Career Planning & Success

                                                                      Career Planning & Success
                                                                                Daniel Swanson II
Educational Preparation*
    It has been said that the only way to really succeed in life is to first get a good education.  For most people this means to graduate from high school with a high enough GPA that you can get into a good 4-year college and get a minimum of your bachelors degree.  This is what's considered the traditional career preparation process.  However, in today's economy I would encourage most people to consider not worrying or stressing out about going to a 4-year college and instead opt for the technical college route.  There are many reasons why I suggest this, which I will cover in the next section of this article.
Reasons to use the Tech-Prep Route*
    Ever since the economy started to grow again, there has been a vast need for people with simple trade skills.  Unfortunately, most people are still afraid to go this route because of the recession that our country was forced into.  This is why there are so many more career opportunities in the trades than in traditional fields.  I myself am strongly considering going back to school again in order to get a 1-2 year degree/certification in a trade skill that I am very over-qualified for, even though I already spent 7 1/2 years in post-secondary education.  Another reason for going directly into a 2-year college after high school is simply that it is much cheaper than a 4-year college.  
Pre College Career Advice*
    Something that many people don't always have is enough good career advice from role models before finishing High School.  This is a big part of the reason why so many people end up switching careers throughout their life.  If you don't want to experience this difficult situation in your life you should do a couple things before you enter college.  The first thing you need to do is think long and hard about what it is you want to do with the rest of your life.  The second thing you need to do is perform some job market research to find out if there is a great need for the type of job you think you would enjoy the most.
Post College Career Advice*
    If you do decide that you would still like to go the 4-year route like I did initially, there is something you absolutely must do in order to secure a good job before graduating.  You have to get some kind of internship.  Even with fantastic social skills and great industry connections, it is very difficult to obtain a job right out of a 4-year college without some kind of experience.  Amazingly, most advisors will not inform you of this vital fact.  This happens to be another reason why I recommend going to a 2-year college as well.  
My Testimonial
    In order to give you some kind of verification that what I've told you is true, I'll provide you with my career history.  Keep in mind that I was invited into the National Honor Society as an undergraduate while attending a highly recognized Engineering School at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  Upon completing my undergraduate degree in Engineering Mechanics with the Astronautics Option, I could not find anyone that would hire me.  I later discovered that this was because I hadn't had an internship before graduating.  I was then forced to go back to school with an already high amount of debt from student loans and get an internship in design engineering while I was working to complete my master's degree.  This allowed me to obtain a job as a field service engineer immediately after I graduated.  
*Views expressed are based on author's experiences and opinions only.