There are many decisions one must make as a college student and one of the most stress-inducing decisions a student must make is: “What career path is going to be the most satisfactory for me?”. This is especially pivotal to first-generation students because “satisfactory” is extremely ambiguous and can have multiple implications. This looming question can lead to what many call “Career Anxiety”, This is defined by researchers Christopher T. Pisarik, P. Clay Rowell, and Laura K. Thompson as “negative emotions experienced at any stage of career decision-making or during work”.
What do we mean by “Satisfactory”?
Considering the intersectionality of the first-gen population the term “satisfactory” can mean:
- Self-Fulfilling – It’s important to choose a career path that is rewarding to you personally, as well as professionally. No matter what professional path you choose, you’re almost guaranteed to have days off, but overall, it’s preferable to pursue something that is most suitable for all aspects of you.
- Return on Investment – Considering the financial impact pursuing high-education can (and most of the time does) have, most are interested in a career that has a good ROI (Return on Investment) to pay back any loans that may have accumulated during one’s time in school. As well as earning a considerable salary that the individual considers acceptable.
- Stress levels – In any degree you pursue you want to ensure that the course load is manageable for you; consider what you do outside of your course work and what may create conflict with your external activities and responsibilities.
- Affordability – Many tend to forget that a variety of career paths can be extremely expensive to pursue (i.e., Graduate School, Standardized Examination, Course Materials). It’s important to understand the financial burden many career paths come with and to determine if that’s something you’re willing to prepare for.
So, what should you do? Research, Research, Research!
Connect with professionals in your field of interest and get a real insight into their day-to-day life. For more hands-on professions I recommend getting involved with shadowing opportunities. This can be intensive and can take time to work up to, so you can also connect with mentors and faculty to determine what courses give the best insight into the field (this applies for all majors). You can do so through resources like HuskyLink and connecting with Alumni through the UCONN LinkedIn page in the Alumni section. A great on-demand resource is O*Net OnLine; considered the nation’s primary source for occupational information in an ever-changing and diverse workforce. It’s always better to start gathering information sooner rather than later so you can make the best decisions to optimize your personal and professional growth.
Image by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay
