It might be challenging to choose a career path when you are in high school. You should take a variety of different factors into account while deciding on a career path. Here are some tips you might use when choosing:
- Learn About Yourself
- Identify The Careers You Are Interested In
- Do Research
- Make Sure You Have The Right Subjects
- Gain Experience
- Network
- Be Adaptable
- Decide Where To Study
Learn About Yourself
Learning more about who you are as a person and what your strengths and weaknesses are will help you choose the right career path. Learning what your interests and skills are can give you an idea of what you should pursue.
Identify The Careers You Are Interested In
Make a list of the possible careers you would like to pursue based on your interests and skills. You can write down any career you think would be a good fit for you. So that you know what direction you plan to take.
Do Research
Once you have all the career paths you are interested listed, you could then start your research on each career. You need to look at:
- What the requirements are, for example if you need a degree or not.
- If you have the right subjects to gain admission for the course
- What you need to study
- What does the job entail
- If there are any job openings in that field
- Check if the duties are something you would be interested in
Make Sure You Have The Right Subjects
Make sure that the subjects you have aligned with the career you would like to pursue. For example, if you want to study anything in the Medical industry, you will need to have subjects like Mathematics, Life Science and Physical Science.
Gain Experience
Having experience can benefit you when you apply for university or college and when you apply for a job. You can gain experience by applying for internships or learnerships. This can help you with getting to know what goes into the role you are interested in and see if you are a match for that career path.
Network
When you are doing your internship or learnership, you can work on expanding your network. You can engage with your supervisor or other students to work with you to connect you with other professionals in the industry. This can help you with finding a good place to work and connect you with the right people to help you advance in your career.
Be Adaptable
In any career path you are going to need to be open to change. There will always be change in every industry, and you will need to keep up with any changes that may happen.
Decide Where To Study
Once you know which career you would like to pursue, you can start looking into which university or college you need to apply for. Applying for the right college or university can set you up for success.
Why Is Choosing A Career So Important?
Choosing a career is an important for making sure you have a successful future and that you choose the right career. Your career will affect your whole life, it is important for you to choose a career you have a serious interested in.
Choosing a career that you are not interested in could lead to you looking for negative coping mechanisms like emotional eating, television or anger. To cope with being unhappy with your job.
This is why taking the time to choose your career is important. You need to choose a career that you have a genuine interest in and a career that brings you joy.
Where Can I Receive Career Guidance?
These are the places you can receive career guidance:
- Certain high schools have guidance counsellors who can help you with choosing the right career path
- If your high school does not have a guidance counsellor, you can do career counselling at the university you applied for
- Alternatively, you will be able to search the internet for online career guidance
Why Should I Receive Career Guidance ?
Receiving career guidance will help you:
- Determine your strengths and weaknesses
- How to set goals to achieve the best possible results
- Identify the right career
- With your job search
- Keep you motivated to pursue your career goals
What Are The Three Most Important Things To Look For When Job Searching?
The three most important things when job searching are:
- Reputation: check on the companies’ reputation. Make sure that the company has no history of being sued or fined for any illegal or unethical activity. Check to make sure the company has a good track record for consistent earnings and sales growth to make sure you are entering a successful company
- Career Development: Make sure to ask whether there will be chances for advancement throughout your interview with potential employers. Find out the success of the company by asking about the companies’ growth. Find out if the company encourages further education.
- Work-life Balance: find out what the balance between work and personal life is like. To make sure you are not going to be working too many hours. Make sure they offer you an adequate amount of time off which should include personal days, vacation time and maternity leave.
What Careers Are In Demand In South Africa?
South Africa’s most sought-after careers are listed below:
- Accountants
- Network Administrators
- Business Consultant
- Hospital Administrators
- Software Engineer
- Sales
- Business Management
- Finance
- Marketing
What Are The Benefits Of Studying Further?
Studying further can help you gain the qualifications to start your career. Even though it is possible to be hired with just a Matric certificate. Having a qualification will open the doors to a number of different career opportunities and advancements.
Where Can I Study?
Where you study will depend on which career you would like to pursue. If you plan on pursuing a career in the Medical industry for example, you are going to need to study at a university. Or you can apply at a college.
Bellview Institute of Distance Learning offers the best fully accredited and affordable courses designed to provide you with the best education.
How To Apply?
You can apply by:
- Filling out the online application form
- Speaking to one of our course specialists
- Calling us on: 021 838 8382
- Send us a message on: 065 656 9818
frequently asked questions
Yes, you do need a job. You need money to do things like buy a house, a car and to feed for family among other things. In order to make it all possible you are going to need to get a job.
No, you will not need to have a degree to be successful. You can still be equally successful if you study a diploma or certificate course.
Yes, you could still get a job if you failed. You can study a No Matric course and gain the qualification you need to get a job. Certain employers will not need you to have a Matric certificate.
Yes, you are going to be able to apply for a diploma or certificate course as long as you have a Matric certificate.
These are the best courses to study in South Africa:
- Engineering
- Marketing Management
- Supply Chain Management
- Development Management
- Business Administration
- Business Management
Author: Jodie Brown
Editor: Connor Bergsma
Date Published: January 31, 2023