BEX3500 - Professional Development for Commerce 

  In the Fist-paced, cutthroat employment market of today, it's critical to be aware of your professional goals and shortcomings. While it is commonly believed that graduates with the highest skill levels are more employable, many analyses point to a broader and more complex range of graduate employability skills, and I will examine how they can shed light on my future career path in this reflective piece (Jackson, 2016; Holmes, 2013; Tomlinson, 2012; Brown and Hesketh, 2004). I will also examine the results of various career assessment tools. I will go into detail on how the Graduate Capital Framework helps me understand my strengths and shortcomings as well as how the Career Pulse and Self-Assessment results have helped me advance both personally and professionally.

  First off, the Career Pulse and Self-Assessment reports gave me a wealth of information about how I was doing in relation to various graduate capitals. The primary assets that bestow advantages and rewards upon graduates are referred to as graduate capital. These resources, which come from graduates' formal and informal experiences, span a variety of educational, social, cultural, and psychosocial dimensions. They also include many interacting forms that enhance each other's potency. Human, social, cultural, identity, and psychological capital are the primary forms of capital that are essential to this strategy (Bourdieu, 1986). My personal career analysis and assessment report states that my strong performance on the Human Resource Benchmark is indicative of my capacity for critical thought, problem-solving, and information processing. I benefit from functioning better when handling challenging activities because of this. The aforementioned talents are among the most suitable ones that a graduate can acquire to take advantage of employment openings both before and after entering the workforce. Building a career requires not only understanding the importance of certain job needs but also having a general understanding of the labor market (Gary Becker, 1993). I view the assessment as moderate in terms of social capital because it is becoming more and more crucial for undeclared students to be able to forge bridge experiences and strengthen ties outside of the official university limits. I believe that my lack of a meticulous plan for establishing and preserving a professional network is a direct result of my worry during my Big five test. Even though I know where I want my career to go, I haven't yet taken advantage of the social networks around me or added additional social capital through internships in businesses because I'm terrified of the uncertainty and confusion of the future. For example, I am currently majoring in finance and would like to work as a financial analyst in a bank or securities company. At the moment, I don't have a lot of internship experience due to many factors at the university. In addition, I don't have a detailed plan for a career in finance, which may put me at a disadvantage when looking for a job in the future. Tomlinson's article taught us about identification capital and cultural capital. The development of culturally valued information, traits, and behaviors that fit the graduate's desired line of work is referred to as cultural capital (Bourdieu, 1986). The Big Five Test indicates that I should remain in the advantageous group and that I have a good deal of confidence in my ability to find a job. This is a result of my family appreciating my global education and progress, which boosts my self-esteem greatly. For instance, I have a highly advanced international education, and I can confidently handle problems even in the face of obstacles and failures. Additionally, my university instructors taught me a great deal about finance. My psychological capital has therefore increased as well, strengthening my capacity to adjust to new experiences and social norms as well as to maintain composure under pressure. This information, which is derived from the Big Five personality test and the career evaluation, has changed me and improved my understanding of who I am. I was able to more clearly identify my skills and limitations and learn how to be diligent and cooperative in order to accomplish shared objectives by conducting a strengths and weaknesses analysis. I also became aware of my shortcomings in terms of planning and career. My ability to collaborate and interact with people has improved as a result of this deeper understanding, which has improved my leadership and teamwork abilities. Furthermore, having this information will enable me to recognize and support the vocation or career route I have selected. I'll be able to more clearly identify my career goals and plan my development if I have a better awareness of my strengths and shortcomings as well as the significance of knowing the many graduate capitals. I'm going to use this information to keep getting better at what I do and grow both personally and professionally. For instance, I'll take the time to create a financial career planning form targeted at all in-demand organizations and apply for internships in businesses that specialize in financial-related fields in order to obtain invaluable experience.

  All in all, the Career Pulse and Self-Assessment gave me insightful and helpful comments that helped me better understand my strengths and shortcomings and pointed me in the direction of my career and personal objectives. Furthermore, the incorporation of Tomlinson's Graduate Capital Framework into the career evaluation tool offers a more sophisticated comprehension of future employment prospects' strengths and limitations. The knowledge acquired has aided in my personal development, expanded my comprehension of both myself and other people, and given me a strong basis on which to navigate the intricacies of the modern labor market. I'll keep using this information to sharpen my skills so that I can pursue a more fulfilling and prosperous job.

Reference

Bourdieu, P. (1986). the forms of capital. in: Richardson, J., handbook of theory and research for the sociology of Education. Westport, CT: Greenwood: 241–58. Social Capital Gateway. (2016, October 18). https://www.socialcapitalgateway.org/content/paper/bourdieu-p-1986-forms-capital-richardson-j-handbook-theory-and-research-sociology-educ 

Becker, G. S. (1994, January 1). Human capital: A theoretical and empirical analysis with special reference to education, Third edition. NBER. https://www.nber.org/books-and-chapters/human-capital-theoretical-and-empirical-analysis-special-reference-education-third-edition 

Distinction: A social critique of the judgement of taste. (n.d.-a). https://monoskop.org/images/e/e0/Pierre_Bourdieu_Distinction_A_Social_Critique_of_the_Judgement_of_Taste_1984.pdf 

Jackson, D., & Tomlinson, M. (2020, January 15). Investigating the relationship between career planning, proactivity and employability perceptions among higher education students in uncertain labour market conditions - higher education. SpringerLink. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10734-019-00490-5?shared-article-renderer