Changing majors because of the recession

Suzanne Shaffer — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 13:36:38 +0000

Our guest blog post today is by Susan Posluszny, the founder of OPTIONS for Career & Life Planning, specializing in unique programs and services to support students with college major and career planning. Susan is a Master Career Counselor with over 25 years of career counseling experience including 18 years as a college career center director. She is the author of In Search of a College Major & Career Direction, an interactive program designed to support teens and young adults with choosing a college major and career path.Her career counseling and coaching practice is located in New Boston, NH. Subscribe to Susan’s e-newsletter, Career Options, at www.collegesandmajors.com

As I looked over an issue of a local town newspaper last June, I came upon an article covering the area high school’s 2009 class of graduates. As you might expect, the article included comments from graduating students and proud parents along with other graduation event details. While reading the article, I was struck by a comment made by one soon to be graduate who said that the current recession had led him to change his college major from political science to engineering.

Naturally, the career counselor in me kicked in and, if I had known this student, I would have asked him the following questions:

What was it that drew you to your original college major choice of political science?
What kind of work were you thinking of getting into related to political science and did you ever speak with anyone employed in this area of interest?
How do those who work in political science careers deal with the instability that comes with unpredictable voting outcomes and job market fluctuations?
If you can’t answer this last question, how might you get answers from those who are ‘in the know’?
How long have you considered engineering as a major?
What do you know about engineering career options?
Have you ever spoken with anyone who works in an engineering related career?
Have you ever job shadowed workers in either political science or engineering careers?

I would ask these questions not because I’m opposed to this graduate’s decision to shift from a major in political science to engineering. Rather, my intention would be to see if this decision was made based on accurate career information and reflection about personal priorities or based on a knee jerk reaction to current economic conditions. Job market fluctuations are a reality and, yes, the current job market is a challenging one. Yet, that does not mean students need to ignore their career aspirations.

If I were coaching this student, my advice would depend on his answers to the questions above. If he were not informed, I would guide him to make sure his assumptions are accurate. I would also encourage him to consider scenarios that support exploration of these two interest areas over time. For example, one option might be to major in engineering while taking as many political science courses as possible (maybe even leading to a minor in political science). A major in engineering could also be combined with volunteer work related to his political science interests.

Bottom line…watch out for knee jerk fear based decisions based on an unusually tight job market. If employment security is a concern, do your homework and learn about things you can do to create your own sense of security while doing work that you enjoy.

Copyright, Susan B. Posluszny, OPTIONS for Career & Life Planning LLC

If you would like to contact Susan or find out more information about the services she provides, you can contact her at:

Her websites: www.careeroptions4me.com and www.collegesandmajors.com

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/susanposluszny

Email: susan@careeroptions4me.com

Career planning tips for parents of teens

Suzanne Shaffer — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 11:00:13 +0000

Our guest blog post today is by Susan Posluszny, the founder of OPTIONS for Career & Life Planning, specializing in unique programs and services to support students with college major and career planning. Susan is a Master Career Counselor with over 25 years of career counseling experience including 18 years as a college career center director. She is the author of In Search of a College Major & Career Direction, an interactive program designed to support teens and young adults with choosing a college major and career path.Her career counseling and coaching practice is located in New Boston, NH. Subscribe to Susan’s e-newsletter, Career Options, at www.collegesandmajors.com

Think Big Picture

It’s common to overly focus on the details: Which ‘one’ major should I pick? Which ‘one’ career should I pursue? Yet, research studies show that it’s common for students (and adults) to shift direction over time as they explore, grow, and change. What to do? Get your student to identify their top 2 – 3 academic and career interests and then explore ways to simultaneously prepare for and reality test more than one interest. Sound impossible? Not at all. Careful selection of academic courses and career exploration strategies (job shadowing, internships, career related employment or volunteer experience) will do it. Be sure to spread these efforts out over time so as not to overload.

Discard Outdated Notions of ‘Job Security’

Job security in the form of long term employment with one employer in exchange for dedication and hard work is long gone. Instead, shifts in the work world have been moving towards project based work and ways to match individual interests and skills to marketplace needs. Don’t expect selection of the ‘right school’, the ‘right degree’, or the ‘right career’ to provide guarantees of post graduation employment or career success. Today’s students will need to take charge of their own career development in order to ensure a sense of ‘employment security’ for themselves.

Consider Career Interests Relative to College Loan Debt

According to the College Board, the average debt for a Bachelor’s degree was $23,200 in 2007-2008. an individual student’s loan debt can vary significantly from this figure but the bottom line is that many students are feeling pressured to pursue academic and career choices that will allow them to pay off their loans…even if these choices don’t particularly interest or excite them. So, how about your student? Will college loan debt drive your student’s college major and career decisions? If so, it’s as if your student is working for the financial institution. Help your student to identify their top career interests and to explore creative options for pursuing career preferences while owning one’s financial reality. Do all that you can to help your student avoid limiting future options by taking on too much debt.

Explore Career Preferences Prior to Choosing a College Major

Many students choose a college major first and then determine their career choice based on their chosen major. This is a no brainer when a major is directly linked to a career field (nursing, education, engineering, etc.) but this approach has its limits. First, it doesn’t work so well with majors that cover broad interest areas like English or Business Administration. Second, many students end up pursuing career interests totally unrelated to their majors. While it can be helpful for students to consider academic subjects that interest them when choosing a college major/career, it’s also valuable to explore your career interests Once key career interest themes are identified, research to see if these interests have specific college major requirements. Chances are that there’s quite a bit of flexibility with academic choices relative to career pursuits.