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Step 2 Checklist: Identify possible
career
options...
Career Selection and Planning
Guide
Internet Career Connection
Hopefully, in the previous step, you elected to define all four aspects of your
personality style - interests, skills, values and behavioral traits.
The more areas you assess the better
you will understand your personality style.
If you
only defined your interests this program will still work in terms of helping
you select a career direction. However, the program works best if you
first define all four aspects of your personality style. Please give
careful consideration to defining all four aspects of your personality style (if
you have not done so already) before completing this second step.
The objective of this second step is to guide you in creating a list of
occupations (job titles) that match the interests you defined in Step 1a -
occupations that you now want to evaluate as possible career goals.
Time
required to complete...
Approximately
30-45 minutes.
Required form...
Please print a copy of Form 2 and use your
printed copy to record your findings as you complete this step.
Directions...
Print a copy of this checklist to
record your progress as you complete this step.
On your printed copy, check off each step as it is completed.
You must be viewing this checklist while connected to the
Internet in order for the hyperlinks below to function properly!
[ ]
Identify keywords that define your
interests.
Review
your interests that you listed on your completed copy of Form 1.
In the space to the right, list as many words as you can think of that describe
all of your interests. For example, if you have an
interest in studying "ancient people and their cultures," all of the
following keywords could be used to describe your interest:
ancient
culture
history
historical
people
community
natives
civilization
archeology
anthropology
Your task is to list as many
keywords as you can that describe all of your interests
listed on your completed copy of Form 1. Note above that I
have listed two forms of the word "history." You too should try to
list different forms of the same words on your keyword list. The
more variations that you list of a keyword, the more occupations you
will be able to identify.
If you have difficulty
identifying keywords that describe your interests, use a printed or online
dictionary (www.dictionary.com)
or your word processing program. Enter a word that describes one
of your
interests and select the synonyms option to find similar meaning
words.
Now, to the right list as many keywords
as you can think of that describe all of your interests.
Keywords describing my
interests:
[ ]
Use your keywords to identify
matching occupations.
When instructed to do so below, click on the O*Net Online link to access
the O*Net Online website. This website contains information on
nearly 1000 occupations. Each occupation has been defined in terms
of "job tasks" commonly performed by people working in each occupation.
This database will match your keywords to job tasks to help you identify
job titles that match your interests.
Read the directions below before visiting the O*Net Online website:
Find the keyword search field in the upper left hand corner of the
home page of the O*Net Online website. This is where you will
enter your keywords.
Enter one of your keywords and click the "Go" button to receive a
list of matching occupations.
Click on any job title for detailed information about the
occupation.
Identify occupations that you would like to evaluate as possible
career goals - occupations that you believe match your interests.
Record your selections on your printed copy of Form
2.
Repeat the above procedure for
all your remaining keywords to produce a list of job
titles that match all of your interests.
Whenever possible, use different variations of the same word to find all
possible matching occupations! Record your selections on your
printed copy of Form 2.
Please visit the
O*Net
Online website now to complete this step.
If you
only defined your interests this program will still work in terms of helping
you select a career direction. However, the program works best if you
first define all four aspects of your personality style. Please give
careful consideration to defining all four aspects of your personality style (if
you have not done so already) before completing this second step.
Required form...
