MAR 303/505 Professional Practices
Career Information
Strategies:
One of the best ways to get good information on careers/occupations is to get it from the inside. You can do this by joining professional associations (or just scouring their websites & publications), subscribing to related listservs and just talking with people currently in the field. In addition, you should always browse the job descriptions for jobs in your field. This will let you know not only how many positions are available at a given time, it will also give you a sense of the beginning salaries, required education/skills, and range of employers. Try browsing Entertainment Employment Online.
Online Information:
Occupational Outlook Handbook
Put out by the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Occupational Outlook Handbook gives a plethora of information about a broad range of careers. Information includes: working conditions, expected training or qualifications, job outlook, earnings information and other sources for information about the career. Begin by clicking on "OOH SEARCH / AZ INDEX" in the upper right hand corner.
Occupational Outlook Quarterly
This periodical provides practical information on jobs and careers. It containes articles covering a wide variety of career and work-related topics, such as new and emerging occupations, training opportunities, and salary trends.
You may also search or browse this publication through Academic Search Premier. Click on the "publications" tab at the top of the screen, then type in Occupational Outlook Quarterly and click on the link. You will be presented with the fulltext of this publication back to 1989, through which you may browse. To search the fulltext, type Occupational Outlook Quarterly into the box labeled "Journal or Magazine" under the search box(es). Type your search terms into the search box(es) and hit enter.
Bureau of Labor Statistics
The Bureau of Labor Statistics provides both the Occupational Outlook Handbook and Quarterly. They also offer numerous other web resources that may be helpful for learning about careers and making career choices.
Print Information:
ACCRA Cost of Living Index - HD 6977 A412 (Info Commons Reference)
Includes comparative data for nearly 300 urban areas. (Arizona cities listed: Flagstaff, Phoenix, Prescott, Scottsdale, Tempe, Tucson).
There are dozens of good print resources in the Main Reference collection (Second/Main floor to the left of the Circulation Desk) and Information Commons Reference collection. Rather than list them all here, it may be more helpful to simply browse the areas of the collection that may contain these resources. The Library of Congress Call number range HD through HF, and the PN1998 area, contain several shelves full of good reference books on companies, industry and employment.
Other Sources:
Good information on careers will also be available through the homepages and publications of the various industry associations and groups covered in the Industry Information section of this website. Also visit the Business Subject Guide at the U of A Library.