Mapping Out Your Future As a beginning freshman you may have worked with a counselor on what is commonly called a degree plan. This plan stated the degree you are trying to achieve, outlined the classes needed to receive that degree, and then gave you a time line indicating how long it will take before you can don a cap and gown.
Before you graduate, you will need to create a new plan. This plan will map out what will hopefully be an exciting and rewarding career, thus we'll call it your Career Plan.
Besides mapping out your future, your Career Plan will also help keep you focused. Sometimes we forget exactly what our goals are and the reasons why we chose these goals. Having something written down can reassure us that we're heading in the right direction, and remind us why we're working so hard.
The Career Plan you make for yourself should answer four basic questions:
1. What are my career goals?
2. Why have I set these goals?
3. How will I achieve these goals?
4. When should I reasonably be able to achieve these goals?
What are my career goals?
This part of your plan will state the goal(s) you want to reach in your career. This can be as simple as stating what title you want to hold, such as a history professor, or an accountant for one of the nation's leading accounting firms.
If you have two very different career goals, like you want to be a public relations director and a clothing designer, then you would need to make a Career Plan for both goals. It's okay if you're unsure about exactly what position you hope to hold, but know what field you want to work in. For example, instead of writing that you want to be a dentist, you could put that you want to work in dentistry. However, the more specific you are the more helpful your Career Plan will be.
Why have I set these goals?
This part of your plan will explain why you've set your stated career goals. The explanation should be straightforward. For example: I am going to be a history professor because (1) I love sharing knowledge about history, (2) professors get paid well, are respected, have a high level of autonomy, and a flexible work schedule, (3) I want to work in academia, (4) I know I'll be a great professor.
How will I achieve these goals?
This part of the plan explains what you have to accomplish to achieve your goal(s) step-by-step. Research on your desired profession may be needed to fill this section out. If you wanted to be a college professor, for example, then talking to your former professors and researching various graduate programs would be desirable.
Once you've done your research you should be able to write out a general path you have to follow. For example, you might write: In order to be a history professor I have to:
1. Attend school full-time to receive my Master's in History.
2. Attend school full-time to receive my Ph.D. in History.
3. Become noted for my own research and work in the field.
4. Network with other professors, especially at schools with a good history department.
5. Work on my dissertation.
6. Receive my Ph.D. and then apply for a full-time teaching position within a university
that has a respected history department.
When should I reasonably be able to achieve these goals?
The biggest question is almost always "when?" Answering the when question will help keep you on track once you decide what you're focused on becoming. The word "reasonably" is inserted into that question so that you'll set a realistic time line. Setting deadlines in your time line that are close to impossible to meet will discourage you when they aren't met. On the other hand, setting deadlines that are too easy to meet will keep you from working hard and going as far as you can in your career.
The time line you make will be based off of what you wrote down in "How will I achieve these goals?" For each step you wrote down you should give a maximum amount of time allotted to get past that step and on to the next one. Research will definitely be needed to determine how long each step should take. Some steps will be taken simultaneously and should be written as such. The following is a sample time line:
Career time line
* Get my Master's in History. -2 Years
* Work on my Ph.D. in History. - 3 Years
* Complete my dissertation and Ph.D. -1 Year
* Find a position as a history professor. -1 Year
* Estimated time to working as a history professor: 7 Years
Your time line may have to be adjusted due to unforeseeable circumstances that happen down the road. Or you might find shortcuts to reaching your career goal(s) or have to take additional steps. What's important is that you have a plan to follow.
Once you have your career ambitions mapped out, you can start working toward securing your goals. In the case of someone who aspires to be a professor, most of the person's energy will be spent completing further studies to secure a position. However, people wanting to snag non-academic positions and move up in their careers are more likely to need adequate work experience before they need another degree.
Posted By: Devon Marshall
Monday, March 9th 2009 at 2:39PM
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