Matching the right study to the right career

Whether you are still at school and working out what you want to do in life or if you are employee and want to take the next step, selecting the right type of study can be challenging. With so much information and so many options out there, it can be tricky to know which tools can help you make a career decision and which course to undertake.

When researching, any career tool is best used as a starting point for conversation rather than as a definitive solution. Learn more about yourself and consider how best to honour your values and strengths in your current and future employment.

Identify your strengths, which are beneficial to utilise in all stages of a career, and more generally in life too.
Sort your values in order of importance in a fun and interactive way. Identify what you rank as most (and least) important in your life and use this as guide to where you want to go and what study you wish to undertake.
What do you value in your work? What kind of worker would you like to be and career would you lile? What sort of work relations would you like to build?
Seeing a career coach or counsellor. A professional third party can help shine the light on blind spots and invite fresh ways of thinking and behaving.
In-house HR professionals. These people have a wealth of knowledge and access to useful tools. This can be helpful without explicitly disclosing your thoughts of leaving the organisation and also highlight any career improvements and also opportuntites that may exist.
Your personal networks. speaking with your family and friends as they can often provide insights that you may not have considered. Every conversation is a learning and networking opportunity. Approach each conversation with curiosity and finish the meeting or phone call by asking if they could suggest others you could talk to.

Looking for work

Looking for work, whether it is part time or full time, can be a job in itself. Listed beow are various ways you can look for a job, which best suiots your needs.

Looking for employers job postings on the Internet.
Posting, or mailing out, your resumé to employers.
Answering local newspaper ads
Going to private employment agencies or search firms for help.
Answering ads in professional or trade journals, appropriate to your field.
“Job Clubs.”
Going to the state or federal employment office.
Going to places where employers pick up workers
Asking for job leads.
Knocking on the door of any employer, office or manufacturing plant.

Having a CV / resume and getting it right

When looking for a job, a summary of your Career history is the core of any resume. It has to show off what you’ve achieved and been in charge of throughout your working life. It’s also the part of your resume that hiring managers and recruiters will look at most closely, so it’s crucial to get the content right.

The start

Begin writing your career history section by listing all the jobs you’ve had—don’t include it of it is not relevant anymore. The current or most recent role should appear first, followed by your previous professional experience. Each position should include a title, summary, and two lists: one for key responsibilities and one for achievements.

Position title

Always start with the name of the position, followed by the organisation and the time you worked there, including the month and year: It’s assumed every position is full time unless you state otherwise, so be sure to include that the role was part-time, casual or volunteer if so.

Position summary

Below the title, write a brief summary of what your position involved and the organisation you worked for. Aim to keep it to just one or two sentences, and include your main area of responsibility, who you reported to, and a short description of the organisation. You don’t need to include the details of every organisation, but may want to describe the core business, customers, size, and number of staff, especially if the company isn’t well known. For example:

Key responsibilities

This should be a bulleted list that includes the areas you were responsible for, such as customers or operations, rather than a shopping list of your skills. If you managed a team or were in charge of budgets, these should be detailed too:

Managed a team of 10 full-time staff
Oversaw the companies sales program
Project managed major funding initiatives and programs

Prioritise what is relevant to the role you’re applying for, and make sure the responsibilities you list truly reflect what you did.

Key achievements

It’s important to be specific about your achievements rather than simply listing your daily activities, because recruiters will be looking to see where you can bring value to a role. Use facts and figures where you can—growth statistics, dollar figures or achievements against key performance indicators (KPIs), and give evidence of where you’ve used skills.

It’s more important to describe what you’ve achieved rather than what you did. Showing your past achievements will boost your chances of getting an interview.

What not to include in your career history

You don't need to list your reasons for leaving each role. You don’t have to include every job you’ve ever had, either—especially roles from more than 20 years ago. Only include work in your career history if it involved relevant skills for the role you’re applying for. If it's not relevant, include the work in a separate section of your resume.

Customise your career history to the job you’re applying for

It’s important to tailor your career history to different roles you’re applying for. Review the job description and make sure your career history matches the required skills. If your career history addresses the job you’re applying for, your resume is sure to get noticed.