Explore Your Interests / Self Assessment
Source: https://careerservices.fas.harvard.edu/channels/explore-your-interests-self-assessment/ Parent: https://careerservices.fas.harvard.edu/channels/international-students/
Discovering Your Path at Harvard
Career exploration is one of the most frequently discussed topics during advising appointments at the Mignone Center for Career Success (MCS). Exploration, curiosity, and building a broad intellectual foundation are at the core of the Harvard experience.
Whether you’re just starting to explore your interests or considering a change in direction, you are not alone. MCS is here to support you with tools, resources, networks, and one-on-one advising tailored to your goals.
Still Exploring Community
Within the Still Exploring Community, you’ll find curated resources to help you:
- Engage in self-discovery
- Explore a wide range of careers and interests
- Design a Harvard experience that reflects your goals and values
- Develop transferable skills
- Make informed academic and career decisions
Career Development Is a Lifelong Journey
Career paths are rarely linear. Your interests, goals, and values will evolve over time — and that’s expected. In fact, the average American changes careers 3 to 7 times over their lifetime.
Start by learning about yourself and how you want to make an impact in the world.
Reflect as You Explore
Explore Your Academic Goals
- Consider how your academic interests might shape or support future career directions.
- Think about your concentration and how it aligns with your personal and professional aspirations.
Reflect on Past Experiences
- What have you enjoyed most in your coursework, internships, research, teaching, student organizations, or community service?
- Which moments have made you feel most energized and focused?
Understand Your Preferences
- What kinds of work environments and values resonate with you?
- How do your skills, interests, and personality influence the types of roles you might enjoy?
Harvard Career Exploration Tools
Scroll down for a curated list of career exploration tools, including:
- StrengthsProfile: Discover your individual realized and unrealized strengths
- SparkPath Career Discovery Digital Challenge Cards: An interactive career exploration tool designed to help discover career paths
- O*NET Resource Center: Occupational information sponsored by the U.S. Dept. of Labor
- CareerOneStop: Find career, training, and job search resources just for you
- 16 Personalities: Discover your personality type, and gain insight into your traits
- Design Your Career: Navigate uncertainty, explore possibilities, and make intentional decisions about your life and career
- and more!
More Career Exploration Tailored to You:
Harvard College First-Year Students
Harvard College Sophomores
Harvard College Juniors
Harvard College Seniors
Harvard Extension School Students
Harvard Griffin GSAS Students
Harvard College Resources
StrengthsProfile
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Discover Your Potential with StrengthsProfile
StrengthsProfile is an assessment tool designed to identify and enhance an individual’s strengths and talents. …
Harvard College Mignone Center for Career Success: Tools & Resources Guide
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The Mignone Center for Career Success offers numerous tools and resources to help you connect to all kinds of opportunities.
Harvard College Guide to Working in Arts & Culture
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Use this guide to understand the resources available for working in Arts & Culture.
Harvard College Guide to the Nonprofit Job Search
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If you’re interested in helping to further a mission or cause that seeks to make a positive impact in the …
16 Personalities
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Take a 10-minute quiz to discover your personality type, and gain insight into your traits, career paths, personal growth, and …
My Next Move
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What do you want to do for a living? This resource will help you brainstorm the possibilities.
My Next Move …
Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Resources
StrengthsProfile
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Discover Your Potential with StrengthsProfile
StrengthsProfile is an assessment tool designed to identify and enhance an individual’s strengths and talents. …
Imagine PhD
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Imagine PhD is an online career exploration and planning tool for PhD students and alumni in the humanities and social …
myIDP
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myIDP is a unique, web-based career-planning tool tailored to meet the needs of PhD students and postdocs in the sciences. …
16 Personalities
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Take a 10-minute quiz to discover your personality type, and gain insight into your traits, career paths, personal growth, and …
My Next Move
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What do you want to do for a living? This resource will help you brainstorm the possibilities.
