Career Exploration: Beyond "Eenie, Meenie, Minie, Moe"

In the past few weeks, I have put more thought into my future career options than I probably did my entire freshman year. Sure, last year I thought about careers, but more in a worrying way than in a helpful one. ("What if I never get a good job? What if I go into huge debt for law school and hate being a lawyer? What if I just never advance because I pick the wrong career and then I find myself 45 and bored and wanting to leave everything behind and start a restaurant in Morocco, only I can't because I don't have any business skills and I can't cook?") I  latched onto the idea of being a lawyer not without thinking but without thinking much about other options.

After four appointments with career counselor Irene Komor, I found out a lot more about my personality, values, and career interests. I took a Myers-Briggs Temperament test and a Strong Interest Inventory. While I had hoped that taking these would be a eureka moment, I think I learned more from trying to decide if the test results really fit me and puzzling out what their career implications are. I was shocked to find that the number one career that came up in the Strong Interest Inventory was librarian. My first response to that was laughter, but Irene pointed out that there are many different opportunities for librarians, everywhere from grade schools to major research institutions, and that I might enjoy the intellectual challenge of helping people locate information they need. In the end, I realized that while a law career might suit me in many ways, other options I hadn't thought of before, like academic advising dean, university professor, or school counselor, might suit me just as well. My next task is to find out more about these types of careers. Luckily, I work in an office full of academic advisors, so it won't be hard to set up an appointment with one for an informational interview. Who knows, maybe I'll do the same with a librarian--as long as he or she promises not to shush me.