I’ve never been a fan of tests- (22 years of class sort of wore me out). However, still unsure what to do with the rest of my life, I thought I’d give some career and personality tests a try. My two major requirements were “Free and Simple.” My overall opinion? I think there’s no replacement for experience, and the best way to know if you have an interest in something is to try it (volunteer, do temp work or a full time position). However, these tests do help you realize what you excel in and enjoy the most, not as you read their report or assessment, but as you discover your own pattern as you answer the questions. Here’s some of my favorites:
The Princeton Review Career Quiz: It’s hard to imagine how choosing between a History Professor and Account Manager will give them an accurate assessment, but it was free, short (25 questions) and pretty right-on in their description.
HotJobs Career Tests: There are 3 tests: Career Interest Profile, Career Values, and personality Index. You get a basic report overview for free but for the full assessment of your results you have to pay 14.95 (no thanks but could be helpful if you have the money for this). These tests were a bit longer but the questions were short and only took about 10 minutes per test. I learned what I enjoy doing from simply taking the test, not as much from the assessment. I like how it narrows it down for you, in the first section I eagerly clicked yes to liking music, but as it narrowed it down to “musician” in the next section.. I knew this would only be a side hobby.
The Career Interests Game: This is more of a thinking exercise than a test. The directions are simple- you walk into a party and which of the 6 types of people would like like to associate with? Gives great insight into the type of work environment you would thrive in, and also got me interested in researching the Holland Code more.
TheMadGrad 