Are you studying a course you hate?

Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. Ideally, you should choose a career based on your interests, talents and ability. PHOTO| FILE| NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • The fact is that many us choose careers based on every other reason except our interests and abilities - career choices are dependent on the grades we made in high school, the dreams our parents have for us and rumours about which careers pay better or are more ‘marketable’.
  • Others just find themselves in a career, which explains why you hear some people say, “I did not choose accounting, accounting chose me.”

Have you ever wondered why you feel demotivated in school or in your current job?  Do you dread Mondays because you have to report to work or resume classes? If you answered “Yes” to these two questions, chances are that you are studying a course you do not enjoy at all, or are in the wrong job.

Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. Ideally, you should choose a career based on your interests, talents and ability.

A career should not just be a job that pays the bills and puts food on the table, it should be a job that you would do even if you were not being paid for it, because you enjoy doing it. Think about it, you had better enjoy what you do because chances are that you will be doing it for a very long time.

Unfortunately, most students in college or university are studying courses they were either forced into by their parents or by the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service. For instance, your parents discouraged you from studying fashion design, your dream job, and coaxed you to study teaching instead, because it was more “marketable.”

The fact is that many us choose careers based on every other reason except our interests and abilities - career choices are dependent on the grades we made in high school, the dreams our parents have for us and rumors about which careers pay better or are more ‘marketable’.

Others just find themselves in a career, which explains why you hear some people say, “I did not choose accounting, accounting chose me.”

Take the case of Paul Kiriamiti, a marketing intern with a local firm. In high school, Paul was convinced that he wanted to be a lawyer after binge-watching legal dramas such as Law and Order and Suits. The 24-year-old envisioned himself as a hotshot lawyer in this town, arguing and winning cases for his clients,  and of course, raking in millions at the same time.

His dream crumbled the day he received his letter from the Joint Admissions Board, now Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS).

“I was selected to study economics at one of the local universities. I was depressed for a month because I wouldn’t get to study what I wanted. Finally, I reconciled with this fact and reported to school in 2010,” he says.

NIGHTMARE OF A SEMESTER

The first semester was a nightmare. Waking up to go to class became such a heavy task, that he would sometimes give classes a miss. During his third year, he went to the registrar’s office and asked to switch courses.

“The registrar told me off, and said I was just afraid of the coming exams. I tried to enlist the help of some of my lecturers, but they encouraged me to trudge on even if I didn’t enjoy the course,” he says.

What followed was a barrage of letters to the dean, requesting for a transfer. Paul was determined to start all over again, even though he knew his parents would be disappointed and wonder why he was throwing away such a “great opportunity”, a phrase everyone kept repeating.

It was during this confusion that Paul sought a job at a local firm that offers career advice to young people.

He took the Occupational Interest Inventory test, which revealed a side of him that he did not know he had.

“I realised, based on my interests, that I am actually not even meant to be a lawyer. What shines through are my people skills. I am a people person, and would therefore excel in a communication-related course – this is why I am studying for a diploma in marketing at a local college,” he says.

Paul now believes that his future lies in marketing, given his bubbly personality and excellent people skills, though he decided to complete his economics degree and will in fact graduate.

NOT MANY IN RIGHT CAREERS

Research conducted by the then Ministry of Education in 2007, which involved interviewed a number of Kenyans between 30 and 35 years, revealed that 66 per cent of these had chosen the wrong career while 27 per cent had no idea which career they wanted to pursue.

Only 7 per cent thought they were in the right careers. Nothing has changed since then. In 2014, following another research by the ministry, over 70 per cent of Kenyans still reported career mismatches, underutilization and overall career dissatisfaction at work.

Margaret Waithaka, CEO, Discover your career, attributes this to the fact that most young people study courses chosen for them by their parents.

“Most don’t base their careers on what they are passionate, rather, on what others, especially their parents, think is marketable – career guidance is a neglected area in this country.

There is also the fact that most students in public universities today are pursuing courses shoved down their throats by the Joint Admissions Board.

Most go ahead with the course, even though they do not like it, while a few go against the tide and change to what they really feel passionate about.

Those who accept and move on will complete school, get into the workforce, but somewhere along the line, they will end up becoming unmotivated, disgruntled workers, simply because they ended up in a career they do not care for.

“Careers should not be determined by the subjects you study or the grades you get, they should be determined by your personality. Young people need to put a finger on what their interests are, where their strengths lie. What are your hobbies? What do you like doing so much, you can you do for free?” says Margaret.

And no, it is never too late to make a switch from what you are doing now to what you truly love. Yvonne Thuku, a 22-year-old student pursuing electronic media at Daystar University, made the switch after graduating with a diploma in law from Inoorero University.

“I studied law because I was passionate about law, but when I joined law school, it got tough. My passion dwindled and I got bored easily. I am now on the right path – I enjoy reading stories and cannot wait to start telling them.”

 

YOU NEED A CAREER CHANGE IF…

 

1. You are constantly demotivated; you lack self-drive and personal initiative at work.

2. Your responsibilities and tasks at work do not match who you are. Did you know that you can be good at what you hate?

3. No salary can make up for the emptiness you feel inside.

4. You feel like your talents and abilities are not being fully utilised. You feel you have potential that is waiting to be harnessed.

