Career Planning

One of toughest decisions a college student makes is which career to choose. That is why the CAP Center offers several helpful resources for students seeking career guidance.

Perhaps the best place for an undecided student to begin a career search is which an interest inventory. An interest inventory presents the student with questions regarding his likes, dislikes, values and goals. Oftentimes, exploring one's general expectations of a career helps to begin the process of making a decision.

FOCUS and CHOICES Career and Education Planning Software

FOCUS and Choices are easy-to-use computer career exploration programs, available for students and community usage, free of charge. Students can explore various careers, college degree programs Kentucky and national colleges and universities. Through the use of assessment inventories, students can narrow down their career choices to a manageable number of occupations to explore. The inventories investigate interests, abilities, various work skills and work values.

Choices is a computer based program that can be completed in the CAP Center. Students may contact the CAP Center to schedule a Choices session between the hours of 8:00 AM and 4:30 PM Monday through Friday.

FOCUS is a web-based career exploration program that can be accessed from any location having access to the Internet. Access FOCUS here.

O*NET OnLine

O*NET OnLine is an occupational information network students can access occupation information by using keywords or using O*NET-SOC codes. Students can utilize the Skills Search component to match their list of skills with compatible O*NET occupations.

Self-Directed Search (SDS)

The Self-Directed Search (SDS) is a paper and pencil inventory, published by Psychological Assessment Resources, Inc. (PAR). Students can identify occupations that match their personality or interest. Occupations are grouped by personality and interest types.

Career Occupational Preference System (COPS)

Another paper and pencil inventory is the Career Occupational Preference System (COPS). A student can identify occupations that match their interests; occupations are grouped by general job categories.

In addition to these career exploration tools, there are a variety of printed resources available to help further a student's investigation of career possibilities. Academic Counselors are available to discuss these career exploration tools as well as students' career exploration results in a scheduled meeting.