I love career counseling and exploration appointments with students, they are probably my favorite. I just really enjoy the career exploration and self-assessment process. Mostly, I like being the encourager, the developer, and the dream catcher. I’ve always been a dreamer and I highly encourage students to do the same. I think the best thing a student can do in college is chase a passion or interest and see where it takes them. The reality is that only about 20% of people are working in the field in which they earned their undergraduate degree so your education is not necessarily preparing you for a specific career (maybe for your first job) but does prepare you for life. I think students should study what interests them and make sure to be actively involved in student organizations, volunteerism, internships, student leadership, and other experiential activities while they are in college. Combining your interests and passions with experience will lead most people down the path to success.
So, how does one know what they are interested in? Well, obviously, they already know what they are interested in but some students need some help in the process. Self- assessment and evaluation is not easy for everyone. I have several types of formal and informal assessment I do with students who are on the path of self-discovery. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of asking the right kinds of questions about someone’s interests but other times in might involve more formal assessing. One of my favorite interest assessments is the Self-Directed Search by John Holland. I love it because it is simple, easy to use and makes a lot of sense. The basic premise is “person-environment” fit. In other words, match a person’s interests with the same work environment and that person should feel happy and successful there. Holland’s theory suggests that there are 6 interest categories and 6 corresponding work environments. So, if you are an enterprising person then you should look for enterprising work environments. Here is a description of the environments:
The top three environments one scores the highest in are considered when analyzing the results. For example, I am SAE(social, artistic, enterprising). I look at the combination of these three letters to get a better picture of my interests and skills and the types of work environments I will be most drawn to. This is also helpful when considering majors. I didn’t have to take an assessment to know I didn’t want to take any college classes in math or science but it does explain the majors I was interested in all the various careers and occupations I have considered over the years. It’s no surprise I am a in a helping (social) profession and regularly give presentations (enterprising) but I also write a blog (artistic) about careers and personal development (social and enterprising) and fashion (artistic). It’s pretty cool how it all comes together.
So, not all of these students will actually need to change their major. Some may need to work on their time management and study skills and some may need to research career options. But many of these students will probably be happier in another major. Taking an assessment like the SDS may help students understand themselves better and give them some evidence when they go to talk with their parents about why they need to change their major. If your parent really wants a doctor in the family, maybe your parent should go back to school. This is your life and you need to live it on your own terms. And, as a parent, I realize I will probably eat these words when my daughter decides she doesn’t want to major in fashion or interior design like I hope she does!
