My career development 2014-06-18

CAREER

PLANNING GUIDE 2014-2015

PLANNING

AND

CHOOSING A

CAREER

African Institute for Mathematical Sciences

NEXT EINSTEIN INITIATIVE

2014-2015 AIMS Career Planning Guide

My Career Development

Table of Contents

What is Career Development Process? ......................................... 1

The Career Development Process…………………………………………….. 1

Model Describing the Career Development Process………………. 2

The Six Steps of the Career Development Process…………………. 3

Self-Assessment Tools…………………………………………………………………………… 5

Values: What’s Important to Me? ....................................... 6

My Interests: What Am I Passionate About? ………………………….. 8

Assessing your Personality……………………………………………………….. 10

Assess your Skills and Strengths……………………………………………… 12

Explore Career Options………………………………………………………………………….. 15

What to Research? …………………………………………………………………… 16

Occupational Profiles in the Field of Mathematical Sciences…… 18

Research On-line Job Boards & Other Jobs Posted On-line for

Graduates in Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science……

19

Conduct Informational Interviewing………………………………………… 19

Decision Making and Action Planning…………………………………………………. 20

Evaluating My Career Options Worksheet………………………………… 21

Prioritizing Your Career Options……………………………………………….. 22

Making Decisions: Setting My Career Goal………………………………. 22

Develop An Action Plan……………………………………………………………… 23

Career Development Plan Template…………………………………………. 23

Implementing your Personal Action Plan………………………………………….. 27

Reviewing your Progress…………………………………………………………… 27

AIMS Career Planning Guide: My Career Development Page 1 of 29


What is Career Development Process?

To begin, we need to understand what is meant by “Career Development”. Career development is the lifelong process of managing learning, work, leisure, and transitions in order to move toward a personally determined and evolving preferred future.

Source: Canadian Standards and Guidelines for Career Development Practitioners.

Why is Career Development Important?

Career Development knowledge, skills, and experience supports your ability to create a meaningful life.

“To ask: What kind of career is best and possible for me is to ask: How should I live my life?”

The Career Development Process

Many of us stumble into a career doing less research than when we make a major purchase.

When buying a computer, most of us do research, compare prices, shop around, and talk to

people. Our careers last longer than any computer. We owe it to ourselves to devote time and

effort to choosing a career or making a career change. One way to do this is through the career

development process.

What do we mean by “career development process”?

Career development is:

• an ongoing, lifelong process

• an active process; we must be the driving force behind the process, gathering information,

setting goals, recognizing opportunities, and making decisions

• an introspective process of self-assessment and reflection

• a time-consuming process

• a holistic process, which integrates our changing needs, wants, relationships, and situations

with the ever-changing world of work

Below is a model describing the career development process (see Figures 1)


Figure 1: Career Development Process


Step 1:

Assess Yourself

(Your needs, ambitions, skills, interests, & background)

Step 2:

Explore Careers

(Occupations, industry trends, career options for your degree)

Step 3:

Make Decisions & Set Career

Goals

(Career options & career paths that are best for you)

Step 4:

Create a Career Action PLan

(Develop action steps to achieve

goals)

Step 5:

Take Action & Implement Plan

(Job search tools, connect with

employers, find a job)

Step 6:

Re-evaluate Your Career Direction

(Assess current situation &

consider future options)


Note: The career development process, as shown in Figure 1, is a 6-step continuous loop. It is

a logical, step-by-step process designed to help you plan your career development now and

anytime in the future when you want to change course. In your lifetime, you will go through

these steps many times as you re-evaluate where you want to go in life and decide to make a

career change.

A description of each of these six steps is given below.

Step 1: Self-Assessment

“What do you want your personal and professional life to look like?” If you’ve been thinking

about your career path and know you what type of job/career you want in the future, you may

wonder: “Where do I start?” Typically, this process starts with self-assessment. Understanding

yourself and evaluating who you are as a person are critical to effective career planning. In fact,

self-assessment is considered to be the foundation for effectively planning your career.

This step involves taking a personal inventory of who you are and identifying your individual

values, interests, skills, ambitions, and personal qualities. Also, it means assessing your

personal situation and background. Self-assessments will help you to know what skills,

strengths, and personality traits you bring to the workplace. A brief description of each area is

given below.

• Skills—what skills and abilities do I have? And which do I really enjoy using? You have

many skills and talents. It is important to understand your unique skills to find a career that

is a fit for those talents. This will result in increased career satisfaction and fulfillment.

• Interests—what excites me? What interests me enough that I don’t realize the passage of

time while I am engaged in it? Interests are a key part of what defines us as humans. If you

are interested in something, you are more likely to invest time, effort and energy into it.

Think about the things that you enjoy in general. What do you love to do?

• Values—what things do I believe in? What motivates me to work? Your values are those

things in your life that you consider to be important. In relation to work, values are what give

purpose to a job in the eyes of the individual who does it. The effort, commitment and

motivation that a person brings to a job is usually in direct proportion to the values that they

perceive in it. • Personality—who am I? What are my personal characteristics? You need to identify your

personal style and important aspects of your personality. Your personal characteristics may have a strong influence on your choice of career. For example, being careful is a valuable attribute in financial jobs and crucial for many medical occupations (imagine the brain surgeon who isn't careful!). Similarly, being reserved may be linked to powers of concentration and attention to detail which may be important in scientific and computing fields. We each have a unique way of relating to others and the world around us. Understanding your personality in terms of your behaviours, emotions, and ways of thinking, can help you find a rewarding career.

• Ambitions—what are your ambitions and aspirations? Ambitions provide a focus for your goals and career. If you have specific ambition to be working in some career, then it will be easier for you to navigate the steps and hurdles between where you are now and where you want to be in the future.

