Career Exploration Resources

Illinois CIS - You will find more information than you can handle in one sitting with this detailed, self-guided career program. Illinois CIS helps students investigate careers based on individual interests and abilities. Login by clicking on "IL Residents" and using your town, and zip code.

Skilled Labor Careers Guide - A detailed overview of skilled labor professions, apprenticeships.

Occupational Outlook Handbook - The online version of the traditional Occupational Outlook Handbook. Full of information about training, salary, and career outlook.

Salary Wizard - Lots of advertising and pop-ups associated with this link, but a good resource for finding basic information about average salaries in specific geographic regions.

WhyVille - ACT has teamed up with Whyville to bring career exploration to students around the world. In the ACT Career Club, explore various career areas and play CareerQuest -- a game that motivates the discovery of more than 500 different occupations.

123 Career Aptitude Test - This popular aptitude test can help you gain insight into the careers that best fit your personality. You can take the test in minutes by viewing sets of pictures that show specific work activities. You’ll choose the activities that appeal to you the most and those you aren’t interested in to learn about the type of work environments and occupations that suit you best. Plan on spending five to 10 minutes to complete the test. 

Career One Stop -  You'll answer 30 quick questions online. Then you'll get a list of careers that might be a good fit for your interests. On this platform too you can find a values matcher, to see the best fit based on your personal values. 

Work Values Matcher - Understanding your personal work values can help you make better career and employment decisions, and ultimately lead to higher job satisfaction.

If you're exploring careers: knowing your personal work values, together with your skills and interests can help you select a career that's right for you.

If you're job searching: knowing what you value in a workplace can help you ask the right questions at job interviews to see if a particular job might be a good fit for you.

CareerExplorer - is a free platform for users to assess their interests, personality types, abilities, career values, and preferred work and social environments in order to find matches that will lead to satisfying careers. The assessment suggests careers after you respond to a series of questions, and it will take about 30 minutes to complete.

Resume Templates - Easily create a standout resume with our customizable resume templates. Designed for various careers and optimized for ATS, each resume template highlights your strengths to attract the right opportunities.

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