Exploring/Multiple Interests
Still figuring out your career path or torn between multiple options? Don’t worry—that’s totally normal! Check out the Career Pathway community pages for helpful info and resources to explore your options. Choosing a career isn’t about just one big decision—it’s a mix of self-exploration, research, and hands-on experience. And remember, picking a career now doesn’t mean you’re locked in forever—most people switch directions five or six times throughout their lives. So take time to research, stay curious, and explore what excites you.
If you are still deciding or exploring, we recommend beginning with Explore Your Interests/Self-Assessment section. You can take self-assessments to gather insights into your interests, skills, values, personality, and strengths that can help you begin to formulate a plan.
Resources to assist your exploration:
If you’re interested in multiple careers or VT Career Pathways, you may be feeling overwhelmed or stuck if you’re unsure whether a better option may exist or unsure how to narrow down your options. To make the process more manageable, it’s helpful to break it down into smaller steps:
Learn more about each of the Career Pathways and types of events, resources, and career information shared for each community. Pay attention to what interests you most! [All of the Career Pathways can be found in the above menu by hovering over “Career Paths & Identities”]
Identify the career options or pathways you want to explore further. Even if you’re unsure of exactly what it may entail, include as many as you can see yourself potentially pursuing. Consider following each of those Career Pathways to see what information and events are regularly shared by those communities. [Each community will have an orange button to the right, “Follow here for more career content.”]
To compare your options, create a simple way to rank them. You could use numbers (like 1-5) or something quicker, like low/medium/high or okay/good/great. Ranking them is just a way to prioritize what you want to explore more in-depth first, not excluding the other options all together. After you create your list of your top career options of interests, now it’s time to create your action plan!
Candid Career Videos: Watch short videos of industry professionals talking candidly about their jobs, as well as videos to help you explore careers by industries, career titles, college majors, and more.
Career Insights with Steppingblocks: Learn from millions of real-world outcomes to get insight into the skills, trends, and education you need to make career decisions.
Career Profiles: Information about careers, and salaries by career field. Sources, by industry, for finding jobs.
CareerFYI.com: Informational interviews with people working in specific careers such as fashion, finance, high tech, human resources, insurance, legal, marketing, non-profit, project management, public service, real estate, retail, sales, software, television, travel, web/tech, and more.
Employment Projections: Extensive information collected and compiled by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Job Shadow.com: Explore career options by reading interviews with people in many occupations
Occupational Outlook Handbook: Research guide for detailed information about specific occupations. Look up occupations, see nature of the work, job outlook, earnings, and more.
O*Net Find Occupations: Find and learn about occupations. View by career cluster, industry, outlook. Browse occupations by abilities, skills, interests, knowledge, values, more. Browse interests by Holland Codes [RIASEC]. Search occupations by skills, technology, and knowledge.
Vault: Dive into detailed information about various industries, companies, and job roles to help you make informed career decisions. Access extensive company rankings and read verified reviews from employees and interns to get an authentic view of potential employers. Utilize guidebooks for in-depth insights into career paths, industry trends, and company cultures.
The best decisions are made based on information from a variety of sources. Seek perspective from different people to enhance your research. People working in career fields can offer a reality check on things you read or assumptions you might have.
- Career and internship advisors in colleges: There are faculty and staff in many of the colleges and major departments whom you can meet with you to discuss academic and career options commonly associated with their majors.
- Career and Professional Development advising: We’re here to help you navigate your decisions and connect you with the right resources to find alumni and other professionals to learn more about the careers/industries you’re exploring. Let us know how we can support you!
Don’t let the idea of networking intimidate you! More simply, networking is building relationships. Speaking with professionals (a.k.a. informational interviews) is an ideal way to gain insights into career fields, companies, and even what it’s like to work in specific locations. Start with contacts you already have to get more comfortable before reaching out to new contacts you may make from the following:
- Alumni
- Virginia Tech LinkedIn alumni page allows you to find Hokies who are working in careers you may be exploring. This is a great way to explore career paths and find people you can contact to learn from their experience.
- Employers
- Career fairs can be a great opportunity to speak with a number of employers all at once. Remember, the world of work is not organized by major. Most VT career fairs are open to all majors! Visit the career fair page in Handshake to see who’s attending and the types of opportunities they offer.
