Have you ever felt a little uncertain when asked the following:
- What do you want to major in?
- Which industries might you want to work in after graduation?
- What excites you about emerging trends in your field?
- Why do you want to work for our company?
If so, it may be time to explore your interests by observing what draws your attention. Following a variety of news and information resources can enable you to discover what you are curious about and help you to gain insights about your interests.
As you learn more, you will become increasingly curious and better equipped to identify gaps in your knowledge. Then you can seek out more information to minimize these gaps- perhaps through networking, coursework, and student clubs and organizations.
Jump-start Your Journey into Engineering and Tech
Here are just a few resources:
- Read “A Day in the Life” insiders’ blog posts and Industry Guides both by Vault (free access with Cornell log-in)
- Seek podcasts or videos related to science, engineering, and career topics. Examples: Engineering Career Conversations, Science Blender, PhDivas, AEC Leadership Podcast, energy podcasts, Startup Cornell, freeCodeCamp, Space Flight Mechanics
- Follow STEM-related organizations like Tech Crunch, Popular Mechanics, NOVA, KQED Science, and Science Fridays on social media and streaming platforms
- Follow companies and organizations of interest on social media
- Read technology and business news. You have free digital access to many news publications through the Cornell Library.
- Ask people in your network- friends, classmates, professors- who they follow online
Spot the STEM Topics You Keep Coming Back to
Pay attention to the themes in the content that consistently capture your interest. These patterns can reveal the kinds of challenges you are naturally motivated to solve and may point you toward industries that align well with those interests. For example, if you find yourself drawn to news stories and posts about climate change, infrastructure resilience, and #TransitTok, you may want to research careers in civil engineering, environmental engineering, transportation engineering, and construction management. Reflect on why you are attracted to those challenges- are you interested in design, policy, data modeling, or systems thinking? Consider the breadth of studies at Cornell and explore courses related to architecture, urban and regional planning, public policy, and environmental science. What excites you? Which courses might you want to take for electives? These are all clues to the kinds of problems you may find meaningful to work on through your career.
Organize Your Exploration
You can use the resources and worksheets in the Exploration module of the Career Development Toolkit to help structure your research. Talk with a career advisor about your discoveries or when you feel stuck.
Ultimately, no one knows your interests better than you. Give yourself the time and space to stay curious, explore what excites you, and invest in discovering the kind of career and impact you want to create.
