Investigate Careers (Leaving Cert LCVP): Revision Notes
Investigate Careers
What is a career investigation?
A career investigation is a structured research project where you gather detailed information about a specific career that interests you. This research helps you understand what the job actually involves, what skills and qualifications you need, and how to get into the career field.
A career investigation goes beyond simply reading job descriptions online. It involves active research through interviews, work shadowing, and networking to get real-world insights into your chosen career path.
The investigation covers several key areas:
- The daily duties and responsibilities of the role
- Skills and personal qualities required
- Different qualification pathways and entry routes
- Real-world insights from people working in the field
- Whether the career matches your interests and aptitudes
Understanding aptitude
Aptitude refers to your natural ability or talent for particular types of work or activities. It shows how quickly you can learn new skills and how well-suited you are for certain tasks. Your aptitude can be something you're born with or something you develop over time.
Work aptitude combines your skills, talents, abilities, personality traits, and interests to show which jobs or careers might suit you best. Understanding your work aptitude helps you choose careers where you're more likely to succeed and feel satisfied.
Understanding your aptitudes is crucial because it helps you identify careers where you'll naturally excel and find fulfilment. Don't just choose a career based on salary or prestige - consider whether it matches your natural talents and interests.
The career investigation process
Step 1: Self-assessment
Start by reflecting on your interests, strengths, and passions. Consider activities or subjects you enjoy and excel at. You might complete an online aptitude test to identify your natural talents, which could include problem-solving, creativity, leadership, communication, or technical skills.
Step 2: Research careers
Explore various careers that match your interests and aptitudes. Use online resources, career websites, books, and speak with guidance counsellors to gather information about different professions.
Step 3: Create a shortlist
Narrow down your options to a few potential careers that you want to investigate thoroughly. For each career, write three clear sentences explaining what a person in this role actually does day-to-day.
Step 4: Gather detailed information
Use multiple methods to collect information:
Informational interviews: Connect with professionals working in your chosen careers. Ask about their daily responsibilities, job satisfaction, and required skills. Remember to record the date, person's name and position, and key outcomes from each interview.
Skills analysis: Make a detailed list of the skills and qualifications needed for each career, including formal education, certifications, soft skills, and technical abilities.
Work shadowing: Whenever possible, gain hands-on experience by observing professionals at work or participating in work experience programmes.
Networking: Attend career events, college open days, seminars, and workshops to meet professionals and learn more about your chosen field.
Practical Example: Investigating Nursing Career
Step 1: Complete aptitude test - discover strong interpersonal skills and interest in helping others Step 2: Research nursing specialties - general practice, paediatric, mental health Step 3: Shortlist general nursing with focus on hospital work Step 4: Interview a registered nurse, shadow a shift at local hospital, attend nursing college open day Step 5: Evaluate findings - confirm interest in direct patient care and hospital environment
Step 5: Evaluate your findings
Reflect on whether each career still interests you after your research. Consider what you've learned about salary, promotion prospects, travel requirements, and work-life balance.
Structure of your career investigation report
Title
State the exact name of the career you're investigating (not the course name).
Description
Write three detailed sentences explaining the main duties someone in this career performs. Be as specific as possible about what their typical day involves.
Qualifications
Research two different qualification pathways:
- Pathway 1: Post Leaving Certificate (PLC) route (QQI Level 5)
- Pathway 2: College or university route (Level 7+)
For each pathway, include:
- Course title
- Location where it's offered
- Entry requirements
- Duration of the course
- Details of what the course covers
- Final qualification received
Skills and qualities
List three essential skills and three important personal qualities needed for this career. Explain how each skill or quality would be used in the job.
Out of class experiences
Document any practical experiences you've undertaken:
- Work shadowing
- Interviews with professionals
- Career events attended
- College open days visited
- Enterprise visits
For each experience, record the date, what you learned, and the benefits or challenges you discovered about the career.
Personal evaluation
Reflect on three key areas:
- Personal aptitudes: How your talents and interests connect to this career
- Subject links: How 2-3 of your Leaving Certificate subjects relate to the career
- Overall suitability: Whether you still want to pursue this career and why
Investigation evaluation
Assess the research process itself:
- Whether you still plan to pursue this career
- Key things you learned about the role
- Important information you discovered (wages, career prospects, travel)
- Skills you gained from completing the investigation
Remember to be honest in your evaluation. If you discovered the career isn't right for you, that's still a valuable outcome from your investigation. It's better to discover this now than after years of study or training.
Benefits of career investigation
Conducting a thorough career investigation provides several important advantages:
Information gathering: You gain detailed knowledge about the work involved and daily duties in your chosen career.
Entry route clarity: You discover specific pathways into the career, including required qualifications and college entry points.
Skills awareness: You understand exactly what skills and qualities are necessary for success in the field.
Suitability assessment: You can determine whether you're well-suited for the career and genuinely want to pursue it.
Exam guidance
Career investigation questions commonly appear in LCVP exams and typically ask you to:
- Name a career you investigated
- Outline main duties involved in the career
- List steps used to investigate careers
- Describe sources of information used
- Explain evaluation methods
- Identify benefits of career investigation
When answering exam questions, structure your responses clearly using the S-E-E format (Statement, Explanation, Example). Always relate your answers back to your actual career investigation experience and be specific about the methods you used and information you gathered.
Key Points to Remember:
- A career investigation is systematic research about a specific career that interests you
- Aptitude refers to your natural abilities and talents for certain types of work
- The investigation process involves self-assessment, research, information gathering, and evaluation
- Your final report should include career description, qualifications, skills, practical experiences, and personal evaluation
- Career investigation helps you make informed decisions about your future and ensures careers match your interests and abilities