Think how much easier it will be to reach your personal and professional goals [both short- and long-term] if you are aware of your personality and attitudes, skills and achievements, knowledge base, values, and interests.   The search for a better understanding of self may have started for some as early as middle school.  For others, it may not begin until early in your college experience.

     There are several methods you can, and do, use to know yourself better.  All any of them take are time, focus, and brutal honesty! 

     [If you have not found your focus and have not yet declared a major, you should talk with your advisor in University College, visit the A&S Careers Program library for books on career options directly and indirectly related to specific majors or click here for a quick overview of possibilities open to degrees offered in Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences, or schedule a testing session with Testing and Counseling in Simmons Hall.]
 

One-on-One with Yourself:
     This approach makes you your own worse enemy. . .or, your very best friend!  The method calls for brutal honesty regarding what you really know and how you really feel about your attitudes, achievements, values, etc.  Only you are aware of what you absolutely CANNOT abide.

     Perhaps working with the elderly, talking excessively on the phone, or spending great quantities of time shuffeling paperwork are not activities for you.  Be honest during this exploration process--no one else is there to judge you.  The point of self-assessment is to reach an understanding of what makes you tick and where you likely will be the happiest when employed.

The exploration method suggested greatly resembles that used to begin development of a resume.

• Find a quiet place to think
• Take a pencil and lots of paper
• Prepare to scrutinize your very essence!

• Make lists on one page with titles such as:
• Skills: 
• Job-related Skills = abilities to  develop software programs or interpret budget reports
• Transferable Skills = good oral and written communication skills or organization or research
• Adaptive Skills = punctuality, honesty, ability to work with others / follow instructions /  meet deadlines.
• Knowledge: 
• Various formal and informal training
• Volunteer positions
• Internship or co-op experience  
• Values: 
• Moral fulfillment
• Autonomy
• Adventure
• Competition
• Security
• Position stability
• Financial gain
• Advancement.
• Use another page to list: 
• Would Like to Have:
• Can't Live Without:
• Could Care Less About:
• Use a third or fourth page to list accomplishments: 
• At School
• On the Job (pt/ft)
• In Volunteer Positions
• Within the Community
• At Church
• In Social Groups
• Explore:
• Type of working atmosphere [corporate culture]  you need:
• Fast-paced or slow and steady
• Many employees or few employees
• Rigid management structure or worker autonomy
• Job duties you are willing or not willing to do or learn: 
• Field work or office bound
• Pay and time commitment desired: 
• Straight 40 hours, Four-day weeks, Time share, etc.
• Type of organization suitable to you: 
• Non-profit, Gov't, Corporate, health, retail, Fortune 500, etc.
• Any other related factors you can think of such as:
• Relocation, salary, benefits, additional education, extensive travel, etc.
• Synthesize this information to develop a better understanding of what makes you tick!

You and a Friend or Mentor:
     Sometimes you need the input of another, more objective, individual to get to the heart of a dilemma--such as determining professional or personal weaknesses.  By creating a dialogue to explore segments of your personality, you may find that traits sometimes seen as negative, may be turned around and viewed as very positive, e.g., focus and the ability to work alone are not necessarily representative of a reserved or aloof personality as much as they may be the best traits of a wizard researcher!

     Remember, it is extremely important to file away your ego during these exploratory jaunts with another individual in order to secure successful insight and to avoid hurt feelings.  The object of these sessions is to better understand yourself to assure that you will find and secure the perfect employment fit.
 

One-on-One with Published Books / Tests:
     There is a plethora of books on the market these days to help accomplish your self-assessment.  They provide pertinent questions which are designed to provoke avenues of exploration not normally thought of during an individual self-assessment.

     Start by visiting campus libraries, the Center for Career Management, and A&S Careers Program's lending library for offerings such as Richard Bolles' What Color is Your Parachute?, and The Guide for Occupational Exploration Inventory, the self-directed guide to career, learning, and lifestyle options.  Visit any local bookstore to discover what can be purchased from their section of self-assessment books .  Or, go online to visit  http://www.jist.com , the homepage of JIST Publishing Inc., an authority on topics of job search offering both pencil and paper and on-line assessment tools. 

     There are also booklets with various standard pencil and paper tests such as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, the Campbell Interest and Skill Survey or Strong-Campbell Interest Inventory, and John L. Holland's Self-Directed Search (SDS).  There is usually an explanatory overview included with these pencil and paper tests.  However, thorough evaluation of these tests is better left to professional counselors, as long as you remember that interpretation is subjective and counselors are providing you with options only.
 

On-Line Personality / Assessment Sites:
     Computer buffs might be interested in checking out the on-line sites that provide personality and interest testing.  Most search engines will take you to numerous sites just by typing personality testing or assessment. 

Some pertinent sites of interest:

• http://www.2h.com/Tests/personality-tests.html  Fun site of varied IQ, career, entrepreneurial
• http://www.self-directed-search.com   John L. Holland's on-line equivalent of the pen & paper
• http://www.personalitytype.com/Do What You Are authors, Barbara Barron- & Paul Tieger 
• http://library.stmarytx.edu/acadlib/subject/psych/prsnlty.htm  Myers Briggs and Keirsey Temperament Sorter links

   The best source of individual, up-close and personal help with self-assessment available to UA students is through the campus Counseling, Testing and Career Center located in Simmons Hall 306.

     The  counselors are friendly, confidential, and thorough, and the fee is minimal.  Personnel will schedule appointments for you to take any of the previously mentioned pencil and paper tests and will follow up with one-on-one interpretations, evaluations, and counseling.

The Counseling, Testing and Career Center also maintains two computerized career-guidance systems for your use: 

• SIGI PLUS (System of Interactive Guidance and Information Plus) which helps you to examine work-related values, interests and skills, and to identify careers that match your assessment.

• OCIS (Ohio Career Information System) which can provide current state and national data on occupations and colleges.