There is a shortage of experienced people in these occupations in Ireland at the moment. For further information on Labour Market trends, go to our Labour Market section.
CareersPortal contains a range of resources designed to assist you to make sound, informed decisions about your career. From this site you can complete self-assessment exercises, create a career plan, develop a job search strategy, research employers, explore occupations, keep up to date with our labour market trends, discover training opportunities and watch and read career interviews of people from all walks of life in Ireland.
What's your Career?
We understand a career as a journey, not a destination. You are already on this journey, and have made decisions that have lead you to where you now are.
At various times along our career journey we reach a crossroad. We must choose (or have the opportunity to choose) which direction to move. These times can be exciting, challenging, stressful or frightning depending on circumstances and our readiness to face change.
There are many factors to consider when the time for a change arrives.
Negative Internal factors - such as job dissatisfaction, job apathy or health issues all require you to take stock of who you are and what you want from your life.
Positive Internal factors - such as a passion to follow your dreams, ambition or simply the urge to do what you love to do, requires you to seek out ways to create the realities you desire in the world of work, and overcome whatever leglislative and practical challenges you might be faced with.
Negative External factors - such as job loss, redundancy or change of location requires you to establish a workable financial budget to sustain you until the next opportunity arises, and the skills of planning and managing a job search so that you get that opportunity as soon as possible.
Positive External factors - such as when a new position becomes available, or a promotion, or an attractive redundancy package, requires you to evaluate such opportunities in the context of your short and long term life goals, your values and your life/work balance.
Personal Career Choices
The choices you make are personal, based on your particular circumstances and the opportunities that you are aware of. Each person has a unique journey, and we present here the stories of many people in Ireland who have taken the time to share the decisions they have taken along their career journey. In these stories you will recognise circumstances similar to yours and we hope they will provide an insight into both the occupations they work at and the personal decisions and milestones that marked their journey.
During my Leaving Cert year I was certain of one thing - that business fascinated me. So I filled out my CAO form with B.Comm at NUI, Galway being my first choice. Many of my friends had decided that they wanted to become Chartered Accountants quite early in their studies, and had made this decision either while studying for the B.Comm or even as early as their Leaving Cert year. I had no such inclination, and after I finished my B.Comm degree I got a job in the workplace.
However, very early on I realised that in order to further my career (fast track it) I needed a professional designation. And it was only at this point that I decided to really look into the possibility of becoming a Chartered Accountant. I researched the qualification and discovered that my initial preconception about it being just "all about numbers" was completely false - I realised it was effectively a total business qualification, that provided its holders with a myriad of business opportunities in the workplace, and that it was an ideal qualification for a person who wanted to work in high level business.
At that point, I decided to pursue a Chartered Accountancy training contract with BDO Simpson Xavier. So for me, that was the major turning point in my career, that has positively effected all events thereafter.
Who said this? Find out here:
Have Respect For Others
By giving respect to others, you receive it in return. In effect this is the Golden Rule in action... and it works in organisations just as well as in life.
How to use this Site
The resources in this site are divided into sections. Use the links in the upper left for information and resources aimed at people at particular phases of their career journey. The remainder of the resources can be found within the three main sections of the site - Career Planning, Work & Employment and Education & Training.
