Northwest Missouri State University B.D. Owens Library



[ Freshman Seminar Career Exploration ]


This exercise will help you to learn more about a career of your choice. Click on the underlined text to link to resources.

Assignment: Research a career of your choice and write a 500 word double-
spaced essay (approximately 2 typed pages).
Include a Works Cited page.

Step 1: Discover

Look at the Discover program that is available from this hyperlink to students via the web. This program will give an overview of your interests and aptitudes in an assortment of areas. Please get your Pass Code Tokens from your Freshman Seminar instructor before beginning your Interests Inventory. Follow the instructions to enter your token ID, choose a password and begin the Inventory.

After logging in. ciick the Inventories Tab on the toolbar in the Discover program then choose Interest Inventory on the left toolbar to find out some of your interests and click Take Inventory Now . There are also links to inventories that you can take to see how your abilities and values best fit your personality.

There are 90 questions that will take approximately 30 minutes to complete. You will be asked to choose between dislike, indifferent, or like as an answer to each question. Click on the answer that best fits your choice. When you have completed the Interest Inventory, look at some of the suggested occupations that the program offers you. Keep these occupations in mind when you are writing your paper.

Close Discover and continue with this assignment.

Step 2: Bureau of Labor Statistics

For the next step of this exercise, you will need to explore all three of these resources. In the body of your essay, include information from these resources about your career choice. You will be citing this sources within your paper, so be sure to list the information that you will need for the Works Cited page. (See Step 5 for more information) For additional assistance, please ask at the Library Services Desk on first floor.

Occupational Outlook Handbook
http://www.bls.gov/OCO
"The Occupational Outlook Handbook is a nationally recognized source of career information, designed to provide valuable assistance to individuals making decisions about their future work lives. Revised every two years, the Handbook describes what workers do on the job, working conditions, the training and education needed, earnings, and expected job prospects in a wide range of occupations."

Step 3: Questions

After writing an introductory paragraph telling which career you have chosen and why it interests you, answer the questions below to complete the body of your paper. To complete Step 3, use all the links from this site to complete your assignment. Please be sure to use complete sentences and proper punctuation, with correct spelling.

  1. After choosing an occupation of interest, what are the typical hours worked per day and per week for this occupation?
  2. What are some of the qualifications needed in this field of work?
  3. What are the numbers of jobs in the United States in this career? Is there a geographic distribution of jobs in this career?
  4. After reading about your career choice, what are some of the other related careers to this occupation?
  5. What are the formal educational requirements--high school, post-secondary vocational or technical training, college, or graduate or professional education? What are desirable skills, aptitudes, and personal characteristics for this career?
  6. What does the typical worker in your career field earn?
  7. What is the job outlook for this field of work? How will it change over the next few years?

Step 4: Closing

Write a closing paragraph reflecting on what you have learned about your career choice. Are you still interested in the career that you chose for this assignment? Why or why not?

Step 5: Works Cited

Include a "Works Cited" or bibliography page listing the resources that you used to complete this assignment on a separate page at the end of your paper. Ask your instructor what format is expected in your Bibliography. You will need to substitute your information to complete your own Works Cited page.

(Use the name of the occupation that you found in the Occupational Outlook Handbook.)

APA example of a citation from the Occupational Outlook Handbook online about Library Technicians:

Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor. (2007, December 18).

OccupationalOutlook Handbook, 2008-09 Edition, Library Technicians. Retrieved June 24, 2009,

fromhttp://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos113.htm

Replace the date in your citations with the date you accessed the information.

Citations for other resources in this assignment should be treated as webpages. Examples to follow can be found on the Owens Library homepage under Citing Sources.

 

Step 6: Turn in your assignment

Turn in your completed type-written essay to your Freshman Seminar instructor.

Return to Course/Subject Resources

Revised (July 1, 2009)
Created (July 1996)
Current Author: Patricia J. Wyatt
Links Verified (July 2009)