Career tips for teens

Flats or heels? Call or text? Crunchy or smooth? We’ve got so many options available to us it can be overwhelming sometimes!

But it's not always a bad thing - when it comes to jobs and careers it can be hard to decide what you want to do, let alone which way to go about it, but women in 2010 are lucky to have so many career choices.

Even though you probably don’t need to decide today what you’d like to do when you leave school, it can be good to start thinking about it, and there are some easy things you can do to set yourself for a successful career in the future.

Monday the 8th of March is International Women’s Day, and this year’s theme is 'Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities'.

DOLLY spoke to Career Counsellor Leonie and hit her up for all her best advice for preparing for work while you’re still at school.

Do you have any tips for deciding which career path to take?

Work experience is a really good way to road test a job or workplace and see if you like it. Most schools run work experience programs, let your careers advisor know that you’re enthusiastic and they will organise it for you.

If you’ve got no idea at all there are quizzes you can do that ask you about your skills and interests to determine the kinds of jobs that might be right for you. Again, ask your careers advisor if they have a test you can take or visit myfuture.edu.au to take one online.

Don’t put pressure on yourself to make a decision, just do things that you are good at and/or enjoy and you will eventually find the right job for you.

Can the marks you get at school affect you when going for jobs?

Good school reports are really important, but the marks aren’t as important as the skills and behaviours. Even if it’s a subject you don’t like, try your best and always display positive behaviour – many employers want to see school reports to see if you are mature, good at working in a team, have good communication and organising skills etc.

What are the most important things to know when putting together a resume?

There should be absolutely no typos or spelling mistakes! If an employer sees a mistake they may very well throw your resume in the bin as it looks unprofessional and careless. Spell Check-ing it probably isn’t enough – get your careers advisor to check it, too.

Also, don’t use fancy fonts or borders on your resume as it can look unprofessional, it should be plain and simple.

And never make anything up! It would look very, very bad if you were found out.

What should you do if you feel you have been discriminated against or harassed at work?

Talk to the manager of your workplace first. If they don’t take any action to solve the problem, you should go to the Industrial Relations authority in your state – Google ‘Industrial Relations’ and then your state to find the site you need.

If the manager is the person you are having issues with, you should also go to the Industrial Relations organisation.

Email us with your questions dollymail@acpmagazines.com.au with "DOLLYinnergirl" as the subject.

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