When I was at school, I received some career advice. It said that I could not choose the A level subjects that I enjoyed, French, Spanish and Biology because no-one would accept me on a degree course with that combination so, I was encouraged to choose Business or Economics instead of Biology. I can’t exactly remember my thought processes but being from a family of public sector workers, Business probably wasn’t considered a sensible option, so Economics it was.
It turned out that I didn’t understand how the economy worked and what’s more, I was resistant to learning about it. I spent more time trying to master Economics than I did on French and Spanish. The result, two average grades at languages and a fail for Economics. I didn’t get to go to the universities of my choice, going instead through clearing, looking for anyone that would have me. I was encouraged not to resit A levels, but to go straight to university because any degree was better than no degree.
I did a pure language degree with a year abroad, not something I wanted to do but the best of what was on offer. I didn’t enjoy it and when I left university, I was confused about what I wanted to do. With no career advice coming my way at university, and a degree that I didn’t want to use, I ended up feeling that I wasn’t qualified to do anything at all.
When I look back on my career, I am angry that the system allowed me to leave university with feelings of worthlessness and confusion. I was a 21 year old with no confidence, no aspirations and no dreams, weighed down by academic failure and a lack of self-belief. How was this allowed to happen? Are we still allowing young people to graduate from university with a feeling that they are worthless? I intend to make sure that this never happens on my watch.
Early Career
Except the career advice I was given when I was 16, I never received any guidance or support in helping me work out what I wanted to do until I was 30 years old. I remember a meeting with a careers advisor at the university where I was doing a part-time MSc at the time. I was asked to bring a copy of my CV. Within 20 minutes that careers advisor had me believing that I could be whatever I wanted. I think back on that meeting with that lady frequently. She single-handedly turned my life around because she believed in me. She saw me. The real me. And she helped me understand what I had to offer. I have never looked back.
Fast-forward 25 years after originally graduating and I am now a Lecturer in Organisational Behaviour at Sheffield University Management School and an ICF accredited coach. I have 17 years industry experience, 2 Masters Degrees and a PhD. I have recently been appointed academic lead for employability within the Management School. I had written myself off at 21 but feel I am living proof that no-one is beyond success. It is finding the path to success that is our individual struggle. I have now found mine, even though it has taken me a long time to find it.
The Career Development Plan
Based on my experience and a desire to ensure that no-one finds themself in the same situation, I developed a career management tool. The Career Development Plan underpins a compulsory year-long module for first year students at Sheffield University Management School. Designed to help students reflect deeply about their career choices, in a structured way, students are encouraged to take control of their career from an early age.
The Module
The module comprises four lectures, two workshops, six tutorials, and two assessments asking students to both write and present what they consider to be their future career, the challenges they face and what they have learnt so far. We observed last year that encouraging students to think about their career does not work well in a lecture theatre, so this year we designed a workshop which all first year students could attend together. Hosted in a conference centre with everyone seated cabaret-style, ten students on a table, we used engaging and immersive techniques such as World Café and Appreciative Inquiry to introduce reflection techniques to students in a safe and non-judgmental environment.
Summary
There is nothing less empowering than believing that your future lies in the hands of parents, teachers or recruiters and it’s taking you in a direction that doesn’t feel right for you. The aim of the Career Development Plan is to help students understand that they have control of where they go and how they get there. The Career Development Plan is based on the premise that people will always succeed if they do something which they are good at and that they like doing, in an area that interests them. It takes into account personal preferences, exposes implicit assumptions about career expectations, and encourages a thorough exploration of who and what might value what they stand for. It is not about fitting in, conforming to societal norms, pretending to be someone they are not. It is about helping them play to their strengths, recognising the talents that they each have, embracing their idiosyncrasies that make them who they are. It engenders independent thinking, creativity and honesty. It encourages evaluation of facts and information to identify suitable opportunities. It demands exploration of the detail, dispelling the notion that those who do well in their career were helped in some way. Our career success is not about who we know. It’s about working out how to get to where we want to be. Once we know that, the rest becomes easy.
Dr Sarah Brooks is Lecturer in Organisational Behaviour and Academic Lead for Employability at Sheffield University Management School. To find out more, email Sarah or contact her via LinkedIn.