Self-Assessment Resources

The Career Centre offers a number of valuable services and programs to students, alumni and staff/faculty to assist with any self-assessment needs. 

Self-Assessment Workshops (Career Planning 101)
Offered several times each week, this workshop offers you an opportunity to complete a series of assessments which will enable you to examine your work values, skills, interests and personality type. At the completion of the workshop you will leave with a list of key work interests, values, motivators and skills as well as samples of careers related to these factors. The goal of this workshop is to provide you with an introduction to self assessment and career planning.

Individual Career Advising
Trained Career Consultants can assist you in identifying, interpreting and processing personal, educational and vocational (career) information and match this to potential careers. Career Consultants may advise you to consider completing Standardized Vocational and Personality Indicators. With professional guidance and instruction, formal assessments can provide useful feedback on how your interests, skills and personality traits compare to those of workers in different occupations. The goal of individual career advising is to assist you in learning about yourself and identifying potential careers which match your personal, educational and lifestyle needs.

Published Resources
The Career Centre has an extensive library of published resources that can benefit you in the development of personal insight and vocational knowledge. Other resources permit you to conduct your self assessment more independently. If you choose to begin the self-assessment process on your own, please keep in mind that some practices and tools are more reliable and valid than others. We encourage you to question the merits of the methods used and the accuracy of the data generated. It would be wise to consult with a Career Consultant regarding your findings.

Personal Reflection
Asking yourself some important questions can be very enlightening. Some questions to consider include:

• What kind of work would I like to do?
• With what kinds of people would I want to work?
• In what type of organization would I wish to work?
• What motivates me?
• What am I especially sensitive to?
• What am I passionate about?
• What person, real or otherwise, has the perfect job?
• What do I want out of life?
• If I could talk about something all day, what would that subject be?
• What do I dream about?
• What do people say I am good at?

The Internet
Self-assessment inventories and questionnaires can also be found online. Although not all created equally, online self-assessment resources can potentially provide some valuable data regarding your personal characteristics and the career options which might suit you. While concerned about the possibility of misinterpretation, the Career Centre recognizes the demand for online self-assessment resources. If you choose to make use of online tools, we again encourage you to make an appointment with a Career Consultant to discuss your findings. Some starting points include: