Minds on.

Shereen is 19 and lives in a small city that has had its share of economic changes recently - both good and bad. One of the largest employers closed a few years ago due to relocation and another cut jobs after having to outsource in order to remain financially competitive. However, the head office of a moderately sized national company recently set up its central operations in the downtown, an artery that connects the city to a major highway is nearly complete, and the small university in her community experienced significant expansion after receiving a large injection of money from the government. Needless to say, the changes have affected the employment landscape, bringing new jobs to the area while, at the time, causing others disappear.  

Shereen was certain she wanted to be millwright, following in the footsteps of her father, and was hopeful that she would gain employment in the city’s largest industry. However, with the closure of the mill, Shereen is concerned that she will have to move away to find a job. She has always pictured herself living in the area, close to her family and friends and someday, perhaps, starting a family.

Career prospects are influenced by a multitude of variables. Fortunately, there are ‘outlooks,’ or forecasts, that help job seekers in making informed career decisions. However, as in Shereen’s case, having knowledge of what opportunities may lay ahead is often not enough. There are other considerations that come into play. For each person, the factors that are considered and ‘weighed’ when making career decisions are different, as is the importance they place on them. For Shereen, proximity to the city in which she grew up is very important. For others, however, this may not be important at all. Maybe to them health benefits may be a deciding factor.

Action.

Learn About It: Ontario Labour Market Reports

Each month, Ontario releases an Ontario Labour Market Report, filled with valuable information on employment and job trends. The reports are posted regularly to the Ontario Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development website.

Check out the most recent report by examining the graphs, and reading the facts and statistics closely.

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Work With It: Portfolio - Occupations that Interest Me – Information, Requirements, and Trends

Let’s look more closely at three careers in which you are interested.

Both Ontario’s provincial government and Canada’s federal government provide a wealth of tools and resources for job seekers. Take some time to check out how this information is presented by visiting their sites:

Government of Canada

Explore careers by occupation (enter your postal code)

Government of Ontario

Quick search: type one of the following

  • job title (e.g., carpenter)
  • part of word (e.g., econ for economist)
  • what you think the job title would be (e.g., searching x-ray technician results in medical radiation technologist)

Jobs by category: select a job title from a list of categories (e.g., audiologists and speech language pathologists)

Alphabetical listing: find a job title by its first letter

 

Construct a document entitled, “Occupations that Interest Me – Information, Requirements, and Trends.” In the document, construct a table as follows:

Occupation 2     Occupation 3     
Occupations Description and Duties Wages Education and Job/Employment Requirements Outlook, Prospects, Employment Potential Jobs
Occupation 1          

Consult the sites above, and/or other sources, and complete the table with detailed information.

The challenge is to be selective and concise as there is a great deal of information.

Remember, as well, to cite the sources of your findings.

This is a graphic of a hand with a red bow tied around the pointer finger. Tip

Need help citing your sources?

Try using EasyBib or Owl at Purdue Online Writing Lab.

This is an image of a green street sign containing the word, “Research.” The sign is set against a blue sky background.

Career decisions can have a dramatic and long-lasting impact on your lifestyle, opportunities, and even your happiness. It is important to take time to seek out information on the careers that interest you and the prospects that they hold.

Take a moment to think about the most important factors when making decisions regarding what career to pursue. These factors may include the items you researched in this activity, or other factors, such as those previously explored in the course (e.g., finding work that you love).

People place different ‘values’ on the factors that are important to them when making career decisions.

For instance, two people may feel that wages are an important factor to them when deciding what career to pursue; however, one may feel that it is extremely important, while the other may feel that it is only moderately important.

Answer the following questions:

  • What are the factors that are important to you and what ‘value’ do you place on each of these factors (i.e., somewhat important, moderately important, extremely important), when deciding what career to pursue?
  • Based on the factors you have listed, and the respective ‘values’ you have placed on each, which career in the table you have constructed best suits your aspirations? Explain your choice.
  • Has your research into these careers had any impact on your future aspirations? How so and why?

‘Value,’ in this case, refers to the degree of influence that a particular factor has on one’s career choice.

Learn About It: Labour Market News

Following labour market events is key to helping job seekers understand where the opportunities (short, medium and long term) might be both in their local community and elsewhere in the country. The Job Market Trends and News section of the Government of Canada’s Job Bank Website is an excellent portal or ‘jumping-off-point’ into current and detailed labour market news and trends:

Take some time to become familiar with this portal and the information, tools, and resources to which it links. For instance,

Add this information to your Portfolio.

Consolidation

Labour Market News in My Local Area

There are many factors that influence career trends and opportunities locally, regionally, provincially, nationally, and internationally. Examples include new government initiatives, changes in government policies, trade agreements, relocation of services, additions to (or removal of) infrastructure, changes in the demand for products or services, the comparative value of the dollar, competition from other businesses or industries, changes in the workforce, expansion of services or industry, and so forth. Take some time to search out a recent local news story that demonstrates the impact of a trend in your chosen area.

This is an image of a stack of newspapers with a person’s hand holding a highlighter resting on the top.

News media is an excellent source of information on current trends and events that are affecting the labour market on a local, regional, provincial, or national scale.

For instance, here is an example of how an increase in provincial health care funding affected a local hospital:

Here is an another example that involves the expansion of a franchise into a community:

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