Choosing a Program/Major and Career Planning Terms

Choosing a Program, Career Planning Terms Defining Terms Gaining Experience

Many students assume that when they choose a major they are choosing a career for the rest of their lives. For some students this matching of academic major and career follows consecutively; however, the smooth and seamless match is certainly not a universal experience. In fact, most people have many jobs and occupations over the course of their lives. Many students also become employed in an occupation other than that for which their major has prepared them.

Defining Terms

It is important to distinguish between terms related to the field of career development.

Occupation: You can think of an occupation as a set of tasks that employees such as factory managers, social workers, or welders are paid to perform. Employees who perform essentially the same tasks are in the same occupation.

Job: A job is a specific set of duties that an employee, a carpenter that works for MCC Construction, Inc., for example, performs for a particular employer. The concept of a job is more specific and narrow than that of an occupation.

Career: A career can be comprised of both jobs and occupations. Careers are a series of work-related activities that we perform over the course of our lives. People’s careers today are typically comprised of many jobs, and even multiple occupations.

Degree: Academic degrees range from the Associate Degree to the Doctoral Degree. Liberal arts degrees are typically broad, preparing you for a wider array of careers. Professional degrees are narrower in focus, specializing the degree holder for a specific career field or degree program. Degrees have a general education component and also specific coursework that is focused on the major or certification area.

MCC offers the Associate of Arts (AA), Associate of Business (ABus), Associate of Science (AS), Associate of General Studies (AGS), and the Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degrees. Once a student has earned one of these degrees, he or she can earn any of the other degrees by completing the additional degree requirements with a minimum of fifteen (15) additional MCC credits beyond the previous degree. Degrees may be earned concurrently.

Major: A student’s major is the primary area of study within a degree program. (Associate Degree, General Business)

Certification: MCC offers, in selected occupational and academic areas, a Certificate of Completion that is intended to define entry-level competencies. The certificate is awarded after successful completion of a series of specific courses and is clearly identified in the catalog. A Certificate of Completion is not awarded at commencement and is not posted on the student’s MCC transcript.

Choosing a Major: Selecting a major means choosing an academic program of study based on your interest and the number of years it will take you to graduate from the degree or certificate program. Even after selecting a major you may have feelings of ambivalence related to your decision. That is perfectly ok! In the back of your mind always remember that no matter what degree you graduate with, you also develop transferable skills that can be used in a variety of careers. 

Planning a Career: Working throughout the career development process is a lifelong process. The knowledge that you glean through gathering career information; developing self awareness; establishing academic, personal, and career goals; developing interviewing and job-search strategies and techniques; creating job-search correspondence; and conducting follow-up techniques will prove to be invaluable tools that you will use for the rest of your life. 

As you age, you will go through several life stages. In those stages of life you will refine and re-establish goals, examine and prioritize values, develop new interests, and face new challenges. The process of development is ever changing, from your first employment through retirement. And, who know what retirement will bring in the years to come.

Research has shown that individuals whose job and work environment most closely match their personalities and interests consider themselves satisfied and successful in their careers.  

Gaining Experience

Exploratory Courses:  These courses allow students to take courses in an academic field to test it out. Exploratory courses can be credit-bearing courses or leisure offerings.

Internship: : An internship provides you with hands-on experience in your major or field of interest for the duration of a semester or summer. The terms are worked out between the student and employer. The experience is a paid educational and professional work experience, usually supervised or mentored both by someone on the work site and by a faculty member. You can be attending school and working at the same time, or work in an internship on a full-time basis for a determined amount of time. Internships are an excellent opportunity to learn, first-hand, what goes on in the career field and beyond. What, Why and How of an Internship

Service Learning: Service Learning connects students to the community within partnerships that provide assistance to those in need, creating a valuable learning experience for all involved. These experiences are unpaid and can be credit bearing. The goal of service learning is to provide students with an activity that will enable them to discuss and learn concepts and ideas, throughout the service experience, and develop a sense of connection, community, reciprocal giving, and sharing. These experiences can be arranged in a career field of your interest.

Faculty and Student Research: Many opportunities exist for collaborative research or project work with faculty.  These experiences can be paid or non-paid and working arrangements are discussed between student and a faculty member. Often this would be done in an area of interest to both the faculty member and the student.

Study Abroad: This is a program that provides a student with an experience all its own. When you study abroad, you will complete your coursework while you learn about your host country’s culture, customs, food, music, history, and much more. Check out study abroad at http://www.studyabroad.com .

Part-time Employment: Working part time in a career field is a perfect way for students to learn about that career field’s products, services, office procedures, and policies. Students will learn how the selected career field defines responsibility and accountability. Students will also gain political savvy and learn how to network with vendors and other professionals, both those in the business and those who represent a wide range of careers. There are a number of techniques students will learn to use to their advantage in this part-time employment situation.

Volunteer Activities: Clubs and organizations provide many opportunities for students to get involved in various professions along with their involvement with the College and the community. Clubs might be related to students’ chosen careers, or they might offer students a way to explore other career options. “Leadership” is the key word here. Everyone wants to hire a leader.

Volunteerism:  Volunteering encompasses a wide variety of opportunities. Whether you volunteer at the local church or at the regional hospital you can list that career orientation as experience in your job-search correspondence. Networking, informational interviewing, and job-shadowing experiences are excellent options to learn about careers that interest you as you gain an understanding of what it means to provide services and contribute effort to the community or organization.