My career path
The question of “what would you like to be when you grow up?” has caused a lot of anxiety to me. Just thinking of the career that I would like to pursue overwhelms me, especially now that almost all my friends have settled for their careers of interest. From the informational interview which I recently conducted, I came to learn a key fact on a career choice, that career planning is an action-oriented exercise. It is therefore all right when you feel overwhelmed in choosing a best-fit career. Some of the practical approaches that one can consider in order to land a satisfactory career path therefore includes the assessment of one’s values, skills, interests as well as personality. The inclusion of a career coach in formally assessing one’s self is also a very good approach.
The career which I have always thought of was computer engineering. The findings from my informational interview has however led me to the re-evaluation of this choice. Other than the basic skills that I have regarding the handling of a computer software and hardware, I have realized that my personality and interest do not align in any way with the computer engineering career. I would therefore have to focus on other career choice. Undertaking this interview helped in broadening my perspective in terms of choosing a career. I am not only equipped with the tools necessary towards the best career choice, but also able to make an informed decision in regards to some of the careers which I had interest in. The reflection interview was therefore worthwhile.
Other than the information that I received from the informational interview, my career choice would also be greatly influenced by Tomlinson’s Graduate Capital Model. According to Tomlinson, there is a possibility that one needs to reflect upon and nature in order to serve the students during and after the cause of an education. Specifically, Tomlinson outlines five capitals in his model, which builds towards the field of employability, which is the human capital, cultural capital, social capital, identity capital and psychological capital. From the interview reveal that the career of my choice, which was computer engineering, was not aligning to my interests and personality, my identity capital was undermined. Tomlinson defines the identity capital as the understanding of one’s experiences, achievements and values in support of the development of a professional profile. My decision on my career choice was therefore influenced to the point of a change of career direction, abandoning the computer-related field altogether.
I have as a result, decided to consider the other career opportunities which align to my career path. For instance, I would prefer to be an educationist, or a psychologist. Dealing with people has been the centre of my interest, and I don’t think it stands to undermine any of my values. I prefer dealing to children, taking much attention on their needs and personal fulfilment. I understand that work is very important, equipping one’s financial wellbeing, however, it should not make one miserable. If I am to settle for a career therefore, it will be one that relates to daily interactions with people, preferably children, hence education would be my top priority career choice. This way I would be able to enjoy my hobbies while at the same time achieving the well rounded life, while still pursuing my career.