Product Description
Has it happened yet? Have you been asked The Question? You know the one. It’s the question that haunts you from your early undergrad days to months, even years, after you graduate… “What are you going to do with that major?” Inevitably this unleashes waves of anxiety, whether you’re a liberal arts student unsure what your degree has prepared you for, someone with a “practical” major whose career field is oversaturated (or just unappealing), or a recent grad still searching for inspiration. But take heart – The Question is fundamentally flawed. Your major does not equal your job!
In You Majored In What?, nationally known career counselor Dr. Katharine Brooks dispels the myths and the old-fashioned thinking that can make your transition to the “real world” so daunting and chaotic. Developed from more than twenty years of teaching and guiding students to successful careers, her Wise Wanderings career coaching system helps you mine your academic and life experiences for career gold through creative yet practical techniques including visual mapping, storytelling, and experimenting. Thanks to the Wise Wanderings system, you can forget what you’ve been told about the job search. You don’t have to know where you’ll be in ten years. You don’t have to have picked the perfect major. The job-finding process doesn’t have to be one more burden on your already overburdened schedule. All you have to do is pay attention. Embrace the chaos. Think. Create maps. Construct small experiments. Celebrate your education. Consider possible lives. Tell stories. And start wandering. Wisely, of course. You’ll be amazed at what’s waiting out there for you.
You Majored in What?: Mapping Your Path From Chaos to Career
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Even though this book is marketed (and written) for high school and college students or recent graduates, as a person who recently re-entered the job market (after staying home and raising my daughter) I found this book extremely helpful in shaping my ideas for what I could “do” and how to promote myself to an employer. Making the various maps was a lot of fun and I learned things about myself that I had never thought about before. The chapters on resumes, cover letters, and interviewing were full of great ideas and I produced a targeted resume that got me interviews immediately. Even better, I got the second job I applied for– despite this terrible economy! Highly recommended for anyone at any age.
Rating: 5 / 5
This book teaches us to listen to our heart more and discover who we really are rather than depending on some linear and “outside” definition of what we need to do and be. Its helpful for anyone, not just college students. In today’s world where young adults are feeling the pressure of knowing they will be graduating from college deep in debt– this book helps the student stay confident, follow their intuition, relax, and trust the process. You Majored in What? encourages its reader to use college as a time of exploration and uncovering interests, to enjoy and observe the lessons learned along the journey, rather than being only focused on the destination, while at the same time giving step by step instructions on what to do each step of the way.
Rating: 5 / 5
Have you ever glanced through a book in an attempt to glean the few nuggets it contains? Not this one. “You Majored in What?” breaks the 80-20 rule as it’s JAM-PACKED with insight, knowledge, and self-guided exercises that will give you real clarity about your direction in life.
If you’re a student, the parent of a student, a returning student, or just wondering what to do now in your life – GET THIS BOOK.
Dr. Brooks is one of the most gifted and intelligent people that reads everything, knows more than most people, and has genuine soul and heart – and it comes through in this book. She is not stingy and freely gives away her knowledge in a language that’s easy to understand. You’re going to love it.
I wish I had a book like this to read this years ago! In fact, I’m going to spend the weekend curled up on my sofa with my favorite music playing in the background and try out her “mental wanderings” exercise. (Oh, and who knew about not using a highlighter when studying?? Read the book to understand why. :))
Rating: 5 / 5
I had the privilege of assisting Dr. Brooks with her Majors in the Workplace course over two semesters at The University of Texas at Austin and saw, first-hand, the amazing results she was able to provoke by exposing the principles in this book to college juniors and seniors. Not only did these students complete the course with greater self-confidence, but they hugely broadened what they believed was possible for them to achieve in the world of work, and had honed and refined the practical skills of resume and cover-letter writing that supported those aspirations.
At a time when career centers typically remain 5-10 years behind the curve in terms of adequately preparing college graduates for the 21st century marketplace outside of the narrow confines of academia, Dr. Brooks offers refreshingly innovative yet hugely practical insights into making the most of any liberal arts major in any kind of job.
Buy this book; apply its principles; then discover how you too can be attractive to today’s employers by creating your most compelling self.
Rating: 5 / 5
“you majored in what?” provides a fresh, detailed approach to career research. about 22 years ago, i needed a career change. i attended counseling classes, and also went through the then-current volume of bolles’ ubiquitous “what color is your parachute;” although i was successful in my effort, i wish this book and approach had been available then (yes, even though this book is aimed at graduating college students, i think career-changers could benefit equally from its content). the WCIYP approach is terrific as far as it goes, but it is not as straightforward and freeing-from-stereotypes as would have been helpful to me. “you majored in what?” is an open-ended brainstorming of a sort, with a framework laid out to really allow me to link experience,strengths and interests. the author uses the term “wandering map” to describe the basic tool upon which the “search” is built. “wandering” sounds a little too unfocused to me; i think it really works more like a “brainstorming map.” other reviews here provide terrific detail on the content, so i’ll stop here.
the book is easy to read and follow, and yet is a complete, detailed description of a confidence-building career search process.
Rating: 5 / 5