Career Development Final
Ryan Armani
Mrs. Perry
Career Development
1/25/18
Career Development Final
In this class, I have learned quite a bit about myself in regards to my interests and personal career paths. Specifically, the assignments of the Myers Briggs/Do What You Are® test helped me see how my personality and interests were applicable to the real world. The Job Shadow project and presentation allowed me to see what it was really like in the vast world of jobs. Finally, the College Essays helped me improve my understanding of overall writing, what colleges expect, and refine my own views about myself.
The Myers Briggs assignment was a bit of an odd one. If I recall, a long segment of multiple choice questions were asked to find out my Personality type. This was INTP. Furthermore, the test explained what characteristics could apply to these personality traits that seemed to correlate with professions. It even offered some professions based on the results. I had taken a test like this before, but all that came up was careers related to psychology and biology-related sciences. In this test, I was able to observe and research a vast amount of careers to see what each offered. An epidemiologist was a split between mathematics (statistics) and science (population and disease). This was perhaps the most interesting career, but seeing as my strong suits are not math and being locked in a lab for more than 8 hours a day, it was not a perfect match. The second career I viewed was an agricultural engineer. I chose this career due to its relation to environmental science, a field I am interested in. This career gave me a reality check; if I want to do anything related to environmental science, I better improve my math skills. The career enabled me to use lots of thought and participate in many thought-provoking studies. The third career was the clergy, a direct study of a career I was interested in as a child. Having the opportunity to study it at the age of 17 was, for lack of better words, a throwback. My family is quite religious, so I was naturally looking up to the clergymen. It was here that I realized that this career would be very self-fulfilling, but if I want to give the opportunity to my own family to decide what they want to do with their lives, I would need a higher paying job. Not becoming a member of the clergy does not cut my faith out of my life, it simply will not be my profession.
The Job Shadow project as a whole was very interesting and exceeded my expectations. I job shadowed a fine lad named Alex Troychock, a man in his 20’s at my Dad’s work. It was a tax company, so I put on a good face but honestly expected a whole lot of blandness. I was pleasantly surprised. Not only did I get the chance to see my Dad’s day-to-day work process, but I saw some happy people working at a pretty cool office. The office was very well furnished and had vibrant colors, and the view was taken up by wildlife and a spectacular grandiose fountain. I was astonished. To add to this, the job I was shadowing was environmentally based in a tax company, and the pay was pretty solid! It seemed like the real deal, everything you could want in one job. Alex had an office buddy who was also really neat, and they started off their workday with a 20 minute conversation with their neighbors and a presentation with me in a boardroom! It was simply a whole lot of fun. Even if I decide not to pursue that specific career, I learned that any job can be made into a dream job as long as you are willing to do so. It was the personalities at the office that made the experience enjoyable, not necessarily the pay or the view. It was an experience I will not soon forget, and it made me want to pursue a science field even more.
The College Essays were a great experience overall for me. Seeing as I have english next semester, it enabled me to get some practice in and honestly improve my writing quality. I also learned that colleges want an essay that describes you and your usefulness to their campus. The essay made me realize that colleges are quite literally a business, offering quality education and opportunity to the consumer in return for improvement to their campus and some cash. Nothing wrong with that, I would say that is a great transaction. With this in mind, I need to push myself even harder to both look good on paper for the college and prepare for whatever they throw at me. I have decided to commit to activities rather than to participate in a plethora of them. For example, I have decided to quit track so I could focus on drumline and participate in the pit for the play. I have also decided to do Ultimate Frisbee for fun and to keep me sane during the year. I have also acquired a job at Avenue Kitchen with the intent of getting enough cash to pay for Drum Corps Associates (DCA), an opportunity that I am lucky to have. Most importantly, I have furthered my understanding of myself. I am not some super quirky guy, nor am I an individual who has had nothing but trouble. I have had a number of run-ins, and I have grown from them. I have learned to keep growing instead of dwelling, and I have learned that I am a story in progress. There has yet to be a conclusion to it, and I want it to be self-fulfilling.
This course has enabled me to experience quite a bit. I may not always appear appreciative of it, but I truly am. It is not everyday that one gets this kind of opportunity. With the Myers Briggs test, I have seen many occupations that may be good for me. With the Job Shadow, I learned that I can make whatever job I have a whole lot of fun. With the College Essays, I have learned what I need to do in order to push forward. Saying is easier than doing, so it is time for me to go for it.