• Background—what is your personal situation and background? Assessing your personal situation and background must be taken into consideration as you may have family obligations or responsibilities that can affect your career choices. You may have to support


yourself or other family members, for example, and these needs will have to be considered as part of any self-assessment exercise.

Knowing the answers to these questions and having a deep understanding of who we are helps

us in our career planning. We can use this information to evaluate possible careers or career

changes, look for opportunities, and find greater satisfaction in other areas of our lives as well.

Some sample self-assessment tools that you can use to assess your interests, values, and

personality as well as some career assessment tests that you can use to assess your core job

strengths are available in the next section under Self-Assessment Tools (see page 5).

Step 2: Explore Occupations and Academic Careers

Once you have done some self-assessment, you can move to researching and exploring the

world of work. This exploration is essentially gathering information on the range of careers and

career paths available to you and identifying ones that are options for your degree. While you

are gathering information ask yourself whether you can see yourself working in this particular

career area. Does it match with your interests as well as you had anticipated? Will it afford you

the lifestyle you seek? Does it use your top skills and match your top values and personal

strengths?

Your exploration may include informational interviews with professionals, connecting with

alumni, online and library research, volunteering, job shadowing, doing an internship, or other

activities that allow you to learn about various occupations.

Conduct occupational and industry research by checking out various websites and career

information presented in the next section under Explore Career Options (see page 15).

Step 3: Decision Making

From your self-assessment and career exploration you should have a clearer idea of what you

are looking for. Now is the time to set some career goals and make decisions (at least, some

preliminary decisions). At this point, your need to narrow your career options. Which options fit

me best? Decide which career options and career paths are the best match for your

personality, skills, values, and interests. Also, in making a decision on your career goal, you

may wish to compare the various career options in terms of advantages, disadvantages, and

potential outcomes. Another decision-making approach is to evaluate the pros and cons for the

options you have been researching in Step 2.

Once you have identified your career goal (and it may be a tentative choice), from this point

onwards, you will tailor your documents (résumés, CVs, etc.) and focus your job, internship, or

post-graduate study search on achieving this goal.

Step 4: Creating a Career Action Plan

At this point, you should know your ultimate career goal. This step includes identifying specific

action steps that will move you forward towards this goal. Sometimes people get stuck looking

for the “perfect” action step. Remember that any step forward is an accomplishment.


To develop your action plan steps, you should refer to the information that you gathered in Step

2 (occupational research). The more information you have, the more informed you will be as to

what is required to reach your career goal. For example, what steps must be taken to obtain

the required education, skills, and experience needed for your career goal? What steps will I

take to search for and secure the desired job in industry?

A Career Development Plan template is provided for you in the next section under Decision

Making and Action Planning (see page 20).

Step 5: Taking Action and Implementing Plan

Now is the time for action! If your goal is to obtain a particular career job in industry, then this is

the time to look for prospective jobs and/or employers, send out cover letters and résumés, and

begin networking with people in the field. If your goal is to gain acceptance in a particular post-

graduate program, then, this is the time to prepare your CV, and complete the forms to apply to

the selected graduate schools.

Because this process is a cycle, after taking action you should re-assess how your plan is

going. You may need to alter your goals a bit. Perhaps you stumble across a different

occupational path that appears to be a better fit for you. Use this information to ensure your

path is taking you where you really want to go.

Step 6: Re-evaluation of Career Direction

After you have obtained the career job that you wanted, so you can stop thinking about your

career, right? Actually, getting a good job is just one part of developing your career. As time

moves on, your outlook on life and what you want to pursue may change. For example, you

may have new responsibilities, your personal life and interests may have changed, or you are

expected to re-train to keep up-to-date with changes in your field. In fact, to be successful in

today’s workplace, you will be expected to engage in lifelong learning and make many career

decisions over your lifetime.

To manage your career and deal with changes and transitions in your life, you will need to

periodically re-evaluate your career direction. Stop and think about the progress that you have

made and plan the next move. Are you where you want to be in your professional life? Is it time

for a new job or should you stay put and invest energy in learning new skills at your current job?

To answer these questions and plan the next move, you should go through once again the first

five steps of the career development process. In order to make effective and fulfilling career

changes throughout your lifetime, you will periodically complete the process of self-assessment,

researching & exploring some options, decision-making, action planning, and implementing

your plan.

Self-Assessment Tools

A wide variety of career and self-assessment tools are available today to help a person gain

awareness of his/her skills, values, interests, and personality traits. Assessment tools can help

you gain a better understanding of yourself, expand your career options, find a good match with

employers, and identify strengths for the ever-shifting workplace. As mentioned earlier, self-

assessment is a vital and often overlooked step in planning your various career paths. In order


to evaluate the suitability of career options and find one that aligns with your values, interests,

strengths, traits, and ambitions, you need to first gain a good understanding of who you are as

a person. This involves taking a careful inventory of your current values, interests, skills, core

strengths, and personal qualities. The following career and self-assessment tools and

exercises are available to you to help you with this important step.

1. Values: What’s Important to Me?

To assess your values, take the tests on the following websites.

Work Values and Priorities http://psyris.com/cici/values.html

Prioritizing Life Values http://www.career-test.biz/values_assessment.htm

Secondly, complete the following Values Worksheet to identify those values that are most

important to you.

My Values Worksheet

Workplace Values Exercise Here's the premise. Before you even think about continuing with this exercise, make sure you have plenty of free time to spend with it; time to think and reflect on what you truly value. Are you ready? Your first step it to rate the importance of each of the workplace values on the list below. A few blank lines have been left at the end of our list in case we have missed something that you value in your life. Finally, be sure to be honest with yourself; no one is judging nor scoring your results. Rate the degree of importance that you place on each of the following workplace values in the table below using this scale: 4 = Very important to me 3 = Reasonably important to me 2 = Somewhat important to me 1 = Not important to me at all

Rate the importance you place on each value by

circling/checking the appropriate number below.

