Career Exploration

If you are at a crossroads moment deciding which major or career you want to pursue, first – don’t panic! And second, remember you can book a meeting (remote or in-person) with NU Career Services to talk through your decision. We are here to support!

There are a few resources that can be helpful whether you are deliberating between options – or are just wondering where to start:

Talk to trusted advisors.

• This could be family and friends – anyone that knows you well and can affirm your strengths and interests. It could be your professors that have knowledge in various fields and might have helpful answers – or questions! – for you.
• As you consider different career paths, it is also helpful to talk to someone in that job that can share more about what the reality of the work. We highly recommend the tool of informational interviews.

Take Assessments on Values, Strengths, and Interests.

Identifying your talents and what you care about can be very helpful to clarify what kind of work you want to pursue and might thrive in. There are a variety of free assessments online, here are a few that we recommend:

• O*NET Interest Profiler. This assessment asks questions about what kind of work activities you might enjoy and then provides a list of suggested careers matching your interests.
• Values Exercise. A simple exercise that asks you to sort through 50 values and systematically narrow down to your top 5 values. Can be a useful exercise in contemplating what work you would find meaningful.
• Truity’s TypeFinder for Career Planning. This assessment is based on the MBTI (Meyers-Briggs) personality types. With around 100 questions, it takes a little longer to complete, but will provide more detailed results about your core motivations and careers that could match your strengths.
• CareerExplorer. The longest on this list, this assessment can take around 30 minutes – though you can save your progress and complete in several sessions. It will start with questions about what kind of work tasks you might enjoy, and then present you with some careers and fields to rank how interested you would be. It will also ask questions about your prior jobs and what you enjoyed or did not enjoy. You can skip any questions you want. The results then suggest top careers, majors, and detailed reports on your top traits.
• Clifton StrengthsFinder is a well-developed assessment that determines your top strengths, and can be valuable as you clarify what you would bring to a company and team. This is the only assessment on this list that has a cost. Be aware it is most helpful when a trained coach is available to walk you through the results – and some NU classes have incorporated taking StrengthsFinder into their content.

What Can I do With This Major?

NU Career Services is glad to offer “What Can I do With This Major?” for students and alumni, a one-stop for in-depth exploration and resources for 100 majors. You’ll find common career options for that major, strategies, occupation outlook, career-specific job boards, and professional associations (tip – many offer discounted student memberships!), and more!

Evaluate the Job Market:

Before selecting a field of study, some students might want to know how a career field is predicted to develop in the future. The government-sponsored website MyNextMove is an invaluable tool for any job seeker. Check out their Bright Outlook resource to find jobs that are new, are forecasted to grow rapidly, or will have a large number of openings in the next few years.

Other Exploration Resources:

As disciples of Christ, pursuing God’s calling or vocation for our life can lead to difficult, soul-searching moments, especially if we feel we are only encountering silence in response to our prayers or feel conflicted about what to pursue. The benefit of these crossroad moments is that they encourage us to press closer to God, our Abba, honestly requesting His wisdom and direction.

Suggested Reading for those in a liminal space and decision moment, all are in print at the Hurst library –

• Every Good Endeavor by Timothy Keller.
• The Will of God as a Way of Life, by Jerry Sittser.
• Kingdom Calling by Amy Sherman.
• Leading Lives that Matter, a curated, wide range of readings around vocation and life choices.
• What Color is Your Parachute? by Richard Bolles. Useful advice around all things job search, with the appendix addressing Christians about life mission and vocation.