Interest Assessment

When you go on a trip, you know what to pack in your suitcase, right?

Before you explore careers, you should know what skills, talents and personality traits you bring to the workplace. Assessments are fun tools that help you discover what you have inside. They show what you're good at, what you enjoy, traits you might have or values you possess.

With so many career possibilities available, assessments are crucial to understanding which careers might be the best fit for you. Identifying your skills, values or interests can be time-consuming, but it's worth it. And the best part is that there are never any wrong answers.

Assessments help you figure out the variety of careers that fit you best. You'll get a broad list of career options that match your skills or interests.

If an assessment gives you a list of careers that are not interesting to you or that you'd never seriously considered, don't panic. The overall goal is to get you thinking about what you enjoy doing.

The MnCareers Interest Assessment (PDF) is based on Holland's Interest Inventory. When you're finished, you'll have an interest profile that matches your interests to various career areas.

If you already know your Holland Interest Profile, you can jump ahead to Step 3. If not, take this quick assessment now.

Remember — interest assessments aren't always completely accurate. You should take a few assessments, talk with a career counselor and discuss your options with family and friends before you make your career decision. The MnCareers interest assessment is just one of many options.

Visit the assessment resources on this site for other available tests. Discover the possibilities!

Step 1.
The first step can be completed on paper by downloading the MnCareers Interest Assessment (PDF) and filling in the circles for those items listed that you like to do.
Download PDF viewer (www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html)

Step 2.
Add the columns from the assessment and record the number of filled circles you have for each letter.

R = Realistic I = Investigative A = Artistic S = Social E = Enterprising C = Conventional

Total: __________ Total: __________ Total: __________ Total: __________ Total: __________ Total: __________

Step 3.
The three letters with the highest scores are your Interest Profile. Record your profile.

Step 4.
Below are descriptions for each interest code. Read the descriptions for the codes in your interest profile.

Realistic people are DOERS. They are often good at mechanical or athletic jobs. They like to work with things like machines, tools or plants and they like to work with their hands. They are often practical and good at solving problems.

Investigative people are THINKERS. They like to watch, learn, analyze and solve problems. They often like to work independently, tend to be good at math and science and enjoy analyzing data.

Artistic people are CREATORS. They like to work in unstructured situations where they can use their creativity and come up with new ideas. They enjoy performing (theater or music) and visual arts.

Social people are HELPERS. They like to work directly with people rather than things. They enjoy training, instructing, counseling or curing others. They are often good public speakers with helpful, empathetic personalities.

Enterprising people are PERSUADERS. They like to work with other people; they particularly enjoy influencing, persuading and performing. They like to lead and tend to be assertive and enthusiastic.

Conventional people are ORGANIZERS. They are very detail-oriented and like to work with data. They have good organizational and numerical abilities and are good at following instructions. Conventional people also like working in structured situations.

Step 5.
Match your interest profile from Step 3 to this list of interest codes and career clusters.

Finally, check out these Web sites and books for more career and interest assessments.