# I am interested in jobs and careers that include:

Very important to me

Reasonably important to me

Somewhat important to me

Not important to me at all

1. creating/building things 4 3 2 1

2. mental challenge/mentally

demanding/problem-solving

4 3 2 1

3. physical challenge/physically demanding 4 3 2 1

4. opportunity for balance between work life

and family life

4 3 2 1

5. flexibility in work structure 4 3 2 1

6. intellectual status, an acknowledged

"expert" in a given field

4 3 2 1

7. order and structure 4 3 2 1

8. high degree of competition 4 3 2 1


Rate the importance you place on each value by circling/checking the appropriate number below.

# I am interested in jobs and careers that include:

Very important to me

Reasonably important to me

Somewhat important to me

Not important to me at all

9. integrity and truth 4 3 2 1

10. rewarding loyalty and dependability 4 3 2 1

11. having self-respect and pride in work 4 3 2 1

12. stability and security 4 3 2 1

13. strong financial compensation and financial

rewards

4 3 2 1

14. being recognized for quality of work in a

visible/public way

4 3 2 1

15. professional development and on-going

learning and growth

4 3 2 1

16. variety and a changing work pace 4 3 2 1

17. using creativity, imagination; being

innovative

4 3 2 1

18. having a positive impact on others and

society

4 3 2 1

19. friendships and warm working relationships 4 3 2 1

20. clear advancement tracks/opportunities for

advancement

4 3 2 1

21. teamwork and work groups 4 3 2 1

22. glamour, prestige, respect, or a level of

social status

4 3 2 1

23. routine, predictable work projects 4 3 2 1

24. deadlines and time demand/pressure

challenges

4 3 2 1

25. tranquility, comfort, and avoidance of

pressure

4 3 2 1

26. dealing with the public/day-to-day contact

with the public

4 3 2 1

27. using cutting-edge or pioneering

technologies or techniques

4 3 2 1

28. opportunities for supervision, power,

leadership, influence

4 3 2 1

29. making decisions, having power to decide

courses of action

4 3 2 1

30. respect, recognition, being valued 4 3 2 1

31. autonomy, independence, freedom 4 3 2 1

32. precision work with little tolerance for error 4 3 2 1

33. adventure and excitement 4 3 2 1

34. 4 3 2 1

35. 4 3 2 1

36. 4 3 2 1

Your second step is to try to identify the 10 most important values to you. Check off or highlight each of these most important values from the list above. Your third step is to now narrow down your list of 10 to the five core values you hold most sacred -- that you can't live without in your job/workplace -- and place them below:


My five core values

1

2

3

4

5

Congratulations! You now have a list of core workplace values that represent who you are... it is this core group of workplace values that help determine your level of satisfaction with your job and your career -- and which should be used to judge the level of "fit" with any future job, company, or career change. Source: Quintessential Careers Quiz: quintcareers.com

Note: You can print a separate copy of the worksheet for your records. Click on Values Worksheet.

2. My Interests: What Am I Passionate About?

Interests and passions are another key part of what defines us as human beings. For some individuals, interests and passions are the things they value most. Experts have studied the correlation between one’s interests and one’s success in jobs/careers and found that there is a connection between interests and engagement and satisfaction in work. If you are interested in something, you are more likely to invest the time, effort and energy into it. Imagine not being interested in a subject and studying it in depth for four years or being in a career that you do not enjoy. Begin to think about the kinds of things that you enjoy in general.

My Interests Worksheet

The purpose of this exercise is to gain a good understanding of your interests. What are the things that you are most interested in and enjoy doing? The overall goal is to identify career options consistent with your interests, learn about your preferences, identify education and training relevant to your interests and recognize academic or work environments that might be a good fit for you. What have been your most favorite courses/ workshops to date?

1. _______________________________ 2. ________________________ 3. _________________________

What have been your most favorite pastimes and hobbies? What would your favorite pastime be if you actually had time to learn and practice it?

1. ____________________________________ 2. __________________________________ 3. __________________________________

What do you love to do? What energizes you? What activities absorb your attention so much that you lose track of time?

1. ___________________________________

2. _____________________________

3. _____________________________


Think about past and current experiences you have had (jobs, volunteering, hobbies, projects, etc.). Name the activities you enjoyed doing most from these experiences.

1. ____________________________________ 2. __________________________________ 3. __________________________________

What subjects of conversation grab your attention? What do you enjoy reading about?

1. ____________________________________ 2. __________________________________ 3. __________________________________

What other interests do you have? Did you miss any?

1. _______________________________

2. _______________________

3. ________________________ Review your answers. Choose the interests that excite you the most. Write them below.

1. ______________________________

2. _______________________

3. ________________________

4. _________________________________________________________________ Interests Reflection What surprises, if any, were there? __________________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ If you have a clearly defined career path and know exactly where you want to go upon graduation, which of your interests fit into this plan? _____________________________________ _______________________________ _____________________________________ ___________________________________________ What career options, apart from ones already identified, do your interests suggest? _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ If you knew you could not fail, or there were no limitations in your way, what would you do? _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ What are 4 things that you would like to learn more about and will help you in the future to reach your career goals?


1. ____________________________________ ___________

2. ______________________________

3. _____________________________________________________________________

4. _____________________________________________________________________ Source: Career Services: University of Calgary

Note: You can print a separate copy of the worksheet for your records. Click on Interests Worksheet.

