Career Exploration

As with any great adventure, making decisions about your future career requires careful planning and exploration of the paths before you. It is possible to choose a job quickly but to find a career that is right for you, you need to slow down, give it some thought, and take the time to get it right. Career Exploration is not the same as job searching. Job searching is a short-term pursuit of a position that matches your financial and career goals. Career exploration is a long, progressive process of choosing education, training, and jobs that fit your interests and skills. It involves choosing your CSEC subjects all the way to continuous job searching.

This process involves:

  • Choosing an occupation that is related to your discipline of study.
  • Ensuring that what you have chosen is an occupation and not a discipline. For example, Advertising is a discipline, Copywriter and Account Executive are occupations within that discipline
  • Gather as much information as possible about your options:

    -What are the primary work tasks?
    -What are typical work hours?
    -What education is required?
    -What skills are required to do the job well?

  • Learn about potential employers who hire people in your chosen occupation.
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  • Identify three specific employers who would hire someone in your occupation and research them.

 How do I get this information?

  • The Internet

        -Use Search Engines such as Google, Ask and Yahoo search to find out about your options.

        -Employer websites - These provide lots of information about companies and their job vacancies.

        -O*NET Online - Gives you a wide range of information about careers. This is an American based website but its information is relevant in some areas of the Jamaican job market.

        -Websites such as Splashjamaica, Caribbeanjobs and go-jamaica/jobsmart provide job listings.

  • The Newspaper

        -Has many career related articles that can be helpful in career planning.

        -Publishes Job vacancies.

  • The Career and Placement Unit

        -Provides career guidance.

        -Helps with Résumé and Cover Letter writing.

        -Provides full-time and part-time job placements as requested by companies.

        -Provides information on job opportunities.

        -Hosts developmental programmes such as Employment Empowerment sessions, Mentoring                      Program and Job Fair.

  • Ministry of Labour

        -Provides information on public sector job opportunities.

        -Deals with recruitment for overseas job placements.

        -Has information on Jamaican labour laws.

  • Professional Organization

         -Find one that is in your career field.

         -Jamaica Employers Federation (JEF)----Jamaica Youth Employment Network

         -Human Resource Management Association of Jamaica (HRMAJ)

These companies provide networking opportunities that could aid in making the right career decisions.