Thinking About Your Career

Self Assessment Tools

Welcome to the link to Self Assessment Tools created to help you learn more about your self, and how your personality may influence your  career development and planning.

There are many self assessment tools available on the internet which you can explore for yourself. Some are web-sites where  you can take the assessments online. Others are publications that you can read online or print off. Please note that there may be a  fee to pay before taking the online assessments.

If you decide to complete any of the tools, you may wish to record the results in the Evidence Log within your online portfolio, or reflect on  what you learn about yourself using Reflect Now

To help you, a few web-site links are available below, however there are many more.

Self Assessment Tools

     
• Motivational Appraisal of Personal Potential www.assessment.com (opens new window).
• Myers Briggs http://www.humanmetrics.com (opens new window).
• Career Anchors. Discovering Your Real Values - Schein,E.H.

Ability and Competence

Your ability and competence can influence your career planning.

• What skills do you need to do your current job well?
• What parts of your job are you good at, or give you the most job satisfaction?

To identify your strengths, complete an assessment using the Competence Assessment Tools.  You can use this information to explore career opportunities that allow you to make best use of your skills and competencies.

Career Opportunities

The career opportunities available to you are influenced by a number of factors, such as:

• Where you live and work, and the type of health and social care services that are provided in your locality.
• The skills you have or need to do your current job well.
• Learning through new experiences e.g. projects, secondments or acting-up.
• Promotion.

Explore the Career Profiles and Real Life Stories of local Nurses and Midwives to identify jobs of interest to help you think about your career choices.

Service Needs

There is a close link between service needs and career opportunities which should be geared towards providing safe, effective and person-centred services for patients and clients. Health and Social Care Services in Northern Ireland are ever-changing and many new career opportunities may appear for Nurses and Midwives over the next few years.

You may want to think about how health and social care services are going to be delivered in your area in the future, and how you can develop your career to be ready for this change.

The education and training requirements of the nursing and midwifery workforce to meet the needs of the population in Northern Ireland are currently managed through the DHSSPS Education Commissioning process on an annual basis.

Click here for more information about how the DHSSPS Education Commissioning process can support you.

Employer Support

There is a close link between employer support and career enhancement opportunities. Employers can help by:

• Creating opportunities for you to be more involved in decisions that affect your practice or your working life.
• Creating opportunities for new experiences through projects or acting-up.

The literature on career planning highlights the leadership styles of senior managers as having a major influence on the level of employer support experienced.

Discuss opportunities with your line manager and senior Nurses or Midwives within your organisation.