21 AGCAREERS.COM FOOD & AGRICULTURE CAREER GUIDE How Do I Know What Career is Right for Me? Finding Your Future in Agriculture by Nicole Ward Beckley, Writer, National FFA Organization Do you like to build things? Are you someone who enjoys giving speeches and presentations? Is your goal to work with animals? What are your goals for continuing education throughout life? When searching for the perfect career, there are an overwhelming number of ways to go about it. A quick online search results in countless tests and quizzes, advice blogs, expert tips, and books and manuals promising to help. The quest can be a bit like the fable of Goldilocks’s trying out everything at the three bears’ home: some too big, some too small, but you keep trying, hoping you find the one that’s just right. Determining your career is a highly personal journey with no one-sizefits-all route. Finding just the right intersection of answers to “What do I like to do?” and “What am I good at?” and “What do I value?” can be daunting. Fortunately, for those looking to discover career, education, and job opportunities in agriculture and food, there are industry-specific resources that focus your search and guide you to take the next steps in determining what path is best for you. The National FFA Organization— which prepares its members for leadership and careers in the science, business, and technology of agriculture—provides an online resource called AgExplorer. AgExplorer is committed to helping you find your future in agriculture and is free for anyone to use. With more than 300 careers ranging in focus areas from agribusiness systems to sustainability systems, AgExplorer offers in-depth views into job descriptions, salary information, and necessary skills. “AgExplorer and the MyCareer Quiz allow individuals to discover careers they did not know existed in the agricultural industry,” said Megan McGrady, Senior Education Consultant (manager of the education development team) at the National FFA Organization. A key component of AgExplorer is its custom, interactive experience. Through MyCareer Quiz, not only do you respond to discerning questions, but also the results show more than just career suggestions based on your answers. MyCareer Quiz walks you through 16 questions ranging from “How interesting does each career route sound?” to “How would you like to make a living?”. Through MyCareer Quiz,” McGrady explained, “individuals will be able to hone in on careers that match their interests and skills, allowing them to find careers that may be perfect for them.” Several questions gauge your interest in diverse topics and your satisfaction involving a range of activities. One question asks what is most important to you when you think about your future. The quiz ranks whether you prefer working alone or in groups, whether you wish to work outdoors or inside, what topics interest you, such as STEM research, business, creativity, and wellness. Other considerations include how much time you want to spend working, and your preference for working remotely, entirely at a workplace, or on a hybrid basis. At the end of the quiz, you get your top four career matches based on your responses and the percentage to which you match them. You can then choose what you want to learn more about. Additionally, you obtain a further selection of career matches and the opportunity to explore those. You can have your results emailed to save the list for further reference and discovery. Furthermore, AgExplorer takes you on a deep dive into the careers MyCareer Quiz produces for you. Your results will help you to find out what level of education is required. Learn the expected salary, future job market projection, and typical employers. You will also see a list of responsibilities and peruse real-time open job listings related to the career. McGrady recommends the AgExplorer Virtual Field Trips and the video center as great resources to learn more about careers at various agricultural companies. “Virtual Field Trips go behind the scenes at several agricultural companies to be able to learn about different careers. The video center is full of interviews with professionals in the industry. In the videos they will discuss their career and how they arrived at that job,” she said. With help from the National FFA Organization’s AgExplorer and MyCareer Quiz, powered by career insights and job listings from AgCareers.com, you’ll be prepared for the next steps to get even closer to your desired profession. Finding your future career in agriculture is no longer just a dream or a fairy tale — it’s a real possibility. Learn more through AgExplorer and take the MyCareer Quiz AG
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