Finding your interests using O*Net Interest Profiler

O*Net Interest Profiler: http://www.mynextmove.org/explore/ip (free) The O*NET Interest Profiler can help you find out what your interests are and how they relate to the world of work. You can find out what you like to do and this can help you decide what kinds of careers you might want to explore.

3. Assessing your Personality An important factor in determining whether you will be happy and successful in a job is to understand your personal attributes, also referred to as personality. Personality is defined as the combination of characteristics, qualities, and traits that form an individual's distinctive character. Each person has a distinct set of attributes or traits that make up his/her personality. For example, here are some general questions to help you assess and identify your personality traits. What kind of person are you? Are you kind and considerate to others? Practical? Strong willed? Patient or impatient with people when doing something? Extraverted or introverted? Highly driven to achieve results or easy going and relaxed? Careful and precise in doing something or careless and casual when doing something? Tolerant or intolerant towards other people? Cheerful and happy or discontented and glum? Creative? Lively and sociable or reserved? Finding your Career Personality Type or Holland Code To determine what kind of personality you possess, take the self-assessment test to find your career personality type or "Holland Code." John Holland is a psychologist who has developed a "theory of personality types” that is routinely used in assessing vocational interests.

Holland's theory can be summarized in six statements:

1. In general, most people are one of six personality types: Realistic, Investigative,

Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. Some refer to these as Holland Codes

or RIASEC.

2. People of the same personality type working together in a job create a work environment

that fits their type. For example, when artistic persons are together on a job, they create a

work environment that rewards creative thinking and behavior -- an artistic environment.

3. There are six basic types of work environments: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic,

Social, Enterprising, Conventional.


4. People tend to search for environments where they can use their skills and abilities and

express their values and attitudes. For example, Investigative types search for Investigative

environments; Artistic types look for Artistic environments, and so forth.

5. People who choose to work in an environment similar to their personality type are more

likely to be successful and satisfied. For example, artistic persons are more likely to be

successful and satisfied if they choose a job that has an artistic environment, like choosing

to be a dance teacher in a dancing school -- an environment "dominated" by artistic type

people where creative abilities and expression are highly valued.

6. How you act and feel at work depends to a large extent on your workplace (or school)

environment. If you are working with people who have a personality type like yours, you will

be able to do many of the things they can do, and you will feel most comfortable with them.

According to the Holland theory, you want to choose an occupation that matches your personality

type. This is most likely to lead to your job satisfaction and success. A good match-up is called

"Congruent" (meaning "compatible, in agreement or harmony"). For example, imagine that your

highest score on the Holland Test is for the Realistic type. You would then choose a job in the

Realistic group. Most people, in reality, are a combination of types -- like Realistic-Investigative, or

Artistic-Social. Therefore, you will probably want to consider occupations in more than one

category.

In summary, you are most likely to choose a satisfying job if you choose one that fits your

personality type.

Holland's Hexagon

John Holland created a hexagonal model that shows the relationship between the personality types

and environments.


Notice that the personality types closest to each other are more alike than those farther away. You

can see this most clearly when you compare the personalities opposite each other, on the hexagon.

For example, you will notice that Realistic and Social are virtually the opposite of each other. On the

other hand, Social and Artistic are not that far apart.

The same holds true for the work environments. Take the Career Personality Type assessment

below to determine your personality type and the types of occupations that are congruent with your

type.

Self-Assessment: What is your Career Personality Type: http://www.seriousjobseeker.com/2009/02/51-self-assessment-what-is-your-career_07.html (free)

4. Assess your Skills and Strengths

According to a 2013 survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) in the USA, http://www.naceweb.org/about-us/press/skills-employers-value-in-new-hires.aspx?land-surv-lp-2-prsrel-06132014 ; the top qualities/skills employers seek in new hires are:

1. Ability to verbally communicate with persons inside and outside the organization

2. Ability to make decisions and solve problems

3. Ability to obtain and process information

4. Ability to plan, organize, and prioritize work

5. Ability to analyze quantitative data

6. Technical knowledge related to job

7. Proficiency with computer software programs

8. Ability to create and/or edit written reports

9. Ability to sell or influence others

Throughout the course of your life, you have gained competencies in many areas. In which of the following do you excel? The “My Skills Worksheet” below will help you identify your strong points that you can apply to career decision-making as well as to transitioning to different fields. Check off the skills that you have demonstrated inside and outside of the classroom. Then, go back and circle those skills you most enjoy using and cross off those that you do not enjoy using. What patterns can you identify?

The top 9 Skills & Abilities


My Skills Worksheet

Communication Skills

� Present information to large and small groups

� Handle complaints in person/over the phone

� Sell ideas, products, or services

� Listen carefully and attentively

� Develop rapport easily with diverse individuals and groups of people

� Read or speak another language

� Edit and proofread written material

Counseling, Serving, and Interpersonal Relations Skills

� Counsel, advise, consult, guide others

� Demonstrate empathy, sensitivity, and patience

� Help people make their own decisions

� Help others improve health and welfare

� Listen empathically and with objectivity

� Create positive, hospitable environment

� Encourage, empower, advocate for people

Creative and Innovative Skills

� Visualize concepts and results

� Brainstorm and make use of group synergy

� Design materials, products, or services

� Express ideas through art form

� Use computer software for artistic creations

� Write poetry, fiction, plays

Research and Analytical Skills

� Identify appropriate information sources

� Hypothesize and test for results

� Compile numerical and statistical data

� Classify and sort information into categories

� Write analysis of study and research

� Compare and evaluate information

� Formulate insightful and relevant questions

� Use technology for statistical analysis

� Keep accurate and complete records

Numerical Skills (Note: this was developed for general population, not mathematicians)

