Objective: To challenge students to understand three common career paths: knowledge, issues, and skills.
Directions: Locate at least one job description for each of the three types of careers. Find a knowledge position that is directly related to your major; a job that pertains to one of the key issues important to you; and a position that requires a specific skill that you can adequately demonstrate. Remember, the most options you can see and consider, the most opportunities that will come your way.
Introduction: Generally speaking, there are three types of careers:
• Knowledge-based careers: These are most closely aligned with a student’s undergraduate academic major.
○ Ex: The history major who teaches social studies in high school.
• Issue-based careers: Individuals are attracted to these types of opportunities because they are passionate about the specific issue. One’s undergraduate academic major may or may not factor into this type of position.
○ Ex: The world languages major working at a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping homeless people.
• Skill-based careers: where an employer is hired due to a specific skill.
○ Ex: The English major who goes into market research because a company was impressed with her writing and presentation skills.
Knowledge-Based Careers
Following is the list of typical jobs related to history major in the knowledge-based area. This is just one example of knowledge-based careers. Every major has knowledge-based careers.
○ Elementary schools
○ Secondary schools
○ Postsecondary education
○ Historic sites and museums
• Historians as researchers
○ Museums and historical organizations
○ Cultural resources management and historic preservation
○ Think tanks
• Historians as communicators
○ Writers and editors
○ Journalists
○ Documentary editors
○ Producers of multimedia material
• Historians as information managers
○ Archivists
○ Records managers
○ Librarians information managers
• Historians as advocates
○ Lawyers and paralegals
○ Litigation support
○ Legislative staff work
○ Foundations
Issue-Based Careers
The following list of global issues represents a wide variety of career options for any major:
• Arms trade
• Biodiversity
• Causes of poverty
• Climate change and global warming
• Consumption and consumerism
• Education environmental issues
• Food and agriculture
• Geopolitics
• Health issues
• Human rights issues
• International criminal court
• Mainstream media
• Natural disasters
• Nuclear weapons
• Sustainable development
• Third world debt
• War on terror
• World hunger and poverty
Skill-Based Careers
Many employers are looking for candidates that can demonstrate one or more of the following skills.
• Ability to work in a team structure
• Ability to make decisions and solve problems
• Ability to communicate verbally with people inside and outside an organization
• Ability to plan, organize, and prioritize work
• Ability to obtain and process information
• Ability to analyze quantitative data
• Ability to work with others in a diverse environment
• Proficiency with computer software programs
• Ability to create and/or edit written reports
• Ability to sell and influence others