Career Resources for Students and Advisors
Exploring the world of work is an exciting process. College is an ideal environment to learn about yourself — your passions, your strengths, what you enjoy doing, and areas you wish to continue growing.
Through your classes, extracurriculars, jobs, volunteering, and other activities, you naturally grow your social networks and uncover insights into the type of work you want to keep doing in the world. Whether you've already gravitated toward a certain career or have not yet found a field that resonates for you, college is a time to stay open-minded and keep exploring your options and refining your goals. These resources will meet you where you are at, wherever you are on the journey of exploring the world of work!
“If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it's not your path. Your own path you make with every step you take. That's why it's your path.”
- Joseph Campbell
Interested in exploring the next steps in your career path? We've compiled a comprehensive resource to guide you as you explore careers that align with your skills and talents.
The IDEA Process
Career planning uses a model that we developed at Pacific called IDEA. The IDEA model, as described below, is the process a student goes through in deciding their career path. Each step in the process is loosely tied to your college year but should be viewed as iterative as you more clearly decipher your goals.
Explore the steps below to see where you might be in the process. We are happy to help at any stage, but we especially encourage you to reach out if you are in the initial stage of your career exploration.
I = Investigate | Investigate who you are, your skills and experiences, and what you like | typically FIRST YEAR
D = Decide and Determine Fit | Decide and declare your major and determine career fit | typically SECOND YEAR
E = Engage | Engage in experiences such as internships, jobs, research, and civic engagement to build your skills | typically THIRD YEAR
A = Apply | Apply what you've learned to your next career move, apply for jobs and/or graduate school | typically FOURTH YEAR
Want help with this process? Contact us at advisingcenter@pacificu.edu or schedule an appointment today.
Students at this stage are learning about themselves and how they fit into the world of work. In this phase, quizzes and tools are used to help decipher your interests, skills, work values and motivations.
YouScience | Specifically recommended to undecided students. Gives full analysis of skills, interests and potential careers. Takes 90-120 minutes to complete. (Pacific has already invested in this resource for YOU and can help you interpret the results!).
Holland Interest Themes | Looks at skill areas that you gravitate towards and enjoy. This takes only 15 minutes or less and is free, but results should be interpreted by a Career Advisor using supplemental resources.
O*Net My Next Move (Interest Profiler) | Helps you find out what your interests are and how they relate to the world of work.
Work Values: Career One-Stop | The Work Values Matcher is a quick card sort exercise that asks you to rank statements to define your ideal job. Your choices indicate your top values.
We have many more resources to help you in this stage of your journey! Schedule an appointment with a career advisor, and we'll help you get started.
With the knowledge that you have gained about yourself and what you want out of a career in the Investigate stage you are now ready to look at broad categories of career fields (e.g. medical, business, teaching, arts), as well as job types that interest you within those fields, to decide on a major and plan out ways to make you competitive in your chosen field.
Guidelines for Choosing a Major | Things to think about when choosing your major.
What Can I Do With This Major? | Use this website to see all of the types of opportunities in your major! Free to Pacific students.
Major Declaration Form | Use this form to choose your faculty advisor and declare your major.
We have many more resources to help you in this stage of your journey! Schedule an appointment with a career advisor, and we'll help you map out how to get the experiences you need as well as explain the skills you have.
Engage
Engage in experiences such as internships, jobs, research, and civic engagement to build your skills | THIRD YEAR
In this stage, you put your experience plan (which you created in the Decide stage) into action and actually study abroad, intern, research and/or get involved with community projects.
Finding Experiences
The PDFs linked below are great overviews of how to locate experiences that will help you in your career.
LinkedIn, Networking and Job Search Overview | A guide to using LinkedIn and other resources to network effectively.
Marketing Your Major Skills | How to explain your skills in a way that resonates with employers
Search for Companies | This is a one-stop resource for students to use when researching companies/organizations in their field.
How to Obtain Great References | How to choose, ask and manage your references
Tell Me About Yourself | Prepare to respond to this often-asked question
Networking and Informational Interviews | Build your network and make a great impression
VIDEO: Community Building: Building Your Network | Part of the Inclusive Hiring Series
Gaining Experiences
Once you identify the types of experience that are right for you, use our Internship resources to locate specific opportunities.
We have many more resources to help you in this stage of your journey! Schedule an appointment with a career advisor if you'd like further guidance or explore internship information.
Apply
Apply what you've learned to your next career move, apply for jobs and/or graduate school | FOURTH YEAR
This is the last stage in your journey at Pacific University Forest Grove! It is time to put all of that hard work over the past four years to work for you. Let us help you find a job, graduate school or other endeavor you will be happy with.
Find a Job | Use our curated list of job search resources, including internal postings and web-based search sites
Tips for Resumes, Cover Letters and Interviewing | Useful information on how to craft your resume or cover letter and how to best prepare for an interview.
How to Investigate an Employer with a Lens of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion | Check out this video from the Inclusive Hiring Series
Graduate School | Explore our resources for researching, preparing, selecting and researching for graduate school.
Explore job opportunities, job search tips, or resume and cover letter guidance.
We're here to help!
At any stage in your journey, our team is here to offer guidance and resources. You can reach us at advisingcenter@pacificu.edu or schedule an appointment online.
