Career Planning: Researching a Career and Company



	Home \| Help for Jobsite \| Introduce a friend \| Add to Favourites \| Login \| Go To Recruiter Home	Country Industry Job Sites

Back to Jobseeker Resources Section Index

Career Planning: Researching a Career and Company

	Career Planning: Researching a Career and Company How to work out what you want to do, and what types of company most suits you.
Only a few individuals really know what they want to do and what route in life they are going to take. Some will fulfil their dream and become a doctor or air pilot, but you must remember that MOST of us are clueless about our future career path and do not know what we want to do or who we want to work for. So, if this sounds like you and you need to work out what your first step on the career ladder should be or in fact, you want a Career Change then there are several things you can do in order to work out what you may enjoy doing, what you may be good at, who you would enjoy working for and what sort of job you should go for.

Skills & Abilities, Strengths & Weaknesses Firstly, identify the skill and abilities you have. Do not be shy - this is about you and for you and you do not need to show others if you don't want to. Draw on those skills you may have learnt through a degree/qualification and previous work experiences. Highlight those areas you enjoyed, those you disliked and pick out where your strengths and weaknesses lie. For example, if you are good at organising and co-ordinating, make a note. Maybe you are someone who loathes working with figures, which will rule out any type of accounting career. Write them down in a table, listing everything.

Research Job Roles & Industries Your next task would be to do some research. There are many places you can do this including the following.

On the Internet The Internet holds more information than you can imagine, so it is a great source of information! Look at various job roles, read up on different industries and see what interests you. Check out the search engines, look at the job profile pages on job boards and read some job descriptions online. Look into the skills and abilities that are required for the jobs and look into exactly what the job entails. See whether these match the skills you have developed. By reading the job descriptions, you will be able to work out whether it may be something you will enjoy and something you will be good at. After this you may have now been able to eliminate a number of jobs you think you may hate and pin point a selected few that are possible options. If not, do not worry; there are further ways to research...

Friends & Acquaintances Think about those people you already know that are in certain roles and industries that interest you. Speak to them and find out what they do on a day-to-day basis and find out the 'nitty gritty' about the job that you may not find out otherwise.

Work Experience & Visits Check out the job/company/industry. Offer yourself as someone who will do some work experience to see if you like the role - some jobs allow you to visit and sit in on classes e.g. School Teachers. However, not every company will allow this - you may only be able to do this if you already know someone working there - so use your contacts if you can.

Careers Advisors - Careers Centres at Universities If you are a graduate, you will have the advantage of being able to visit a Careers Advisor at your campus who will be able to discuss your alternatives. This can be extremely helpful to receive some professional, personal advice. Non-graduates - you will find some Careers-related sites around the UK where there are Careers Advisors that you can speak to. There are workshops and day events that you can attend to get advice and guidance from a professional.

Job Fairs Attending job fairs can help you to speak to direct companies about their roles, face to face. You can really sell yourself to them and find out exactly what you want to know. It also can help you to find out what else is out there that you don't already know. It will open your eyes to companies and job roles that you may not have ever considered. This gives you a fantastic networking opportunity and you also come away with lots of freebies from the stands. You will find job fairs all over the Country and just by searching on the Internet, you may be able to find one near you. Check out your local newspapers and local news sites to see what may be on in your area.

Company websites - Culture, Job Roles. If you are unsure what sort of company you want to work for, research the different types of companies out there - large corporates, SME's, public companies etc. You can see that the cultures, structures and procedures differ greatly and just by looking into this, you may decide straight away what type of company you would prefer to work for. Individual companies also vary within these categories, e.g. corporates or SME's, so it's good to look into them individually should you have a list of specific companies you are interested in. Cultures, the types of people and working practices may also sway your decisions as to what companies you prefer or at least what you may want to avoid. You can find out all the information you want online at the websites and you can even read the staff's reviews, experiences and personal developments too.

After researching jobs, companies and industries in the various ways described above and identifying your skills, abilities, strengths and weaknesses, you can at a glance see what sort of job you may enjoy and what you may be good at. It is making a match between you and what is out there. You never know whether you will enjoy a job before you actually begin to conduct the everyday tasks involved and begin working with the individuals in the company but by carrying out above research you will be able to make an informed decision and hopefully find yourself in the ideal job for you, first time!