� Solid ability with basic arithmetic

� Multiplying numbers in your head

� Figuring out percentages

� Recognizing patterns and relationships in numbers

� Gaining valuable information from graphs, tables and charts

� Quickly spotting numerical errors


� Making decisions based on numerical data

� Making rough calculations/estimates in your head

� Analyzing statistical data

Training and Teaching Skills

� Use a variety of media for presentations

� Develop educational curriculum and materials

� Create and administer evaluation plan

� Facilitate a group

� Explain difficult ideas, complex topics

� Assess learning styles and respond accordingly

� Consult and recommend solutions

Financial Skills

� Developing/staying within a budget

� Eye for a profit

� Recognizing money making opportunities

� Managing money/making money grow

� Setting financial priorities

� Developing cost cutting solutions

� Negotiating financial deals

� Understanding economic principles

Mechanical and Tool Skills

� Inventing

� Assembling/building/installing

� Precision work

� Operating hand/power tools

� Troubleshooting/diagnosing problems

� Drafting/mechanical drawing

� Understanding manuals/diagrams

� Understanding electricity

Problem-Solving Skills

� Anticipating/solving problems

� Bringing order in a chaotic situation

� Determining root causes

� Selecting most effective solution

� Improvising under stress

� Helping a group identify solutions

� Handling difficult people

� Staying calm in emergencies

Planning and Organizing Skills

� Identify and organize tasks or information

� Coordinate and organize people, activities, processes, systems, and programs


� Develop a plan and set objectives

� Set up and keep time schedules

� Anticipate problems and respond with solutions

� Plan and manage events

Leadership, Management, and Administrative Skills

� Envision the future and lead change

� Establish policy and/or procedures

� Set goals and determine courses of action

� Create innovative solutions to complex problems

� Develop and facilitate work teams

� Provide training for development of staff

� Demonstrate flexibility during crisis

Source: Center for Career Education, Columbia University

What are your 10 best skills and strengths—the ones in which you excel? List them in the table below for your future records. When preparing your CV or résumé, you should refer back to this worksheet to identify those special skills that should be mentioned and highlighted in your CV or in a job interview.

My top ten strongest points and skills

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Note: You can print a separate copy of the worksheet for your records. Click on Skills Worksheet.

Explore Career Options The second step of the career development process is to explore and gather information on occupations and careers that may be a good fit for you. Both in Africa and in the global economy, there are many different jobs out there for you to explore. As technology advances, new jobs will be created that currently don’t exist today. In fact, it is hard to predict what the workplace will look like 5, 10, or 20 years from now. Therefore, it is so important for you to do “research” on occupations and careers that currently exist and that you try to keep up with new ones that are evolving for graduates in mathematics, physics, and computing and could be of


interest to you in the future. The occupational research will play an important part in helping you to make smart and wise career decisions.

What to Research? One approach is to browse through detailed job and industry profiles to learn about the day-today responsibilities, required skills and education, and work environments for a variety of occupations. The U.S. Occupational Outlook Handbook is a good place to start. This handbook has profiles covering hundreds of occupations. Each occupation profile describes what the worker does, the work environment, education needed, and expected job outlook and salary for this occupation. The website for the handbook is U.S. Occupational Outlook Handbook

Given below are job descriptions from the Handbook for a number of occupations in

mathematical sciences, such as:

• Computer and Mathematical Occupations

• Computer and Information Analysts

• Software Developers and Programmers

• Database and Systems Administrators and Network Architects

• Mathematical Finance Occupations

• Mathematicians

• Computer Hardware Engineers

• Operations Research Analysts

• Statisticians

• Economists

• Market Research Analysts

• Physicists and Astronomers

• Epidemiologists

In addition, information is provided for the growing occupations of Bioinformatics Scientist

and Climate Change Analyst.

Occupational Field

Job Description for Occupation

Computer and Information Research Scientists

What Computer and Information Research Scientists Do

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-

and-information-research-scientists.htm#tab-2

Computer and Information Analysts

What Computer Systems Analysts Do


systems-analysts.htm#tab-2

Software Developers and Programmers

What Software Developers Do

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-

developers.htm#tab-2

What Computer Programmers Do


programmers.htm#tab-2

Database and Systems Administrators

What Database Administrators Do

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/database-administrators.htm#tab-2


Occupational Field


Mathematical

Finance

Occupations

What Actuaries Do http://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/actuaries.htm#tab-2

What Financial Analysts Do http://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/financial-analysts.htm#tab-2

Mathematicians

What Mathematicians Do http://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/mathematicians.htm#tab-2

Computer

Hardware

Engineers

What Computer Hardware Engineers Do http://www.bls.gov/ooh/architecture-and-engineering/computer-hardware-engineers.htm#tab-2

Statisticians

What Statisticians Do http://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/statisticians.htm#tab-2

Operations Research Analysts

What Operations Research Analysts Do http://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/operations-research-analysts.htm#tab-2

Market Research What Market Research Analysts Do http://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/market-research-analysts.htm

Physicists and Astronomers

What Physicists and Astronomers Do http://www.bls.gov/ooh/life-physical-and-social-science/physicists-and-astronomers.htm#tab-2

Economists What Economist Do http://wwhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiDV6yNvtzkw.bls.gov/ooh/life-physical-and-social-science/economists.htm#tab-2

Epidemiologists What Epidemiologists Do http://www.bls.gov/ooh/life-physical-and-social-science/epidemiologists.htm#tab-2

Climate Change

Analyst

Climate Change Analyst http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/science-engineering-careers/Weather_climatechangeanalyst_c001.shtml Although it is possible to work as a climate change analyst with just a bachelor's degree, employment opportunities increase with a graduate degree. This is particularly true for students interested in the more modeling-intensive career path. For these students, a master’s degree or PhD in environmental science, computer science, or mathematics is helpful. Job candidates who would like to focus more on the policy aspects of climate change might benefit from a master’s degree or PhD in either public policy or in environmental science.

