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Career Change
The vast majority of people experience at least 3 career changes during their working lives, and the pace may be picking up in the 21st century. Some career changes are voluntary, and some are involuntary. Both work for you, if you take the right approach and have the right mind set.
Career vs. Job
A "career" is your profession, and it hopefully has a "career path" with jobs of increasing responsibility and reward.
A career change is typically more significant than a job change. Hopefully, a career change leads to more meaningful and personally rewarding work for you. Although it may not always bring a greater salary, at least intially, it should bring greater satisfaction - so that Monday when you head back to work isn't the worst day of the week as it is for so many (the day that people in the USA typically have a heart attack, too).
A "job" is what you do every day.
For many of us, a job is not a "career" - it is "just a job." It pays the bills but it doesn't do much more for us.
For those of us who are incredibly lucky or who have paid attention to their own priorities and interests, a job is part of a career. Typically, we don't think of it as a job, when it is something we love to do. It is "my work" or "what I do."
Career Change vs. Job Change
Hopefully, when we make a voluntary or involuntary job change, we take the time to make sure the new job fits into our career path. If we don't, chances are good that we'll be in another job search sooner than we need to be because the job isn't a good fit. Which means we won't enjoy doing it, won't do it as well as we could, and may not be good enough at it to keep it for very long.
The best solution is to take the time to think about what you "really want to do when you grow up." If not now, when?
This section of Job-Hunt will hopefully help you with that transition from job to career, or from one career to another one, as times (and people) change.
Choosing a New Career
When it is time to move on to a new career, choosing that new career can sometimes be quite a challenge, particularly if you have enjoyed several aspects of the jobs you held. Perhaps you enjoyed working with people (or not), or working with technology (or not), and so on.
In addition to the articles in this section, we also have some career profiles and other career information for you to help you evaluate some of your options:
- Career Changer's Guide to New Careers
Profiles of over 200 careers, including forecasted growth in demand, median salaries, education required, the requiremenst of the jobs, and the nature of the work. - Most Popular Careers by State
Gives you an indication of how much demand you may find for your new career plus the median salaries paid in the major cities of each state in the USA.
Before You Invest in Additonal Education or Training...
With most careers, you can migrate into the new field choosing your jobs and employers carefully, as described in this column (see the articles in the list on the right). Set your goal, make a plan, and then implement your plan to change your career.
Many other careers may require that you invest additional money in education or training to meet the professional requirments of the career or the entry-level jobs for that career.
You don't want to spend a great deal of time, effort, and money on a degree or a program which will not payoff for you when you have graduated. Before you invest in a degree or certification program, do some careful investigation:
- Is the career projected to grow in demand over the next 10 years?
- Is the median salary (the salary earned by people with several years of experience in the job) sufficient for your needs?
- What is the track record for the school?
- Is there any independent rating of the quality of the school?
- How many of the graduates found jobs in the appropriate fields?
- Does the school support an internship program which allows students to gain experience in the appropriate job?
- Does the school have a career center that supports graduating students?
- Does the school have a career center that supports alumni after they have graduated (both new grads and alumni several years after graduation)?
Do your best to choose field that is growing and, if additional education is required, choose a school with a good rating, successful graduates, and long-term career support for graduates.
