If there's a job or career you're interested in, it helps to find out as much as you can about it. A bit of research can give you an idea about whether it's really what you want to do for a living.

If it is, you'll know what you need to get the job. If it isn't, you've still got time to look for something else.

Here are some ways to find out more about that job. 

Career profiles

Career profile websites feature interviews where people chat about their job or training course. They talk about what it involves, what's good (and not so good) about it, and offer tips for getting similar work.

  • Newcastle uni's My Big Tomorrow matches your interests to video profiles and online tasks to help you build relevant skills
  • myfuture lets you build a profile that lists your skills and interests, then matches them to jobs in a career profile database (note: free registration is required to access this website)

Career counsellors

Career counsellors have heaps of resources that can help you find out about your dream job.

  • If you're at high school, talk to your careers teacher.
  • If you're at uni or TAFE, check out your uni/TAFE website or student diary to see what career counselling is offered by your student union.

Your career counsellor might even be able to:

  • arrange for you to meet and talk to someone who works in that job
  • set up work experience or a student placement so you can try the job for yourself.

For more about career counselling, check out our career counselling page. 

Careers expos

Careers expos are events at which employers present information about the jobs they have to offer. At a careers expo you can talk to people who do all kinds of jobs and find out about:

  • what their job involves
  • how easy it is to get that job
  • what training you need.

Some of the regular careers expos in Victoria include: 

All of these expos run annually. Visit their websites for dates and more information.

These are only some of the career expos in Victoria. Some industries run industry-specific careers expos. Try searching online for a job or industry, plus 'expo,' and see what turns up.

Job ads

A simple way to find out what a job involves and what qualifications it need, is to look for that job on a job search website.

Check out a few ads and make a list of:

  • the main duties of the job
  • the qualifications and experience required.

This can give you some ideas about:

  • the study you need to get into this career
  • other experience that would be helpful.

Use your networks

Knowing what jobs other people do can be helpful. It can be a bit like meeting a walking, talking career profile. 

  • ask your friends about the jobs they and their family members do 
  • ask if you can have a chat to them about their job
  • the career profile sites above could give you ideas for questions to ask.

For more about networking as a way to find work, check out our networking page.

Where to next?

For more tips about planning your career or finding the job that's right for you, check out our how to create a career plan page.