Getting Started & Handshake 101

Find the Career That’s Best for You

Whether you’re a first year, a PhD or a professional planning a career change, start your journey by getting to know yourself better, finding your best career fit, and making a plan that puts your goals within reach. If you are an incoming first year undergraduate student, start by visiting our virtual orientation.

Explore how choosing your undergraduate major can affect your career path.

  • Your major doesn’t have to determine your career path, but it’s still helpful to learn about some common pathways for people in your area of study. Dive into our resources for choosing your major.

Get to know yourself better: Conduct a self-assessment

  • Identifying your values, skills, and interests will help you figure out where you’ll be happy – and what’s a deal breaker.

Find the best career fit: Research career options

  • You’ll find your perfect job in the sweet spot between your passions, your skills, and the world’s needs. But what does the world need? What kinds of jobs are out there? Research various career paths to determine the right fit for you.

Put your goals within reach: Make a career plan

Exploring careers? Start with the Career Exploration Series!

CAPD is coordinating the second annual, institute-wide Career Exploration Series that begins on September 12th and runs through IAP! This series is a collaboration between MIT departments, programs, employers, and alumni to help all students learn about the different career and graduate/professional school options available to you.   

Visit the events page …

By Tianna Ransom
Tianna Ransom Assistant Director, Career Exploration
Read more »

How to make an appointment with CAPD

Wondering how to make an appointment with a CAPD staff member? Follow these steps to get connected with someone who can provide tailored support for your career and professional development questions, from writing a resume or CV to graduate school …

Read more »

Free Career Aptitude Tests

This article, written by Alison Doyle of the Balance Career provides information on free career aptitude tests available online.

Read more »

5 things to do/not do when supporting your student in finding a major

The arrival of spring means that first year undergraduates are approaching their first opportunity to declare a major. As parents, supporters, mentors or advisors to these students, I want to share a few things to keep in mind as you …

By Erik Pavesic
Erik Pavesic Assistant Director, Career Advising & Training
Read more »

Have fun with major exploration

Choosing a major does not have to be tedious or boring. You can have a little bit of fun before (and maybe even after) you declare a major. Here are some simple activities that you can do by yourself or …

By Erik Pavesic
Erik Pavesic Assistant Director, Career Advising & Training
Read more »

Featured Resources

/

Wondering how to make an appointment with a CAPD staff member? Follow these steps to get connected with someone who …

This article, written by Alison Doyle of the Balance Career provides information on free career aptitude tests available online.

Career planning is an essential part of your career development. By coming up with a career plan, you can start …

As the major declaration date approaches, many first-year students are nervous about making the decision. This resource by Yan Wu

Cleaning Up Your GitHub

Sharon Lin writes, “I learned about GitHub somewhere between middle and high school after checking out some repositories from old …