What Are Career Centers?
Every college has an office that provides
students with information and advice about careers. At these career
development or career counseling centers, you can find information
about careers through many sources, including books and audio, video,
and computer resources.
These centers help you explore different
career paths. You can learn about the different jobs that are available
in various fields. You can also learn about the kind of preparation you
need for these jobs.
Your school’s career center,
which may be in the guidance office or the library, may have access to
software and Internet programs that can help you learn more about
careers.
Career testing and counseling can help you
find out things about yourself that might be important when you choose
a career. These services help you identify your interests and
strengths. Through a combination of conversations, surveys, and tests,
a career counselor can help you learn more about your personal likes,
dislikes, and skills and how these compare with the likes, dislikes,
and skills of people who work in different jobs.
For example, you might find you have an
interest in art, but you don’t know how you could turn it into a
career. Art is a broad field with different opportunities in areas such
as advertising, sales, entertainment, computer-aided design, fashion,
architecture, and many others—including sculpting and painting.
A career counselor
can help you find a good fit. Suppose you are an outgoing person who
enjoys meeting new people. You may want to go into sales. If you are a
creative or artistic person who is clever with words and new ideas,
advertising may be a better choice for you. If you like the idea of
combining art with math and engineering, then architecture might be an
area to consider.
Many job placement offices offer
students workshops on writing resumes, interviewing, and job search
skills, including using the Internet. At many colleges, students have
the opportunity to interview for jobs with hundreds of businesses,
government agencies, and other organizations that come to recruit
students.
What Is Job Placement?
Most career centers have a job placement
office. This office invites employers to the college to interview
students. Most companies that talk to students prefer to hire those who
are ready to graduate. But in some cases, companies hire students for
the summer. In this way, the companies can see whether the student is
someone they would want to hire for full-time work after college.
Part-time or summer work, as well as special summer programs offered by
many colleges, also gives students opportunities to explore whether
certain jobs, careers, and companies are a good match for them.
Job placement services are among the most
important services offered by proprietary schools, technical
institutes, and other specialized programs. Before deciding where to
attend, learn about these services and the school’s success in helping
students get jobs.
Is College the Only Way to Prepare for a Career?
In some cases, college is the only way. But
for some careers, your options include vocational and proprietary
schools, technical institutes, and other specialized programs. These
schools often focus on specialized areas such as electronics, culinary
arts, plumbing, cosmetology, and so on.
Remember: No one can take education and skills away from you. The more you have, the better off you will be!
