Deciding the career you want to take up is one of the most important decisions that you will ever make. Even before you start applying to the universities, you must clearly chalk out a career plan and using this as the blueprint should you decide the course and subsequently the university you intend to join.

There are a few factors you must consider before you decide on the course:

• Your true calling:

You are not just going to make a living out of what you decide as your career choice but carve a life out of it. Your career selection must be based on your aptitude, inclinations and your academic credential. A fat pay cheque at end of the month may lure you to begin with, but must not solely guide your career decision.

• Assess your skill:

While it is important to have an interest in a particular field, it is equally important to have distinctive skillset for the same. You might want to get an aptitude and career assessment done to gauge your aptitude and present capabilities and basis the results look at various career options.

• Commitments:

It is crucial to have a complete picture of the career opportunities that will be presented to you after you are done with your masters. Always take into account factors including working hours, work obligations, stress level and other pertinent factors into consideration before you zero in on the career you want to opt for. Your proclivity for something is a vital consideration, but it is also imperative to have a realistic picture of the commitments required to pursue a particular career. For example, career in financial engineering requires you to sit for hours at length and may require you to work even on weekends. If you have a realistic understanding of the commitments of the chosen career, you are mentally prepared for the anticipated rigors.

• Career Prospects:

Do an extensive research on the career prospects before sealing your decision. You must speak to counsellors, and people working in a similar field to get a comprehensive picture of the job prospects. Speaking to seniors who have freshly passed of college and taken up a job, can give you the first-hand information about the course curriculum, academic requirement and flexibilities of the course leading to the chosen career.

• Course duration:

There are courses that require you to study for long duration. You must always weigh your priorities against the career compulsions. Once you embark on a journey to the selected career, it is very difficult to change its course midway.

• Expense involved in studying abroad:

There are careers which may be very expensive to get into. It is, therefore, important to have a clear idea of the cost involved towards making a career in a particular field. If the estimated expense is beyond your financial capabilities, you might want to consider various financial assistance choices and opportunities beforehand.

• Job scenario after completing education abroad:

While everyone wants his or her avocation to become his or her vocation, availability of jobs in the given sectors also needs to be taken into account. Before you set your heart on a particular career, you must always consider financial promises it brings your way.

Author:
Amrita Srivastava