Career development: Part II.

Editor's Note: This is the second of a two-part series. Part I appeared in the December/January 2004/2005 AMT.

After considerable review of career resources, we enter into the strategic phase. This is the nuts and bolts of what we are going to do and how we plan to evaluate our performance. I begin the strategic phase by asking the student to develop a reasonable three-month plan. This serves two functions. First, it helps students put their stated goals and strategies in writing. Second, it gives them a marker from which to gauge their progress--a difficult, but invaluable, part of career development.

I'm a strong advocate for encouraging students to start with small plans. Three months is reasonable and achievable. During this interval, students learn about themselves, their commitment and their enthusiasm for their intended career. Those who are thrilled with the course they have chosen are nearly always successful to some degree. They pursue their career plans with vigor. Even if they don't achieve all they hoped, they usually discover meaningful experiences and leads to other possibilities. Contrast these students with those who do not follow through on the goals they have set for themselves. In this case, the students need assistance. What is preventing students from following through on their plans? Is this career path interesting to them? Are they passionate about succeeding? No amount of talent, teacher encouragement or parental nagging will enable them to succeed on a path for which they have no passion.

For a plan to be effective, it needs more than a few broadly stated goals. It's too easy to write, "Look for teaching positions," "Prepare teaching materials," "Send resume and cover letters to schools." The better approach is a combination of broadly stated goals followed by a set of defined tasks that should be assigned certain days. For instance, students interested in booking tours might spend Tuesday and Thursday mornings researching possible performance venues in the southern region of their home states. They may visit a variety of websites, including the State Council for the Arts, Musical America, Department of Education and other keyword searches on Google. On Mondays and Wednesdays, they spend an hour drafting correspondences to possible performance venues. On Fridays, they spend one hour following up with their correspondences by phone and e-mail. However students choose to set their schedules, there should be something concrete on their calendars at least three to four days of the week.

Periodic Review

The most important mechanism in the three-month career plan is the periodic review with a faculty member or professional staff. Students need to know if someone is interested in their career plans and will have a vested interest in seeing them succeed. From my personal experience, there is a great disparity in the success rate between students who are sent off on their own and students who are closely monitored. I recommend, at the very minimum, one mid-point review and one final review. I can't stress enough the importance of these reviews. It is easy to find reasons to procrastinate or avoid the plan altogether. If students know they will be meeting with someone who takes their plans seriously, they are more inclined to stick to them and, ultimately, learn from the experience.

During the review phase, I learn a lot about how students are navigating their goals. This is where we, as experienced professionals, can offer the best guidance. We can offer insights into the ways they manage their time, draft and deliver their correspondences, prepare for interviews, follow up with phone calls, create networking opportunities, learn about related resources and much more. When students begin showing me the results of their career plans, I always discover interesting ways to subtly improve upon their progress. It is here that my personal experience and knowledge are most useful.

After students complete three-month career plans, their horizons are considerably brighter. They are imbued with a new sense of themselves, and they undoubtedly have a better understanding of their directions. Their next steps are predicated on their experiences over the past three months. If they decide to continue on their chosen courses, they can draft longer plans. Or if they decide to change directions, they can begin anew--but with a better sense of what does not interest them. It is at this stage that an advisor will either continue to be an active partner or quietly bow into the background. Hopefully, if all goes well, the training wheels eventually will be removed and students will be able to successfully navigate the course of their lives.

Derek Mithaug is the director of career development at the Juilliard School. He holds B.M. and M.M. degrees in piano performance from Juilliard and an M.A. degree in higher education administration from Columbia University. His current responsibilities include implementing a comprehensive career development program at Juilliard as part of the school's current Capital Campaign.