- If a career fair seems too overwhelming when first beginning to network, consider starting with smaller, more intimate opportunities: employer information sessions, guest speakers who visit your class, college/department networking events, etc. Do your homework before attending an employer event to learn more about their organization. Employers are impressed by students who are prepared! Participate to learn more first-hand from employers about internships and entry-level career options.
An informational interview or informational meeting enables you to gather information about careers, by initiating contact with someone for the purpose of learning. It is not the same as a job interview! Think of the approach of a journalist interviewing someone in order to learn; that’s your purpose.
Fundamentally to learn more in order to make informed decisions related to your career journey, including exploring career options, seeking experience, determining whether grad school is appropriate for your career plans, and preparing to pursue post-graduation jobs.
Specifically to:
- Learn from individuals who work in jobs, to bring life to information you read.
- Get advice about your coursework, getting experience, the types of entry-level jobs you could pursue with a bachelor’s degree, whether and when a graduate degree might be needed.
- Get advice about the characteristics that help individuals fit and flourish in a job or career field or industry, to help you determine if the job, career field, or industry is a fit for you.
- Learn more so you can effectively interview for experience and post-grad jobs, by showing knowledge of the job, career field, and/or industry. Employers call it doing your homework, and they expect you to do this.
- Begin in your comfort zone.
- Practice the process with parents and relatives, your friends’ parents/relatives, friends of your parents/relatives, etc. You get the idea.
- Start with people with whom you don’t feel intimidated and practice.
- Practice, practice, practice is the key to learning and mastering anything.
- It does not matter if their career fields are different from your interests!!! The key is to learn the skills of asking, listening, being curious, and learning.
Indicate how/from whom you found the person’s name. You might start with an email introduction, and follow up with a phone call a few days later. Don’t ask/expect the person to call you. You’re asking for a favor, so you must make most of the effort (which has the benefit of showing initiative). Suggest the best days of the week or times that you’re typically available so it is easier for them to recommend a time that might work for them within your availability.
- Include a brief, basic introduction of yourself: full name, major (considering or enrolled), university, academic level, your interest in learning about a job, career, or industry.
- Request 15 or 20 minutes of the person’s time, to be scheduled at that person’s convenience considering your schedule. Indicate if you would like to talk by phone, in-person, or Zoom. [You might be arranging to talk with someone near your university or near your home during a school break, or elsewhere if you are traveling.] When it’s safe to do so, meeting in person at the workplace has the advantage of letting you see (and perhaps tour) the work environment; but that’s not always possible. When it’s safe, you could offer to take the person out for coffee or lunch. [The person might accept your offer, but not let you pay for her/his lunch. Be prepared, regardless.] Obviously if you meet for lunch, that takes more than 15-20 minutes, but do ask your contact when s/he needs to be finished (shows you appreciate and respect the person’s time).
Allow ample time between your request and when you expect to meet; people are busy with full schedules. While some people may have schedules that allow meeting on short notice, most don’t; it could take two to four weeks to find a time to meet. If you are trying to arrange meetings during school breaks, begin to work on this about a month ahead of time. Asking for a meeting on very short notice does not make a good impression; you’ll look like you don’t plan and don’t understand work-world realities.
- Confirm the planned meeting in writing (email). If in person, learn anything you may need about how to get to the meeting place (parking, rules/security, checking in to a building or reception desk, etc.); and allow ample time to arrive.
- Be slightly early. If it’s a Zoom meeting, be on a minute or two early. If in person, arrive five minutes early to the meeting place. If you’ve never been to the location before, plan to arrive a little too early and visit the restroom to freshen up. Never be late; you’ve asked for a favor, and being late will make a negative impression.
- Respect the person’s time. If in person, and if it’s safe to do so, have a good handshake. Have good questions ready (see sample questions below). Watch your time. Initiate ending your meeting in a timely manner to respect your contact. Allow extra time for yourself in case your contact offers to talk longer. Don’t appear as though you need to rush off to something else (like feeding your parking meter).
Dress in business casual or business attire, depending on the formality of the person’s career field. Think about how you’ll look on Zoom. If in doubt, better to be dressed too nicely than too casually. People will be impressed by your effort.