My Next Move …
O*NET Resource Center
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The O*NET Program is the nation’s primary source of occupational information. The data have proven vital in helping people find the …
Harvard Extension Resources
StrengthsProfile
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Discover Your Potential with StrengthsProfile
StrengthsProfile is an assessment tool designed to identify and enhance an individual’s strengths and talents. …
HES Self-Assessment Resources
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There are a wide variety of resources available to help you identify your values, interests, personality and skills and to …
16 Personalities
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Take a 10-minute quiz to discover your personality type, and gain insight into your traits, career paths, personal growth, and …
My Next Move
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What do you want to do for a living? This resource will help you brainstorm the possibilities.
My Next Move …
O*NET Resource Center
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The O*NET Program is the nation’s primary source of occupational information. The data have proven vital in helping people find the …
Vault Guide to Defense Jobs
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The Vault Guides to Jobs series provides essential information about key careers and industries, with an emphasis on preparing for …
Firsthand Vault Guides
Vault Guide to Defense Jobs
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The Vault Guides to Jobs series provides essential information about key careers and industries, with an emphasis on preparing for …
Vault Guide to Investment Banking Jobs
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The Vault Guides to Jobs series provides essential information about key careers and industries, with an emphasis on preparing for …
Vault Guide to Investment Management
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The Vault Guides to Jobs series provides essential information about key careers and industries, with an emphasis on preparing for …
Vault Guide to Hedge Fund Jobs
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The Vault Guides to Jobs series provides essential information about key careers and industries, with an emphasis on preparing for …
Vault Guide to Mathematics and Physics Jobs
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The Vault Guides to Jobs series provides essential information about key careers and industries, with an emphasis on preparing for …
Vault Guide to Automotive Manufacturing Jobs
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The Vault Guides to Jobs series provides essential information about key careers and industries, with an emphasis on preparing for …
Videos & Recorded Webinars
### How to Find the Right Career
Featured Articles
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Job Market InsightsIn partnership with
Find a career that aligns with your career interests, see current salary projects, and identify skills you need to apply for that next job or internship.
There are two ways to use this tool below:
- By Keyword: Search for the name of the occupation you’re interested in.
- By Industry: Not sure what job you’d like? Search by desired industry and see available occupations.
Find career data by selecting keywords Keyword Search
or, by filtering for industry and occupation Industry Search
First, choose an industry of interest, then filter for occupation. (If you'd like to see data for a specific location only, filter by state.)
Select an industry
Select an occupation
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Type in a keyword to select a relevant occupation. (If you'd like to see data for a specific location only, filter by state.)
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Toggle charts
- Occupation Description
- Employment Trends
- Top Employers
- Education Levels
- Annual Earnings
- Technical Skills
- Core Competencies
- Job Titles
Occupation DescriptionEmployment TrendsTop EmployersEducation LevelsAnnual EarningsTechnical SkillsCore CompetenciesJob Titles
Occupation Description
Employment Trends
The number of jobs in the career for the past two years, the current year, and projections for the next 10 years. Job counts include both employed and self-employed persons, and do not distinguish between full- and part-time jobs. Sources include Emsi industry data, staffing patterns, and OES data.\ \
Top Employers
These companies are currently hiring for .
Education Levels
The educational attainment percentage breakdown for a career (e.g. the percentage of people in the career who hold Bachelor’s Degrees vs. Associate Degrees). Educational attainment levels are provided by O*NET.
Annual Earnings
Earnings figures are based on OES data from the BLS and include base rate, cost of living allowances, guaranteed pay, hazardous-duty pay, incentive pay (including commissions and bonuses), on-call pay, and tips.
Technical Skills
A list of hard skills associated with a given career ordered by the number of unique job postings which ask for those skills.
Core Competencies
The skills for the career. The "importance" is how relevant the ability is to the occupation: scale of 1-5. The "level" is the proficiency required by the occupation: scale of 0-100. Results are sorted by importance first, then level.
Job Titles
A list of job titles for all unique postings in a given career, sorted by frequency.
Explore all Job Market Insights.
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Skill Building Courses
[### Discover & Communicate Personal Values
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Inspirational leaders can create transformation within themselves and their teams, in the form of pursuing services and missions that matter.…](https://careerservices.fas.harvard.edu/classes/discover-communicate-personal-values/)
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Even your loftiest goals are possible if you approach them strategically. In this course, join Aimee Bateman as she shares…](https://careerservices.fas.harvard.edu/classes/successful-goal-setting/)
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