4

Research your options

Now you've started to think about your passions, your skills, and your needs a bit more, it's time to start researching what is actually out there.

Gather real information about possible roles, industries and career paths you might be interested in to better understand key information such as:

• What the job/industry is really like
• What skills are needed
• How much it pays
• What growth opportunities exist
• Whether it aligns with your needs

Ways to research careers

Online:

If accessible, you can do a lot of research online about different career options.

Use tools like:

• Google
• Company websites
• LinkedIn
• YouTube*
• TikTok* (and other social media).

*People often vlog about their lives in their chosen industry.

Search for:

• "Day in the life of a..."
• "How to become a..."
• "Skills needed for..."

Work experience:

Work experience is where a business allows you to spend some time with them (normally a couple of days) learning more about the work they do. It helps build skills and gives you ideas for the future.

Even just a few days work can help you better understand whether you enjoy that type of job, and what skills it requires – skills you may already have or may need to build.

Remember, it doesn't have to be in your dream role! Work experience can teach you just as much about what isn't a good fit for you as what is.

Reach out to employers in your local community and see if they have any opportunities available.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a professional networking platform, where you can build a career profile and get greater insight into various industries, companies, and working professionals.

LinkedIn helps you:

• Learn about different careers by seeing real people doing those jobs and what they have to say about what they do
• Better understand career paths by looking at others' experience and role progression
• Connect with professionals and respectfully ask for advice

If you don't use LinkedIn but want to, sign up for free online at linkedin.com. You can find advice on how to present your profile in Module XXX LINK.

How to find and contact the right people

1) Start with your existing connections

If you already use LinkedIn, look at your current connections first. You can use LinkedIn filters to search by:

• Company
• Industry
• Location
• Job title

This helps you find people already working in careers you want to explore.

2) Find new connections

Search for companies you are interested in, then:

• Click on the “People” section
• Search for people in roles you want to learn about

Try to connect with someone slightly ahead of you in their career journey – for example, it could be a junior marketing executive rather than a CEO. They are often more likely to reply and share useful advice.

3) Send a connection request

With a connection request you have the option to send a message. Do this and keep your message:

• Short
• Polite
• Clear about why you are reaching out e.g. you're interested in learning more about careers in marketing
• Focus on learning, not asking for a job

4) Message after they accept

Once connected:

• Thank them for accepting
• Explain why you are messaging
• Show genuine interest in their experience
• Respect their time

An example follow-up message:

Remember, not everyone will reply – and that is ok! There's plenty you can learn just from someone's profile and what they post. If they don't respond, wait about one week before sending one polite follow-up message. After that, move on and find other people to connect with.

Overall, your research should help you answer these types of questions:

• What type of career would you like?
• What qualifications, experience, and skills do you need to have in order to get there?
• Do jobs in your preferred industry exist in your location?
• What level could you apply at?
• Does that role pay what you need it to pay?
• What progression opportunities are available?

I think a bit of a hybrid approach works best here. After that initial self-assessment and introspection, I would recommend moving on to online research, but also directly engaging with professionals. So this could be people who are referred to you by your lecturers, perhaps, or by your family members. Talking to other people who are already in the working space is equally, if not possibly more important than online research. Reaching out to people also gives you the opportunity to combine what you've researched with the real world conversations.

Boyang Mufahothe, Manager - Human Capital Business Partner, Mascom Wireless

Start thinking about what you're interested in finding out more about and how you could research this. You'll set clear goals around this in section six.