Are Uncle David and Aunt Martha in your ear about what you should do for a career? Although they may mean well, listening to relatives is not the best source of information in determining a proper career path. Having doubts or concerns about this step is natural and there are resources available to help. My primary recommendation is to take a career interest test. A career interest test is an assessment designed to help you determine which career opportunities best match your interests, skills, aptitude, personality, intelligence and other key factors pertinent to this exercise.
The results from taking a career interest test help to measure your interest in various job functions. Based on how well you score, you can easily determine which types of positions you will be more successful at, since you have a greater desire to perform them. Another part of the assessment includes an intelligence test, commonly referred to an IQ test. The results from this aspect measure your ability to problem solve and to learn new information. By scoring well in this part of the exam, you know that you have the ability to adapt to new environments and quickly learn and process new information. Most assessments also include a personality assessment. The purpose of this evaluation is to help you gain a better understanding of your behaviors, feelings and patterns, especially as they apply to specific tasks and a projected working environment.
You can find a typical career interest test at any admissions office of your local university or community college. Third party career services organizations also have these available, yet typically for a fee. Taking assessments like these will help you uncover your preferences as they apply to your career path. How many people do you know who earned a bachelor’s degree in one discipline, yet they are doing something completely different for a career? Taking an assessment early on will help you to streamline your academic activities and give you an advantage over your competition as you have removed most of the guesswork around whether or not you will be successful in a specific situation.
In addition, career interest tests help prepare you for employment as more employers are beginning to require potential candidates take assessments as part of the interview process. Hiring candidates can be a risky proposition. Employers are finding that these appraisals are a cost effective way to weed out those who will not be a good fit. Being familiar with these and understanding what the employer is looking for will help you increase your chances of putting yourself in an opportunity to be successful.
