Six Mile Post

Issue date: 4/21/09 Section: Features

Media Credit: Tyler Ashley Nick Godfrey (left) takes the DISCOVER test as Christin Perry-Michalik assists.

Sometimes students just don't have any idea about what career they want to have. Some of us think we know but are still not completely sure. The DISCOVER Program may just help students to figure things out.

The DISCOVER test offers several tools to help pinpoint and focus on what it is students are most interested in, skilled in and want in an occupation.

Recently, I went to the Student Support Services Office at GHC. The office is located down the hall from the Admissions Office. To take the test, I had to sign up in advance.

After signing up, I received a little card with my date and time on it. The next step was easy… Go at the appointed time.

There were a few paper work details I had to do before taking the test. Since I had not been in the Student Support Services Office before, I had to fill out an information form.

Christin Perry-Michalik then helped me log onto the DISCOVER system and get started using the college's log-in username.

There are three tests that help form the results. One deals with interests, one with skills and the final test asks about workplace wants, such as inside or outside.

After the tests are complete, students can review their results on a final page. Occupations are arranged in order according to the test results.

I have to say that when I took the test, I found that the end results for jobs for me to consider were not like anything I've ever wanted to do. My top results were Doctor/Medicine and Engineering.

However, the more I ventured through the program the more useful tools I found. Students can look up just about any job and see all the information on that occupation, such as salary, hours, details and what kind of degree is needed for the particular job.

If a student finds a job he or she is interested in, the student can click on the degrees in that field, from the lowest degree to the highest, and then can find schools in Georgia as well as in any state that offers those specific degrees.

All in all, the DISCOVER test is a better informational tool than occupation locator, but really I don't believe that there is a test out there that can tell a person exactly what he or she wants to do.

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