Have you ever had trouble deciding on a major, or knowing what career path you wanted to take? I know I have! I also know that it can be a very difficult and confusing time. I changed my major three times before I found what I liked to do. Many students do not know that there is career counseling available here at Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU). One student says that she has heard of it, but she’s never been there. She said, “I think if they can help you out, it’s a great idea.” The Career Counseling Office can be found in room D-024. David Helfand counsels students who are unsure about their major, as well as students who have decided on a major, but are unsure about what job to pursue.
Helfand mentioned that more than half of his clients are seniors and those who have more than 120 hours. Most of them do not end up graduating, since they switched their major so late. Helfand says that if students are still unsure about what they want to major in by sophomore year, they should stop by the counseling office. First, they will go through a process of finding what is right for them by identifying interests and related characteristics, and from those results they generate ideas of jobs and careers that will fit the student best. The student will then research the specific career on a Web site such as Google, and then they will, hopefully, be able to have +informational interviews with professionals in that field. Once a direction is established, Helfand will assist students in preparing a resume for networking purposes. Also, when employers hire graduates, some of the skills that they look for in their employees are: Do you have the skills to solve the problem? Can you get along with other people? They also look at one’s grade point average (GPA). A website that is good for checking out careers is called the Occupational Outlook Handbook which can be found at bls.gov/oco/
The Career Counseling Office’s phone number is (773) 442-4650 and campus extension is 4650. Their Web site is www.neiu.edu/~CounOff. Mr. Helfand’s hours to meet with students are Monday- Thursday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and he’s unavailable on Friday’s. The hours for the Counseling Office during normal semester periods are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Friday 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. If you are having trouble deciding on a career or your major, hopefully you will stop by the Career Counseling Office for assistance and they will be able to help you so you can be on your way to doing something in your life that you feel is worthwhile and which makes you happy.
Helpful Websites on specific Jobs/ careers:
America’s Career infoNet: www.acinet.org/acinet/ (go to resource library, explore by occupation)
Career Overview: www.careeroverview.com
Helpful Web sites on what can I do with a major in _______?
University of Missouri Career Centerhttp://career.missouri.edu/students/explore/whatcanidowithmymajor.php
University of Illinois at Urbana – Champaignhttp://www.careercenter.uiuc.edu/findingpath/whatmajor.asp
University of North Carolina, Wilmingtonwww.uncw.edu/stuaff/career/stuaff/career/majors/