How old should I be when I choose a career?
I’m early teens at the mo and I’m not really worried about what I want to be when I grow up but I don’t want to choose something then find out I didn’t do the right GCSE’s. What age would be right?
GCSEs are generally irrelevant in terms of career choice. Neither employers nor universities take much notice of them. It’s only A Levels that will have any bearing and that will only be if you decide to go to university. If you don’t know what you want to do then just choose subjects you enjoy. You’re too young to be worrying about careers!
"Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don’t." – Mary Schmich, The Sunscreen Song (look it up, it’s got a lot of good advice in it)
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This is about the time. Of course you make adjustment along the way. Ask you what you like best and spend time most on. Talk to parents…….
Good luck.
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You must have an inkling but wait until you have graduated from High School and then decide. That worked for me.
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Well it depends if you are sure you want to do it fine…. My parents are making me do ALL GCSE’s incase I change my mind :/ lol!
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GCSEs are generally irrelevant in terms of career choice. Neither employers nor universities take much notice of them. It’s only A Levels that will have any bearing and that will only be if you decide to go to university. If you don’t know what you want to do then just choose subjects you enjoy. You’re too young to be worrying about careers!
"Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don’t." – Mary Schmich, The Sunscreen Song (look it up, it’s got a lot of good advice in it)
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one day, I asked God what my purpose in life was and the answer came to me instantly
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Now is the perfect time for you to do the things that will let you choose wisely in a few years.
What do you like to pay attention to in your spare time? That might hint at careers you will enjoy. I say "enjoy" because that will help you be motivated and succeed.
Visit the different sections of a big book store, not just the stuff you already like. Look at a variety of magazines and books. See what grabs your interest.
You should try lots of things, because it’s not immediately obvious whether you will like a given activity; you have to give it some time before you know. Besides, having lots of skills and activities is valuable. Not only does that help you function in life, it also makes you a more interesting and valuable person to know. If you live an interesting and varied life, you will have lots to talk about when socializing.
If your school offers non-required classes in art, computer programming, etc, take those classes.
Maybe join clubs, at school or elsewhere, that exercise skills of some kind.
You should try various hobbies, even if you have no immediate interest in them.
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In a few years, during a school vacation, just before you must apply to colleges and trade schools, do the following:
Think back on the many kinds of activities you’ve tried in life.
What parts of those activities did you do especially well, whether or not you enjoyed them? Make a list.
What parts of those activities did you truly enjoy, whether or not you did them well? Make a list.
Your ideal job would use the maximum number of items from the two lists combined.
When I say "parts of those activities", I mean things like:
research – compiling facts from different sources
taking devices apart to see how they work
inventing or creating things
writing
talking to people, and figuring out how they think
figuring out how the physical world works
repairing things
and so on.
You also have to consider your personality and temperament. For example, do you need to completely know what you’re doing before you first attempt to do it, or are you comfortable just winging it? Do you like to be told what to do, so you don’t do anything wrong? Or are you creative and comfortable with confusion, ambiguity, and freedom of choice? Answering those questions lets you guess whether you are suited to any career involving design (art, engineering, writing, computer programming).
That’s my quick-and-dirty career choosing system. If you want to explore more carefully, you can find entire books about the subject of career and job choice. See your local library or book store.
When you come up with some possible career choices, find books about each one, describing what it’s really like and what is really required to succeed. You could look at websites too, but I think books will be more thorough and better researched.
You DON’T want to get this wrong. Otherwise, you might waste four years and money at a university studying the wrong thing, like I did.
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