International relations careers

Major: International Relations

http://www.collegeboard.com/csearch/majors_careers/profiles/majors/45.0901.html

What to Do With a Degree in International Relations

http://careerplanning.about.com/od/occupations/a/intl_relations.htm

Political Science careers

Guide to College Majors in Political Science

http://www.worldwidelearn.com/online-education-guide/social-science/political-science-major.htm

Careers In Political Science

http://www.apsanet.org/section_516.cfm

But both fields are rather broad and can be readily subdivided into a number of specialties. So the key to your success is to know yourself and know what you want to do and where you may want to do it….and to have a Plan B just in case things change (life can be like that) that lets you make a change without having to start all over.

I would also suggest that you learn more about yourself. The ideal would be to work in a field or job that you truly enjoy so that you aren’t really “working” but rather are getting paid to do what you enjoy to do.

Try this: retend you won the world’s biggest lottery and would never ever have to work or worry about money forever. If that were true, ask yourself what you would do to keep from becoming bored each day. (write the list on a sheet of paper…but make 3 columns, and make your list in the left column. Then fold up the paper and put it away for a few days.

A few days later, take out the list and look at each item carefully. For each thing you like to do, try to figure out A) what is so intellectually/mentally exciting about it for you? (and put those things in the center column)….and then B) what physical activity is associated with the things you like to do (and list those things in the right column).

When you are done, you have an inventory of the things you like to do, and why you like to do them (knowledge and skills). Now the grand prize is to figure out what job exists in the world that deals with your areas of interest that requires the knowledge and skills you either have or are interested in….so in essence, you want to find a job that pays you do to do what you would normally want to do anyway.

Once you identify that dream job or some prospective jobs, check them out in two ways…salary/career info, and knowledge/skills inventory.

For the salary/career info, try something like www.salary.com. Use it to find out the typical career path and salary/benefits…and what the pay is like in different parts of the country.

You can also do a self-assessment to match yourself to a job. Get a job description for your “dream job” (the ideal one you enjoy doing) . Use the SCANS checklists for the assessment. You can get the knowledge/skills inventory lists at http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/public/c…

There are a number of ways to use these lists. Start with a self-inventory. Start with a self inventory. Then inventory the job description see how close a match your personal inventory comes to the job description. The closer the match, the higher the probability of success and enjoyment in that job. You can also use the lists to inventory what you learned from any classes you take….and to see if the classes are giving you the knowledge and skills needed for the job you want.

And then, think about a Plan B. This can be a closely related job description. Then do an inventory of that and compare/contrast it to your personal inventory and your dream job. If there’s a good match fine…if not, consider a minor in college that helps bridge the gaps and make for a smoother transition to Plan B if it becomes necessary.

Things have a way of changing on you and through your life. Once you pick a goal, think about what is closely related to your major that you also like, and could easily switch to if your original major or plan didn’t quite work out. If you change majors (and I changed mine 7 times in the first 2 years of college….so I can related to your feeling mixed up), you want to be able to change to something that won’t require starting all over…something that can make use of some or most of the classes you have already taken.

OK, hope this helps you. Best wishes in your studies and to your future success and enjoyment of life.

Bank Officer

Corporate Lawyer

Diplomat/Foreign Service Officer/Specialist

Investment Banker

Journalist

Labor Relations Specialist

Lobbyist

Management Consultant

Market Researcher

Marketing Executive

Political Aide

Political Campaign Worker

Political Scientist

Politician

Professor

Public Relations

Publicist

Trial Lawyer

Anthropologist