Overview

Now that you have collected facts about yourself and researched a variety of potentially satisfying occupations, and evaluated one of the careers to see how well it fits, you face the task of making a tentative career decision. Even though you have come this far down the road, making a decision about your career direction is not as easy as it may seem.

In this section, I will provide you with some questions to ask when deciding on a career choice and discuss four common barriers to effective decision making and ways to overcome them.



Decision Making

Decision making is a skill that must be developed-it is not an inborn talent. It is a skill that involves some degree of risk, since the future must always remain unknown. Evaluate various career choices carefully using the exercise, How the Occupation Fits. In addition, ask yourself these questions when evaluating a career field:

  • Is the training and education for this occupation available where I live?
  • Is the job outlook good for this occupation in San Diego County? (I am assuming you plan to work in San Diego.)
  • Do I believe I can get to my goal? Do I have the support from people around me (family, friends).
  • Do I have a financial plan detailing how I will get trained for this career?
  • Does this occupation provide the salary and advancement that I am seeking?

  • Barriers to Decision Making

    There are personal and social barriers that can hamper you from effective decision making. Three barriers that I often hear about in my career counseling sessions with students include the following:

You may fear making the "wrong" decision.

It's true that sometimes decisions will not turn out for the best. It is part of the human condition that you will make mistakes. You must be willing to make a tentative decision. You make the best decision you can, given the information you have at the time.

Try to get the best information you can to make an informed decision:research, conduct informational interviews, and do an internet job search.


You may have conflicting feelings

Ambivalent feelings can often be resolved by reviewing your values and deciding accordingly. In Part A, you completed the Work Values Exercise. The results of the exercise may help you sort out what kinds of things are most important to you.

Decisions often involve giving up something to obtain something else.Values clarification can help assure you that what you give up is less important to you than what you gain.

You may have to deal with significant family responsibilities

Family reponsibilities place limitations on what is feasible or practical, especially if you are a single parent. A single parent who is trying to work and raise children at the same time, has more to take into consideration when committing to a career change that involves years of further education.

Careful financial planning and time managment may allow you to reach your career goals-it just may take longer. Find out as much as you can about Financial Aid, EOPS, TRIO and other student support programs at Palomar College that can assist you.

 



Writing Assignment #9


Please send me an email, responding to the following items. Refer to the example below.

  • At this point, how ready to do you think you are to make a tentative career decision.
  • Describe one barrier that is getting in the way of you making an effective career decision.
  • Describe one possible way that the barrier mentioned above might be resolved.
  • Email the assignment to mmiller@palomar.edu


Writing Example

I'm not ready to make a real career decision. I did learn some interesting things about careers when I did my research, but I'm not sure how well I would really like those fields.The career tests didn't give me the answer I was looking for, and I'm still confused.

The obstacle in my way is I really don't have enough information about jobs. I think the one thing I can do to work on my barrier is to talk to people and visit where they work. I'm thinking about health care, so maybe I could visit some local hospitals and find out about job opportunities.

Another obstacle is money. I'm not sure how I can stop working full-time and go back to school. I don't know about financial aid but I know I wouldn't qualify for scholarships.