Who do you turn to for graduate job advice? Everyone or no-one? Don't get me wrong, the advice of family and friends is invaluable, yet as Natalie Rabson of Boston City Campus and Business College states: "Don't make those crucial [career] decisions lightly at the dinner table."
Rabson stresses the importance of investigating various options thoroughly, as opposed to just listening to those close at hand. "Get all the career information that you need and weigh your choices carefully", she says, "and don't forget there are likely to be as many prejudices to overcome as there are people sitting around the table." Rabson elaborates on this point by explaining that "the problem is that prejudices come out of personal experience and, while we are happy to learn from others, we should not allow someone else's personal experience to completely cloud our own decisions and good judgement, family and friends have their own personal vision of what they would like you to become."
Although it is important to listen to the advice of those who are close to you, it is vital to listen to advice offered by career education experts and - most importantly - think about what you think is best for you and not what your family think is best for you. Rabson advises that "obtain[ing] career advice from someone who specialises in career guidance" is the best way to go about planning and deciding about the future. Parents, family and friends may be able to have some helpful input in this decision, yet may not know about some specific career options, pathways into more recent careers, like IT, and up-to-date salaries, whereas a specialist in career guidance will have all this information.
That said, you should not disregard the input of those close to you, but remember that they may not have all the answers and know that there are experts whose advice may be of greater worth.