Preferably write the letter by the end of the next day, but later is better than never. A handwritten note on appropriate stationery is ideal. A nicely written email will also be appreciated. Thank the person for the time and advice given to you. Mention something you learned and what follow-up you will do.
- Key is to be prepared, listen, and be flexible.
- Your purpose is to start an informative conversation in which your interviewee does most of the talking. You might need to ask only a few questions, then listen carefully and ask follow-up questions. Don’t follow a question script so closely that you are asking about things the person already told you.
- Tailor your questions to the level / seniority of your interviewee. You might ask more direct questions to a person who is just a year or two out of college and newer in her/his field. With a person with high seniority, you might frame your questions to seek advice for someone in college.
- Be careful how you refer to the organization.
- Research before you say “company,” “agency,” “firm,” “business,” department,” etc.
- What’s correct? Don’t use “company” to refer to a government office, a not-for-profit organization, or a school or educational institution. “Organization” is usually a safe term. Look up the organization’s website to see how they reference themselves. Note you may be talking to someone who works in a department, unit or office of a much larger organization.
Below are some samples for inspiration. Make your own list that works for you!
Plan to ask about seven to ten questions, and have a few more ready if needed.
As the interviewer, you should take the lead, but prepare to take cues from your interviewee. If they are very talkative, you might not need to ask many questions. If they give you brief answers, you might need to ask more questions.
Craft your questions based on your research, your knowledge of the person you’ll interview, and your true interests and curiosities. If you are unsure if your questions are appropriate or how to construct them, we will be happy to help you!
- What does your job entail? What are the duties and responsibilities?
- Is there a typical day or week at work, and, if so, what is that like?
- What preparation is required to qualify for an position like yours?
- What college courses would be helpful to prepare me for a position like this one?
- Is there certification, licensure, or an advanced degree necessary to perform this job?
- What experience outside the classroom would you recommend I seek to prepare myself for this career field?
- Are there any professional groups, organizations, or activities that I can join that would be beneficial to me?
- What personal qualities do you see as important for success in this occupation?
- What criteria would you use if you were responsible for hiring someone in this field?
- What led you to this type of work? What has your career path been?
- To what extent is travel involved in your work? (If so,) how much and what type?
- What are typical work hours, or does this vary? Is weekend work involved?
- What do you like most about your work? What are the satisfactions in your work?
- What do you like least about your work? What are the challenges you encounter?
- How do you deal with challenges?
- What portion of your position involves interacting with others such as co-workers or the public?
- What other personnel and/or departments work closely with you?
- What is a typical career ladder in this field? What are the opportunities for advancement in this field?
- What is the current demand for people in this occupation? Do you see any changes in the future?
- How is this field likely to be affected by technology? … by governmental policy? … by trends in society? … by (whatever might be relevant based on your research)?
- How would you describe the culture in your organization?
- How much flexibility are you allowed in terms of dress, hours, vacation, etc.?
- How are you made aware of your supervisor’s expectations? How easy or difficult is it to meet these expectations? OR: As a supervisor, what are your main expectations of your staff members?
- Are you allowed input in defining your goals? OR: How do you guide your staff members to set and achieve goals?
- How independent can you be in this position?
- Where would you suggest I look or ask to learn the typical salary range for entry-level positions in this occupation? (Notice the subtlety. You’re not asking directly, but asking where to look. The person can choose to answer you directly or otherwise.)
- Can you refer me to others with whom I might also discuss this career field?
You won’t truly know what a career is like until you experience it firsthand. The good news? There are tons of ways to explore your career interests in college—and internships aren’t the only option! Try out as many experiences as you can, whether it’s part-time jobs, research, volunteering, or leadership roles.
Most Virginia Tech grads say they gained career-related experience during college, but about a third of them wish they had done more!
And if you try something and realize it’s not for you—that’s still a win. Figuring out what you don’t like is just as valuable as discovering what you do. It’s way better to learn that now than after graduation! No matter what, every experience helps you grow, and your career path will keep evolving over time.
As you navigate the on-going process of career and self-exploration, go where your curiosity takes you, and be willing to step out of your comfort zone! We welcome you to make an advising appointment for support throughout your exploration journey.