Bioinformatics

Scientist

Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary scientific field that develops methods for

storing, retrieving, organizing and analyzing biological data. A major activity in

bioinformatics is to develop software tools to generate useful biological


Occupational Field


knowledge.

Bioinformatics uses many areas of computer

science, statistics, mathematics and engineering to process biological

data. Complex machines are used to read in biological data at a much faster

rate than before. Databases and information systems are used to store and

organize biological data. Analyzing biological data may

involve algorithms in artificial intelligence, soft computing, data mining, image

processing, and simulation. The algorithms in turn depend on theoretical

foundations such as discrete mathematics, control theory, system

theory, information theory, and statistics. Commonly used software tools and

technologies in the field

include Java, C#, XML, Perl, C, C++, Python, R, SQL, CUDA, MATLAB,

and spreadsheet applications.

The primary goal of bioinformatics is to increase the understanding of biological

processes. What sets it apart from other approaches, however, is its focus on

developing and applying computationally intensive techniques to achieve this

goal. Examples include: pattern recognition, data mining, machine

learning algorithms, and visualization. Major research efforts in the field

include sequence alignment, gene finding, genome assembly, drug

design, drug discovery, protein structure alignment, protein structure prediction,

prediction of gene expression and protein–protein interactions, genome-wide

association studies, and the modeling of evolution.

Bioinformatics now entails the creation and advancement of databases,

algorithms, computational and statistical techniques, and theory to solve formal

and practical problems arising from the management and analysis of biological

data.

Over the past few decades rapid developments in genomic and other molecular

research technologies and developments in information technologies have

combined to produce a tremendous amount of information related to molecular

biology. Bioinformatics is the name given to these mathematical and computing

approaches used to glean understanding of biological processes.

Another approach for researching your options is to utilize occupational profiles created for a

field of study such as mathematics. Given below are 8 occupational profiles developed for the

field of Mathematics by Alberta Learning Information Services, Canada. Click on the following

link to read about some interesting occupations that are relevant to graduates with degrees in

mathematics, physics, and computer science. Math Occupational Profiles

For each occupation, you can obtain useful information on educational requirements for this

occupation, the type of work performed by someone working in this occupation, and personal

characteristics needed to be successful in the job.

The profiles of the following occupations are provided for your exploration (see above link).

1. Data Miner/Data Scientist

2. Demographer


3. Ecologist

4. Exploration Geophysicist

5. Mathematician

6. Statistician

7. Cryptologist

8. Health Data Analyst

Research On-line Job Boards and other Jobs Posted On-line for Graduates in

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science

Another approach for researching potential jobs and careers in industry and research is to

study jobs posted on-line where the employer is looking for applicants with mathematics and

computer science degrees.

Mathematics graduate jobs in South Africa http://www.careerjet.co.za/mathematics-graduate-jobs.html Indeed. One Search. All jobs. Type in Mathematics under What http://www.indeed.co.za/jobs?q=Mathematics&start=20 Jobs in Ghana http://www.jobsinghana.com/home/ Type in mathematics and location Kenya http://careers.n-soko.com/jobs/search Jobs in Senegal; search and apply http://www.learn4good.com/jobs/language/english/list/country/senegal/ Careers at CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research)

http://www.csir.co.za/recruitment/vacancy.php

JobVine South Africa; type in Mathematics and search for jobs

http://www.jobvine.co.za/jobs/search/results/?keyword=Mathematics&location=All+Locations&s

earch=both

University Mathematics Jobs in South Africa

http://www.careerjet.co.za/university-mathematics-jobs.html

Conduct Informational Interviewing

Another approach to learn about careers is to conduct informational interviewing. One of the best ways to learn about a career is to talk to someone who is actually working in it every day! Beyond the advantages of gaining valuable career information, the informational interview also provides the opportunity for you to build self-confidence, to build a network, and to improve your ability to handle a job interview. The informational interview, unlike reading about an occupation or visiting a website, gives you the first-hand impressions of someone actually working in the occupation. The AIMS Career Development Officer can help you find some connections to employers and individuals that you would like to interview. The first step is to identify the occupation or job that is of future interest to you, such as Data Miner or Data Scientist. Next, find an employer that


employs an individual in that job or use your alumni connections or connections obtained for you by the Career Development Officer to find an individual working as a Data Scientist. Then, contact the individual and schedule a brief face-to-face or phone informational interview. The purpose of an informational interview is to learn more about an industry, career field, or specific occupation, not to ask for an internship or job. When you call to schedule the informational interview tell your contact about your interest in their field of work and your curiosity to learn more. Once the interview is scheduled you will need to prepare insightful questions to ask your contact as well as explanations about why you’re interested in this field or occupation. To prepare, you should research the company/employer and the type of work/research that it performs. Make sure you can clearly highlight why you want to take this career path and what strengths you have to contribute to that specific line of work. Remember, you’re not trying to get a job, just trying to better understand what a person does in the occupation/job, while building your professional network and practicing your interview skills. In preparation for your informational interview, make sure you:

• Regard each interview as a business appointment and conduct yourself in a professional manner. You should neither be too casually dressed nor overdressed.

• Be sure you know the name of the person you are meeting, the correct pronunciation of his/her name, and the title of his/her position.

• Know your skills, interests, qualifications, and goals and can articulate them.

• Have a 1 – 2 minute pitch prepared that succinctly describes your background and what your goals are.

• Know what it is you want to take away from the conversation. Take some notes during the interview of key points of interest.

• Be polite, professional, and thankful. Send thank you notes after meeting with the individual or individuals in the company or organization.

