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from the issue of February 8, 2007
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Tool links students to majors, careers
BY KIM HACHIYA, UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS
Uncertainty about career paths and indecisiveness about majors can be confusing to students as they look at college. Many students don't know which majors can lead to what careers. They fear that choosing a major will lock them into something they won't like. Or they don't know what major matches their current interests and talents. These worries can lead students to avoid choosing a major, which can slow their progress toward graduation, adding semesters or even years to their college experience.
A new Web-based tool developed at UNL helps students find answers for those questions. Called the Power of Possibilities, the tool allows students, either enrolled at UNL or those thinking about college in general, to match their interests with majors offered at UNL and the possible careers to which those majors lead.
The interactive tool, which came online in late 2006 and is available at http://possibilities.unl.edu, allows students to choose from eight general areas of interest: business world, communities and schools, health and medical, numbers and logic, science, communication, world views, and arts and humanities. The user can "mouse over" the interest areas to learn what types of items the area includes. Once the student selects an interest area, he or she is presented with a series of statements that narrow the field. And once those areas are selected, the tool shows which UNL majors tap into those interest areas, possible careers the majors can lead to, and even recent internships experienced by students enrolled in those majors. The student can print a list of majors reviewed and additional web links for more information.
A student selecting "Communications," for example, will find broad topic information on a variety of career areas like media, public relations, speaking and writing, or communicating with hearing-impaired individuals. By clicking on sub-topics, interest phrases can be selected. The subtopic "I like to develop and present information to the public," identifies 20 possible academic bachelor's-degree majors. They range from advertising to theatre and English. By selecting a major, several possible career choices are presented, as well as a definition of the major and some recent internship opportunities.
The tool is specific to UNL because it links interests with UNL majors, but people of all ages or backgrounds who are interested in college in general might like the tool because it helps them connect interests with majors offered at many institutions.
The tool shows there are a variety of options for many career interests. For instance, students interested in a career in a business don't necessary need to major in "business," they can major in communication studies or advertising or psychology. It also allows students to narrow their interests within broad categories. Students interested in biology, for instance, can see applications in agriculture, the environment, animals, plants, nutrition, health care, education or engineering. Thus, students can look at biology-related majors in five UNL colleges.
"Students have frustrations with the alphabetical lists of majors by college," said Chris Timm, associate director of Career Services, one of three UNL units that collaborated to develop the site. "Students couldn't connect majors with their interests because they didn't have the experience to know what connected with what." Paper lists of majors were too linear and did not show cross-connections, Timm said. The lists were long, but not broad, and were not interactive.
"It should be OK to follow your dreams and interests," Timm said. "And that's easier to do if you know what opportunities connect with them. We wanted something that was fun and interactive, and that students could do on their own."
The other partners in the project were UNL's Division of General Studies and the Office of Communications and Information Technology.
Jennifer Nelson, a General Studies adviser, was lead developer for the project, which was funded by a $14,500 grant from the university's Initiative for Teaching and Learning Excellence.
"We often find students who are paralyzed about having to choose a major," Nelson said. "Our campus has many resources, but sometimes it's hard for students to get started. The Power of Possibilities is a non-threatening, self-directed Web tool that students can use at their own convenience without having to seek out an adviser."
GO TO: ISSUE OF FEBRUARY 8
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