Venturing Toward A Vocation

High school is a time for new experiences. During these four years, we learn more about ourselves, the world around us, and even what the future may hold. Though high school students are not widely expected to know what career they want to pursue, many CB students are ahead of the curve.

Preston Winters (’18) shared her goals for a future career in intelligence.

“I want to do anything that’s based in intelligence because it combines psychology, science, [and] history, and those are all things I find really interesting,” gushed Preston. “Working for Homeland Security, the FBI, or going into the Air Force as an intelligence officer — those are all really promising things for me.”

Though Preston seems to have everything figured out, picking a possible career is not easy. Sofia Linares (’18) agreed with this and discussed some of the indecision she has faced while trying to figure out what career path she wants to follow.

“For a really long time I wanted to become a prosecutor, and now I’m not 100% sure if that’s exactly what I want to do,” shared Sofia. “I want to focus on either the forensics field of crime or the law field.”

Sofia also mentioned that the additional school time necessary to be competitive in the forensics field has pushed her more toward law.

“In forensics, most people are doctors,” explained Sofia. “You have to get your doctorate [to be competitive], so I’m leaning away from that at this point because I don’t want to become a doctor, and I don’t feel I’m good enough at the science to do that.”

While it is definitely challenging to determine exactly what path to follow, it can help to consider things that have happened in your life and how you have been affected by them. Morgan Jones (’18), an aspiring pediatric oncologist, picked her career choice by reflecting on both things she finds boring and her personal experiences.

“I don’t want to have a regular desk job typing on a computer all day — I want to be out interacting with people,” explained Morgan. “I want to do something with medicine and treat kids with cancer. I have a special connection with kids, and I figured I would put the two together. There is a lot of history with cancer in my family, so I decided to pursue pediatric oncology.”

Of course, familial experience is not the only way to pick a career. There are countless programs to get involved in, as well as simply looking at the world around you.

“I’m in Civil Air Patrol, which is the civilian division of the Air Force,” shared Preston. She went on to explain how she got involved and what drove her to pursue this type of career.

“I knew that I wanted to go into some form of service because of the stuff [I have seen] on the news. I know I can do something about that, and [so I found] these great programs to participate in.”

When it comes to looking for programs and ways to build experience, Morgan, Sofia, and Preston all agree that the best thing to do is research.

“Put yourself out there and do some research,” advised Morgan. “There are tons of programs that [aren’t] necessarily put out for the public.”

“Do a lot of research [about] what it takes to get into the field so you can see if that’s what you want,” added Sofia.

Even though there are few expectations about having your career entirely planned out by the time you go to college, it is never too early to start planning. There are countless paths to follow, opportunities to seize, and experiences to live. So, the next time you worry about the future, take a breath, relax, and research.