• Keep in touch. After being introduced to new people, follow-up with a short communication such as an e-mail or a phone call.

Remember: an informational interview is not stressful like a job interview. You are the one in control and asking the questions.

Decision Making and Action Planning

Once you have done your research and explored a range of potential occupations and careers,

it is time to get focused. In the next step, you will narrow your choices and identify those

careers/occupations that are the best match for your personality, values, interests, and

personal strengths and skills. This section will help you to prioritize your career choices, make

preliminary decisions, set career goals, and develop a career development/action plan.

To help you identify those careers/occupations that are the best fit for you and make an initial

career decision, complete the following “Evaluating My Career Options Worksheet”. At the end

of this exercise, you should have a final prioritized list of those careers that are the best match

for you.

Note: Before completing this worksheet, you should refer to the section “Self-Assessment

Tools” and utilize the results of the self-assessment of your values, interests, personality, and

skills and strengths (see the various worksheets completed in this section).


Evaluating My Career Options Worksheet

How interested are you in

working in this occupation?

Check � the box where this occupation is a

good fit for your:

# Job/Occupation Very

much

Somewhat Not

at all

Values Interests Personal

Traits

Skills &

Strengths

1. Applied Mathematician*

2. Bio mathematician*

3. Theoretical Mathematician*

4. Mathematical Consultant*

5. Financial Mathematician*

6. Statistician*

7. Actuary*

8. Biostatistician*

9. University Lecturer &

Researcher

10. School Teacher

11. Computer and Information

Research Scientist

12. Computer Systems Analyst

13. Software Developer

14. Computer Programmer

15. Database Administrator

16. Financial Analyst

17. Mathematician

18. Computer Hardware

Engineer

19. Market Research Analyst

20. Operations Research Analyst

21. Physicist

22. Astronomer

23. Economist

24. Epidemiologist

25. Climate Change Analyst

26. Bioinformatics Scientist

27. Data Miner/Data Scientist

28. Demographer

29. Ecologist

30. Exploration Geophysicist

31. Cryptologist

32. Health Data Analyst

33. Entrepreneur: Running my

own business

34. Other?

35. Other?

36. Other?


* Some Definitions of Occupations:

Applied mathematicians use mathematical theories and techniques to solve practical problems in business,

engineering and the sciences. For example, they may investigate the cost of establishing a new business or the

mathematical aspects of manufacturing a new alloy or energy system. Bio mathematicians use mathematical techniques and tools to model natural and biological processes. For

example, they may investigate the effectiveness of vaccination programs in preventing epidemics. Theoretical mathematicians seek to advance mathematical science by developing new principles and new

relationships between existing mathematical principles. Mathematical consultants assist with business and research projects that demand advanced knowledge of

mathematics. They may work on mathematical problems in a variety of fields (for example, in mechanics,

electromagnetic theory, economics, communication networks, energy, materials science, or the petrochemical

industry). Financial mathematicians develop mathematical and probability models of stock markets, options and currency

futures.

Statisticians and actuaries use mathematics to solve problems in finance, business and government.

Biostatisticians or Biometricians work in pharmaceutical companies, public health agencies, or hospitals. They use

statistics to measure the reliability of methods of treatment of diseases and the performance of drugs.

Note: You can print a separate copy of this worksheet for your records. Click on Evaluating My Career Options Worksheet.

Prioritizing your Career Options

Your next step is to identify and prioritize the occupations/careers that you definitely want to

pursue. In the table below, list the top five occupations/careers that you wish to pursue in the

future—the ones that are of greatest interest to you, that best fit your values and personality,

and will satisfy your career aspirations and ambitions. .

My top five career choices

1 �Highest Priority

2

3

4

5

Making Decisions: Setting My Career Goal

The next step is to make a decision on your ultimate career goal. Your career goal may be

tentative at this point but nevertheless you should try to identify your career goal based on the

research that you did and your evaluation and prioritizing of careers and occupations in the

previous step. Create a clear vision of what you want your personal and professional life to

look like. This is your ultimate career goal. It must not be simply a dream; it must be realistic

and guided by your careers research and self-assessment of your interests and personality.

It is well known that it is much better to write down your goals on paper rather than just thinking

about them. Writing your goals down on paper can be an essential tool that will lead you to

achieving your career ambitions in the future. Why is it important to write your goals on paper?

• It helps to clarify your wishes, ambitions, and priorities


• It provides direction—where you want to go in the future

• It encourages accountability and commitment on your part

• It increases motivation

• It can result in celebration at the end—you set a goal and you attained it.

Develop an Action Plan

To realize your career goal, you will need to make an Action Plan. It is important that you write

it down; you need a concrete plan for reaching your goal. Your action plan will include short-

term (1-3 years) goals and long-term (4 years and beyond from now) goals. To achieve these

goals, you will write down the action steps that must be taken to attain them and the deadlines

for completing them.

To assist you with the preparation of your Career Action Plan, a Career Development Plan

Template is provided on the following pages. You can open a separate copy of the template for

printing by clicking on this link: Career Development Plan Template

.

The template is organized the following way:

• Goal (there will be both short-term and long-term goals; a separate plan is prepared for

each goal)

• Step 1 (precise activity to be completed by you, the target completion date for the step,

and a check on progress achieving this step)

• Step 2 (precise activity to be completed by you, the target completion date for the step,

and a check on progress achieving this step)

• Steps 3, 4, 5, etc.

Use the template to prepare your career action plans for four different time periods (action plan

to be completed during the next 5-6 months, the next 6-12 months, the next 1-3 years, and the

next 4-6 years). You can expect that these plans will change as your situation (and you)

change over time. You want to be as precise as possible in preparing the action steps but you

also have to be prepared to be flexible and adjust your plan several times before you reach

your career goal.

