This document provides information to help students at Pasadena City College select a major and career path. It outlines the career counseling services available to help with educational planning, goal setting, career exploration, and referrals. It then describes steps students can take to choose a major, including researching options in the course catalog, talking to instructors, and using computerized career assessments. Resources like ASSIST, O*Net, and Career Zone are referenced to explore majors and occupations. The document emphasizes the importance of self-exploration, experiential learning opportunities like internships and part-time jobs, and informational interviews to help determine the best fit.

1. SELECTING A
MAJOR/CAREER
Pasadena City College
May 10, 2011
Megan Eigenbrod, Vanessa Rubinfeld, Tehra Yosifi

2. CAREER COUNSELING SERVICES
Dedicated To Student Success
“Counselors at Pasadena City College facilitate the attainment of
lifelong learning skills that advance our students' personal, academic,
and career goals. We promote the self-awareness and self-reliance
necessary for success in education and other life activities”
o Structured, flexible Student Educational Plans based on your specific
needs
o Assistance with short and long term goal setting
o Assistance with career planning
o Interpretation of assessment results and course recommendations
o Certificate, degree, and transfer requirements
o Unofficial transcript evaluations of previous college coursework, and
referrals to the PCC evaluators for official evaluations as needed
o Information about transfer majors and major preparation
requirements
o Referrals to campus learning resources and appropriate support
services
o Personal and crisis counseling
http://www.pasadena.edu/studentservices/counseling/

3. STEPS TO CHOOSING A MAJOR

4. RESEARCH MAJORS
o Take General Education courses in subjects that
interest you.
o Spend some time reading the PCC Catalog for course
descriptions that might interest you.
o Talk to instructors/faculty and department advisors.
o Use PinPoint, SIGI+ or Eureka for computerized
career counseling.

5. RESOURCES
o Assist
o http://www.assist.org
o O*net
o http://www.onetonline.org
o Career Zone
o http://www.cacareerzone.org
o Bureau of Labor Statistics
o (Occupational Outlook Handbook)
o http://www.bls.gov

6. ASSIST.ORG
o ASSIST is an online student-transfer information
system that shows how course credits earned at
one public California college or university can be
applied when transferred to another.
o This site allows you to explore and find the
majors available to you at university campuses in
California.

7. CAREER ZONE

8. SELF-EXPLORATION
o Identify what is important to you
o Pay attention to your passions. If you love doing
something, figure out how you can use that
interest in your career
o Think about your strengths and the skills you
want to use in the future
o Meet with a career counselor to take assessments
that identify your values, interests, strengths,
and skills

9. EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
o Internships
o Career Related Part-Time Jobs
o Fellowships and Research
o Job Shadowing
o Informational Interviews

10. INTERNSHIPS
o What is an internship?
o Internships combine learning
and work. It's also your
opportunity to set your goals
and objectives, develop new
skills and gain knowledge.
o What's the difference
between an internship
and a part-time job?
o A part-time job may be a
wonderful opportunity to
receive career training.

11. PART-TIME JOBS
o Career Related Part-Time Jobs
 Part-time jobs that are career related
provide the opportunity to explore work
in a field of interest and learn whether
or not it is truly a fit.

12. INFORMATIONAL INTERVIEWS
o Interview someone already in your career field of
interest or a faculty member in your desired
major
o This allows you to learn more about the major or
career field before making a formal commitment
o This will also help to start building connections
with people already in the field- NETWORKING!

13. JOB SHADOWING
o Observe a professional in their everyday routine
o This is a great time to ask any questions you may
have about the career
o Similar to an informational interview, but it
takes place for a longer period of time
o May last for several hours to few days

14. PARTY GAME

15. THANK YOU FOR COMING TODAY!