential Education: Meet professionals in the field, as well as obtain internships, part-time positions, volunteer opportunities, and/or job shadowing/informational interviews, in order to learn career options related to your major.
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
Career Connection Volunteermatch.com Visit the Career Center, Lassen
Hall 1013, Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm
Volunteersac.org handsonsacto.org Career Center Listserv Handout
#12: Visit the Academic Advising and Career Center Lassen Hall 1013
Information on relating your major to the world of work
Assistance with networking and meeting professionals in your field(s) of interest
Assistance with identifying career options or how you can use your major in the world of work
Action-steps toward achieving your education and career goals
Identifying career options Strategies for overcoming obstacles or
barriers
Creating Career Options for Your Major…Strategies
Activity #4: Questions You Would Like To Ask
List 3 questions
you would like to
ask about an
occupation or field
of interest
The 21st Century Worker Needs to…
• Multiple skill sets / be versatile• Tech savvy• Flexible, adaptable, and open to change• A global mindset• Multilingual• Ability to work in diverse teams• Willingness to take initiative• Good writing skills• Ability to get along with others; positive
attitude• Communication Skills• Willing to learn
Russell Hancock, Silicon Valley Joint Venture, 2011
Resources
California Career Zone: www.cacareerzone.org Sacramento State Majors:
http://www.csus.edu/webpages/collegedepts.stm EUREKA, California Career Information System:
www.eureka.org Site ID Code = SDJOP5F
Occupational Outlook Handbook: www.bls.gov/ooh/ Career Center Website: www.csus.edu/careercenter Career Planning Process with links:
www.csus.edu/careercenter/students/career_plan_process/in
dex.stm O*NET Online: http://online.onetcenter.org