Career Development Plan Template Use the following career development plan template to prepare your Personal Career Action Plan. To begin, you must have specific career objectives or career goals in mind; both short-term (within the next 1-3 years) and long-term (4 years and beyond).

1 Short-term Goal #1 (one that you wish to achieve or complete within the next 5-6 months). Your goal must be measurable and achievable.


Target Completion Date

Completed?

Activity In progress

Yes

Step 1: (Describe exactly what you will do; for example, prepare my

CV and apply for a job or post-graduate program)

Step 2: (Describe exactly what you will do: for example, apply for a specific internship)

Step 3:

Step 4:

2 Short-term Goal #2 (one that you wish to achieve or complete within the next 6-12 months). Your goal must be measurable and achievable.


Completed?


Yes

Step 1: (Describe exactly what you will do; for example, submit my application for a particular research position)

Step 2: (Describe exactly what you will do; for example, to search for and secure the desired job in industry).

Step 3:

Step 4:

Step 5:


Are there any obstacles or barriers that may prevent you from achieving this goal (such as finances, family concerns, illness, etc.)? State below. What strategies do you have for overcoming these obstacles? Write them down below. These strategies are part of your back-up plan.

Possible Barriers/Obstacles:

Strategies:

Long-term Goals �

1 Long-term Goal #1 (one that you wish to achieve or complete within the next 1-3 years). Your goal must be measurable and achievable.


Completed?


Yes

Step 1: (Describe exactly what you will do; for example, what step

will you take to obtain the work experience needed for your long-term career goal?)

Step 2: (Describe exactly what you will do; for example, what step will you take to obtain the education needed for your long-term career goal?)

Step 3:

Step 4:

Step 5:




Strategies:

2 Long-term Goal #2 (one that you wish to achieve or complete within the next 3-6 years; this is your ultimate career goal-your vision of what you want your personal and professional life to look like in the future).


Completed?


Yes

Step 1: (Describe exactly what you will do; for example, what step

will you take to obtain the work experience needed for your long-term career goal?)

Step 2: (Describe exactly what you will do; for example, what step will you take to obtain the education needed for your long-term career goal?)

Step 3:

Step 4:

Step 5:




Strategies:

Implementing your Personal Action Plan

It is now time for you to take action and implement your action plan beginning with the first

short-term plan (to be completed or achieved within the next 5-6 months). For example, it is

now time to start looking for prospective jobs either in academia or in industry—the ones that

you targeted in your career action plan. You need to use your work search skills to secure the

desired position. You need to connect with and market yourself to employers. You need to

prepare a suitable résumé targeted for a particular job in industry or prepare a CV targeted for a

post-graduate program or for a research position in academia. You need to review your

assessment of your personal skills and strengths and ensure that they are highlighted in your

résumé. Also, you need to prepare suitable cover letters when applying for these positions.

There may be other activities that have to be implemented according to your action plan. For

example, completing the mock interviews as a preliminary step to learning how to present

yourself more effectively to an employer in a job interview. Other activities in your action plan

may include performing informational interviewing with an employer to learn what skills are

needed in an occupation and to introduce yourself to this employer, completing specific

applications for advertised positions, and following-up with job leads. Another action step may

involve networking with key people (such as AIMS alumni or professionals in the field of

interest) to find job leads and obtain references.

Reviewing Your Progress

To monitor your progress in completing the action steps of your plan, make certain to check off

the progress status column, as shown below.



Completed?


Yes

Step 1: Complete and submit the application for the Data

Scientist/Programmer position with CSIR including a targeted résumé and cover letter.

2014-04-10 �

Step 2: Connect with 4 AIMS alumni who graduated last year and

are working in data mining positions in industry

2014-04-18 �

Step 3: To make myself more employable in the business world, take an extra course on scaling data storage and processing e.g. via cloud services like Amazon Web Services

2014-05-30 No progress yet

It is important that you refer to your action plan often. Assess whether you are on track or not.

Do you need to change some of the action steps because circumstances have changed? In

searching for and obtaining the desired job or position, you will experience some setbacks. If

the goal has not changed, it is important that you keep your determination high and not get

discouraged.

As you accomplish some of the action steps, take time to congratulate yourself. This helps your motivation to continue pursuing your goal. At the same time, identify any mistakes you made and what you can learn from them, look at any new ideas or opportunities that may have presented themselves and then revise your plan to incorporate these. It may be a good idea to share your career goals with friends and family. When you experience a setback, they may be very helpful in giving you encouragement and backing you up. Also, trusted friends can provide you with new strategies and ideas on how to reach your goal. In conclusion, keep reminding yourself that you set realistic goals for yourself, they are attainable, and that you are not going to give up pursuing them!


List of Sources

Quintessential Careers: QuintCareers.com

Career Services: University of Calgary

Careers and Employability Service: University of Kent

Centre for Career Education: Columbia University

Occupational Career Handbook: Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of

Labor

Math at Work: Using Numbers on the Job: Occupational Outlook Quarterly, Fall 2012: U.S.

Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS)

http://www.career-development-help.com/index.html

Career Services: Brock University

Office of Career and Professional Development: Wake Forest University

Occupational Profiles for Field of Mathematics: Alberta Learning Information Services (ALIS)

Canadian Standards and Guidelines for Career Development Practitioners.

List of Worksheets and Templates (that can be printed separately)

Page

Values Worksheet 6

Interests Worksheet 8

Skills Worksheet 13

Math Occupational Profiles 18

Evaluating My Career Options Worksheet 21

Career Development Plan Template 23

My career development 2014-06-18

Documents

career development process

career development step

career development page

career development important

career development knowledge

kind of career

career change

career options worksheet