Researching a career

Here are some initial questions to ask yourself as you begin your career planning research:

• What types of courses have I enjoyed in school?
• In what type of environment do I enjoy spending most of my time? Indoors? Outdoors? In an office?
• Do I want to work closely with people, or "behind the scenes" (for example, with technology?)
• Do I want to have a leadership position?
• Do I prefer details or "the big picture"?
• Do I want a relaxed or intense work environment?

The Library offers several resources for learning about careers. Some items are electronic (see below):

• Job & Career Accelerator [1]: Access profiles hundreds of careers. Profiles describe knowledge, skills, and abilities; education and training; related occupations; recommended practice tests; available jobs; and more.
• Occupational Outlook Handbook [2]: Produced by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Handbook is the definitive resource for information about different professions, their duties and educational requirements, expected salaries, and future employment prospects.
• The Missouri job market [3]: Missouri's jobs.mo.gov website has this helpful page with information about the current job market in Missouri. You can also look at the state's labor market by geographic region.
• MissouriConnections.org [4]: Sponsored by the Metropolitan Community Colleges, MissouriConnections.org has an online career assessment inventory and many other tools. The username to log in is PennValleyCC, and the password is 2viewmoc.

Also check the Library's catalog [5] under the subject headings "Vocational guidance" (and even "Personality assessment") for books on career guidance. Use these to get started:

• Encyclopedia of Careers and Vocational Guidance [6]: (REF 371.42 E563 2008) A highly respected reference source that provides detailed profiles of hundreds of careers
• What Color is Your Parachute? [7] (331.1 B69W 2009) This classic work on finding your dream job is destined to provoke thinking about your career path.

For additional information, contact an H&R Block Business & Career Center librarian by phone, 816.701.3717, or by e-mail, bcc@kclibrary.org [8].