There are many reasons why people make career transitions. These reasons may be voluntary (e.g., to earn more money, to find more career satisfaction, or as a reentry into the workforce after raising children) or involuntary (e.g., due to downsizing, or due to injury). For whatever reason, it is a good idea to approach a career transition with a plan. This plan will help keep the career seeker focused and organized, and will help reduce the anxiety and stress that is normally associated with a career transition.

During the career transition process, the career changer will experience four phases: Assessment, Exploration, Development, Implementation. Let's take each of these in turn...

Assessment

Make lists of your job related
-skills
-interests
-values

Skills

When thinking about skills, look for transferable skills, skills that you can use in many different jobs -- for instance, communication skills, analytical skills, or leadership skills. Decide whether you will need to update or acquire new skills. Computer skills like word processing, Internet navigation, and spreadsheet and database knowledge is usually a must in today's business world.

Interests

When thinking about your interests, think about career choices and industry interests. For instance, if you has an interest in sales, think about what you want to sell; if you have an interest in law, what kind of law would you like to practice.

Values

Never underestimate the value of assessing your work values! Finding a job in which you can meet the needs of your personal goals and inclinations can mean the difference between being miserable and loving what you do!
In assessing your values, think about things like: hours you want to work, whether you want to help people, whether you want a high level of autonomy, whether you feel you will have the ability to become an expert in your field, where you want the job to be, etc. A good way to start this piece is to think about the things in past jobs that satisfied you and dissatisfied you.

Click here for Free Online Assessments!

Exploration

Collect information relevant to learning about the career and industry you have chosen. This can mean also collecting specific information about companies in the industry.
Find information in company literature, the library, newspaper, the Internet, career fairs, or through your local career counseling office like Professional Experience and Career Planning at C.W. Post/Long Island University. Another way to collect valuable career information is by performing informational interviews from actual people in the field and industry you have chosen.

Development

During this phase you will begin acquiring the skills you need to succeed in the chosen career. For some of you this may be the longest part of this process especially if acquiring new skills means getting a college degree.
Once you have succeeded in acquiring the necessary skills, you will begin to write your resume and cover letters. Begin networking with possible employers, family members, or friends who have links to the field you have chosen.

Implementation

Finally you, with your new found skills, resumes, and information about yourself, the industry you have chosen, and the career you have chosen, can begin to prospect for jobs. In job prospecting, focus primarily on networking, and targeting companies you want to work for despite their lack of job postings. While job searches through the Internet and the newspaper can be effective, they usually do not yield the best results in relation to the amount of effort put into these procedures. This phase and process ends with a job acceptance.

If you have any questions regarding you career transition, please contact
Professional Experience and Career Planning at C.W. Post/Long Island University.
We have professional career counselors on staff that can help you toward creating
your own success at your career transition.
For a schedule of our services and how to contact us, click here.