What Is a Career Path? How to Create Your Own

What is a career path?

A career path can be defined as a series of jobs that lead you closer to your career goals and vision for life. Some people follow a linear path through one field, advancing into roles with more responsibilities and higher salaries. Others shift companies, industries, or positions more frequently and accumulate experience in various roles.

You might wonder what you can do to steer your career in your desired direction. Should you stick to a linear path and seek advancement in a single field, or should you take on diverse roles and explore multiple potential routes? 

Both approaches can lead to fulfillment when you clarify your vision for the future. A linear career path could mean a deeper understanding of a field and becoming a leader or specialist. In contrast, a multi-directional career path could mean accumulating diverse knowledge and adapting to an ever-changing professional landscape.  

How to create your career pathfinder 

Use the prompts below to chart a career path that aligns with your life vision and reflects your most authentic self.  As new insights and ideas surface, write them down and keep them handy. Update this career pathfinder as needed throughout your career.

1. Define your vision.

• What kind of impact do you want to make on the world?

• What legacy would you like to offer future generations?

• What projects do you want to complete, and what feats do you want to accomplish? 

• What improvements would you like to see in your life?

2. Identify areas of untapped potential.

• What areas of your education or training have you not yet used in a professional role?

• What interests and passions have you not yet used professionally?

• What sectors or social issues interest you? These might include environmental sustainability, social justice, or arts and culture. 

• What personal attributes or traits would you like to learn more about and enhance? 

• Based on job searches, what kinds of careers would allow you to explore your potential? 

3. Identify valuable aspects of your prior experience.

• Where would you place yourself along a career trajectory? For example, are you just starting, experienced, and building more credentials, or seasoned and wanting fresh challenges?

• So far, what direction(s) has your career taken?

• In what direction do you foresee yourself steering your career in the future?

• Which skills could transfer to roles in other fields or a more advanced position in your field?

• What unique perspectives have you gathered based on your experiences in prior roles or training programmes? How might these perspectives apply to different career paths you’re considering? 

• Based on job searches, what kinds of companies would value a linear career trajectory, and which might value a diverse career portfolio? [1]

A career portfolio documents your education, work samples, skills, and experience and tends to be much longer than a CV. 

4. Envision possible career futures. 

• What would it be like to learn as much as possible about a career field and evolve with it?  

• What would it be like to take on more responsibility in a career field as you gain more experience and get promoted to advanced positions?

• What would it be like to enter an emerging or fast-growing field, such as cryptocurrency or renewable energy? 

• What would it be like to explore multiple fields, change careers every few years, and accumulate diverse skills? 

5. Explore different career paths that may be aligned. 

If you foresee yourself taking a more linear path through your career, do an internet search of the different career fields you identified in step four. Look for salary information for specific job titles, job outlook, advancement opportunities, required skills and education, and industry trends. 

Below are two examples based on popular internet searches for specific career paths: Is finance a good career path? And Is technology a good career path?

*Career insights are taken from Glassdoor as of June 2024. 

Finance career example: Financial analyst

A financial analyst in the UK earns an average yearly base salary of £38,780 [2]. With experience, you could become a company’s finance director, earning £96,833 [3]. Finance industry jobs are growing, despite Brexit and Covid-19 turmoil, with 1.1 million people in the UK working in the financial industry [4].

Finance professionals typically need an undergraduate degree in business, accounting, finance, or a related field and should be proficient in Excel and financial modelling. Financial services industry trends include decentralised finance, cryptocurrency, and digitisation developments.  

Technology career example: Information security analyst 

An information security analyst in the UK earns an average yearly base salary of £40,126 [5] and could transition into careers like information security engineer (average base salary £50,584) [6] or cybersecurity consultant (average base salary £47,141) [7]. Jobs in information security are in high demand and continue to grow.

Cybersecurity and information security professionals typically have at least an undergraduate degree in computer science or a related field and certifications like the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) or Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA).

Industry trends include developments in airplane navigation and guidance systems security [8], continued use of multifactor authentication, and increased data security [9].

If you foresee yourself taking a more multidirectional path, do an internet search for skills, degrees, and training that could apply to multiple careers across industries. For example, a degree in English gives you skills such as writing, close reading, and analysis that could be useful for entering a teaching career and later switching to a career in content marketing, consulting, or even brand management.   

6. Determine the actions you may need to take.

• What additional training or education might you need for the career paths you’re interested in?

• What freelance opportunities might you create to gain experience and exposure in a new field?

• What enhancements do you need to make to your CV to best showcase your career developments?

Next steps 

Learn new skills, discover new opportunities, and chart a career path more quickly and confidently by earning a Professional Certificate in a high-demand field. Possible areas of study include data analytics, IT support, user experience (UX) design, project management, or cybersecurity. 

Ready to develop a career you love? Try this Career Discovery Specialisation from the University System of Georgia. It covers researching career paths, evaluating your strengths, and presenting your best self to potential employers.