How to Pick a Career When You’re Still in High School

Have you ever heard the saying, “Do something you love and you’ll never work a day in your life?” What that means is that a career that really captures your interests and suits your personality can be incredibly fulfilling. Your work won’t feel like work when it becomes your passion.

Unfortunately, the flip side of that statement is also true: If you end up on a career path that you don’t really enjoy, you will feel like every day is just more drudgery, no matter how much money you make or what position you have.

Whether you’re starting high school this fall or you’re already past your Freshman year, it’s really not too early to start thinking about the future. The more you plan ahead, the easier it will be to find a higher education program that genuinely makes you happy – and that can make your college admission goals much clearer.

Where Do You Start When You’re Trying to Decide on a Career?

There’s no magic trick to this process. Like most things worth having, finding the right career path starts with a little hard work. Here are the main things you need to do:

1. Write down all your interests.

Self-exploration gets a little easier when you put your thoughts on paper. When you really focus on what you find engaging and worth your time and energy, you can start to build ideas about the categories of jobs you might want to one day pursue – whether they’re in the field of medicine, law, education or something else.

2. Start researching occupations within each category of interest.

If, for example, you’re interested in genetics, do you want to be a genetic specialist that sees patients or a researcher who works in a lab? Looking at the work you can do in each field and the job duties you’d have can help you understand what positions best suit your personality and needs.

3. Look carefully at the path toward each career.

Once you know what careers motivate you the most, you need to consider what it takes to get to that place and what it might mean for your future. Look at things like:

• The economic rewards of the job and whether they meet your goals for the lifestyle you want or need
• The projected job market for the occupation, including whether the field is growing or shrinking, and whether there is opportunity for advancement
• The educational path you need to take, including whether you will need a graduate degree or specialized training in the future, and the time commitment involved

4. Start looking at the schools with the right programs.

Once you have a clearer idea of your destination, it gets easier to pick out the roads that will get you there. You can use the insights you’ve gained through this process to help you choose the college or university that will provide the most benefits.

Finally, don’t underestimate the abilities of a good school counselor. They’ve helped many young people define their goals and get started on their path to a bright and happy future.