Career Development

When is the best time to start thinking about your career? Ideally, you should start during your studies and take advantage of our workshops on developing soft skills, our advisory services for planning internships, and our contacts with employers and alumni to get an impression of different career paths. Career orientation takes time. It's best to plan for this early on in your studies.

Reflection:

• What stage of my studies am I currently at?
• When do I plan to graduate?
• What do I need to take the next step?
• What decisions do I need to make now or in the near future?
• What (practical) experience would I like to integrate into my studies?
• What is my academic focus or area of interest?

What resources do I have that will help me advance my career? Before you start, you should clarify what you have to offer. In addition to technical skills and soft skills, you should also take a look at your social network and your mindset. 

Reflection:

• What technical skills have I been able to develop so far?
• What interdisciplinary skills have I been able to develop so far?
• What have I learned from my previous experiences (studies, jobs, internships, volunteer work, etc.)? What activities have I already been able to perform?
• What does my social network look like? Where can I find support?
• Which contacts would I like to further develop and expand?
• What challenges have I encountered so far and how have I dealt with them? How do I generally deal with stress?

You can discover which future skills are particularly important here.

Since our personalities are diverse and multifaceted, there is no single career position that suits us all. We recommend that you develop various options and prioritize them. Since career satisfaction depends on many different factors, it can only be planned to a limited extent. However, you can actively influence it, for example by consciously examining your own personality, your motives, and your skills.

Reflection:

• Which professional field appeals to me in particular?
• Which activities have I already performed or would I like to learn more about?
• What practical experience could enhance my resume?
• Which values guide me particularly strongly?
• What motivation do I bring to a job?
• Which employer/industry do I particularly identify with?
• Where are my skills needed?
• Where do I see myself in 3-5 years?

The clearer your goal is, the easier it will be to decide what to do next and where to set your priorities. If you cannot name a goal, it makes sense to take a closer look at the previous points. 

Reflection: 

• By when do I want to achieve my goal?
• How do I evaluate my profile/resources in relation to my career goal?
• What are the pros and cons of the current timing?
• What specific steps are necessary to achieve my goal?
• What challenges might I encounter and how do I want to deal with them?
• Who/what can support me in implementing my goal?

The Career Service is happy to assist you with a consultation. You will also find many helpful events related to career orientation in our event program.