Finding a career to pursue can be very difficult, especially when the paths to some careers can be confusing. To help guide through this process, and possibly give some ideas for future career paths, here are some popular jobs and steps actual people have taken to reach this position.
Teachers, although often underappreciated, can be an extremely rewarding and enriching job. Connecting with students and making a difference in people’s lives, as well as in the community is extremely fulfilling.
“I think if you’re someone that enjoys giving back to the community or just enjoys seeing a click for students or some other people it’s nice,” aquatic science and chemistry teacher Andrew Nguyen said. “Sometimes when you see a student that overcomes something that they struggled with for a whole year, it kind of is a reward for the teachers.”
To become a teacher, obtaining a bachelor’s degree is needed from an accredited college or university, complete an educator preparation program, pass certification exams, submit a state application and pass a background check. While this may sound overwhelming, talking to people who have gone through this process can make it a lot less intimidating.
“For teaching, there’s a lot of different pathways,” Nguyen said. “You can either do an undergrad at your college for four years or there’s a lot of alternate programs out there such as using online programs or maybe community college like ACC where you can do a two year fast track program and get experience while you’re doing that.”
It is important to keep in mind that every job comes with its challenges.
“I think patience is the biggest part about teaching because at the end of the day, these are all kids so they’re still developing and learning so they’re going to make mistakes,” Nguyen said. “Interactions and personal connections through teachers and peers, that’s why I’m still teaching.”
Nurses are crucial to a hospital’s functionality, providing care to those in need. Becoming a nurse is becoming a highly sought after profession due to its stability, rewarding experiences, competitive salary and more. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predictions show the number of registered nurse positions will grow up to 6%, a much larger growth average than most jobs. In order to become a nurse, getting an associate degree in nursing, passing the NCLEX-RN, and obtaining state licensure is needed.
Although becoming a nurse is increasingly popular, it is important to remember there are many difficulties in this profession, especially the college process.
“College is amazing in terms of all the things you learn. You get to discover how the human body works, its anatomy and a lot more. However, working and caring for real people is scary. Seeing people in a lot of pain and even sometimes seeing them lash out at you can be very difficult. The unfortunate truth is that you cannot help everyone,” Claudia Balbino, a registered nurse who cares for elderly, said.
“The most important thing to remember is that if you are going into this field of work, it is very rewarding but it will not be easy,” Balbino said. “You really have to love what you do to keep going and working hard every day.”
Psychologists can work in a variety of places, working to improve mental health, study behavior and give help to those in need. To become a psychologist, first obtain a bachelor’s degree, then a doctor’s degree, complete supervised experience, pass the licensure exams and finally obtain state licensure. David R. Heckler, a psychologist who works with children and families who struggle with mental health, had a lot of advice for people joining the psychology field.
“I would join a research lab in psychology,” Heckler said. “If you join a lab, you can get experience doing different types of research and get skills in collecting data and writing research which will help build your resume or CV. I would also really focus on doing really well in the classes where you want to go to grad school.”
Discussing and researching mental health can be a very draining field. Giving people the proper care they need can be difficult without the proper resources.
“While it is challenging to work with families and kids who struggle with mental health, you often find that there just isn’t a lot of support for kids and families especially if you’re lower income,” Heckler said. “It can be hard to provide good quality care when there’s a lot of barriers to doing so.”
Despite its challenges, seeing people grow and overcome obstacles can be very gratifying.
“The most rewarding part of my job is to work with kids and then kind of see them grow up and see them become successful adults,” Heckler said. “It’s nice to see them succeed and see them in a good place.”