5. You do not look forward to going to work, and are chronically tired, moody and worn out.

 

***

 “I HAVE NEVER PUT MY DEGREE TO USE.”

Mburu is a computer graphics designer who studied sociology and economics at the University of Nairobi, mainly because his cluster points did not allow him to study the course of his choice.

“I wanted to enroll for computer science or design, but I was short of a few points, so the placement board put me in the sociology and economics course, which I found absolutely boring,” he says.

So disinterest was he in the course, that after he graduated, he did not bother putting the knowledge to use. Instead, he found a job as an IT support person for a non-governmental organisation before getting the job he currently holds as an art director at Professional Marketing Services Group.

“I love my job. It incorporates creative design and strategy. It is dynamic, and no two days are alike. I definitely see myself in this industry for a long time.”

Mburu Ng’ang’a, 27

***

"I LEFT A JOB AS AN ENGINEER TO BECOME A DRUMMER"

Kenn Njoroge quit a well-paying job as an engineer to play drums in a jazz band. In April 2015, he handed in his resignation letter at a top company in Kenya and struck out to make a name for himself in the uncertain trade that is the music industry in Kenya.

He has absolutely no regrets about it.

“I worked at Telkom Kenya as a telecommunications engineer until I quit two years ago because I wanted to be a drummer. I have never been happier,” said Njoroge.

But why study engineering, a course known for its difficulty and the long amount of time it takes to complete, if all he wanted all along was to play music?

“It was my decision to enrol for engineering and I initially liked the studies and was looking forward to a career as an engineer. But by the time I was finishing school, I knew I was dissatisfied. I did not want to spend my life drawing plans and fixing things,” says Njoroge.

He graduated from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in 2012 with a degree in Telecommunication and Information Engineering and only used the knowledge that had taken five years to acquire for the little more than a year that he worked at Telkom.

Njoroge says that his family, including his father who is a career engineer, have been very supportive and understanding of his transition.

He is quick to point out that while he is not yet making as much money as he did at his engineering job, he is no “starving artiste” either.

“Music does pay my bills. The money I make might not be as consistent as a salary, but I do make enough from corporate events, jazz nights and weddings. And I know that with hard work and diligence, it will get better,” says Njoroge, adding that his band, Shamsi Music, will record its debut album this May.

Kenn Njoroge, 27

***

 “SOMETIMES, LIFE THRUSTS YOU YOUR DREAM CAREER.”

Hannah graduated from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in 2012 with a degree in Actuarial Science.

It had been her decision to study to be an actuary, and looked forward to finding a job that would allow her to practice what she had learnt in university. Life had other plans for her though.

“It was difficult getting a job, so I became an office administrator at an actuarial firm instead. The work bored me so much, I decided to do short programming courses,” she says.

This decision saw her turn her back completely on Actuarial Science. Today, she is a software developer at a mobile solutions company.

“I design and manage computer systems, and I absolutely love what I do. Were the opportunity to present itself, I would not go back to actuarial science. I see myself developing computer systems for actuaries, but I am no longer interested in becoming a practicing actuary.”

Hannah Olukoye, 26

***

 “I REFUSED TO STUDY WHAT MY PARENTS WANTED ME TO.”

When Samson Ndege finished secondary school, all he wanted was to work in the media. He had a plan; he would join university to study media arts, then start a career in a field that he has great passion and interest in; journalism.

His parents had different plans for him though. They told him that they would only pay for his university education if he enrolled to study education. His efforts to convince them that he had no interest in teaching got him nowhere.

“They did not care about what I wanted or what I was interested in, and so I ended up applying for the course, which would see me studying for a Kiswahili and CRE major,” he says.

On the day that he was supposed to report to the Catholic University of Eastern Africa to start his education degree, he just could not bring himself to do it. Neither could he the next day, or the next after that. In fact, he never turned up.

 “Four years. That is how long it took to convince my parents that I would not go to university unless it was to study the degree course of my choice. In 2010, they finally allowed me to enroll for Mass Communication at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. I loved every bit of my stay there,” he says.

Samson is now a print and television journalist with the Standard Media Group, doing what he has always wanted to do.

“I am glad I dug my heels in. Now I write for a newspaper, and also do a bit of camera work and editing for television. I love my job; it has opened me up to countless new experiences and opportunities, opportunities that teaching would have never given me,” he says.

Samson Ndege,

***

GLANCE BOX

What is your ideal career?

The Occupational Interest Inventory test was invented by Prof. John Holland, an industrial psychologist who wanted to find out why some people were more motivated at work while others were demotivated.

He found that if the tasks you do on a daily basis align to your areas of interest, then one is bound to be more engaged, motivated and self-driven. The opposite is also true.

The test is designed to identify what your areas of interests are and what careers are suitable for you.

“When we say test in the Kenyan context, people think in terms of, “I might pass or I might fail”, however, this is simply a questionnaire with multiple choices. You select one that best describes you. It will profile you and tell you about your areas of interest,” says Victoria Wainaina, the technical director at Discover your career.