Decision making

One of the key action components of the career planning model addresses how to actually go about making decisions relevant to your career planning. Career decision making occurs at a number of points throughout your career and these decisions will often be revisited.

Decision making help

Within this environment of continuous change we are continually questioning whether the career path we have taken is the 'correct' one. At university this questioning can take a number of forms including changing majors.

There are number of decisions that you could be making regarding some of the following course and career related factors:

• Subjects, courses, Faculties, Degrees, Institutions, Full-time or Part-time employment, Employment goals, career direction

Examples:

• Initially starting at university, you may question your course choice.
• In the later stages of your degree you may question if this is the career area you want to pursue now that you know a lot more about it.
• As a postgraduate student you may be questioning whether to continue in the same direction or change direction.
• After you have been in the workforce for some time you may want to change out of that career area altogether.

This process of questioning your career path or career decisions is perfectly normal.

Decision checkpoint guide

The checkpoints below can be useful in the decision making process.

1. What change are you contemplating?
2. List the reasons
3. Identify possible options (including the option of not making a change)
4. Research the options and list the positive and negative consequence of each
5. Evaluate the options
6. Discuss your tentative thoughts with significant people
7. Make a decision
8. Take the appropriate action
9. Review your choice after some time

These checkpoints can be visited in any order and at any time in the process of thinking about a possible change. Below are some examples for you to work through.

What change are you contemplating?

• Withdrawing from the course; Changing majors; Changing from Teaching to.......

What are the reasons?

• It's not what I thought it was; I am finding it too stressful; I would now like to be a ….

What are the possible options?

• Stay; Change; Delay the change

What are the positive and negative consequences for each option? E.g. Changing Course

• Stay where I am - Positive: Pass units and cross credit them as electives in a different course; Negative - Will fail some units
• Withdraw by 31 March- Positive: Can recoup HECS; Negative - Too late to start a new course
• Delay decision until 5 May - Positive: Can still withdraw without academic penalty; Negative - HECS is already paid

Consider the information and evaluate it?

• Which is the most important reason(s) to you
• What is your gut reaction to the statements
• I can afford to pay HECS for one semester so …
• My lifestyle balance is important to me so…

Who to discuss these thoughts and feelings with?

• Your lecturer/tutor, friends, parents and career counsellor

Make a decision

• I will stay in the course for at least 5 more weeks; I will leave at the end of the semester; I will resign; I will stay and get some help

Plan out a course of action

• Go to the Student Centre to find the exact date for withdrawal without penalty; Get help with a study plan; Get my resume up to date

Review the decision and progress

• One week before the next major date; in one month's time; at the end of the semester/year