It’s important to dream big.
It’s equally important to figure out if and how dreams can become a reality.
When people strike that balance, they can find work that they love, be employed regularly, and make enough money to achieve their financial and life goals.
How can you figure this out?
- Do some research to figure what lifestyle you want, how much it costs to maintain that lifestyle, and if the career you are interested in will pay enough to maintain that lifestyle.
- Figure out if there are enough jobs available in a given field to keep you steadily employed.
- Look at how much education will cost for your chosen occupation and determine how long it will take to pay back student loans, and will the job you are considering pay enough to do so?
The following resources will help:
MassCIS Reality Check Tools
This tool asks you questions about the type of lifestyle you want to live and then calculates what annual salary you would need to support that lifestyle and in which occupations you would earn that salary.
- Sign in as a ‘Massachusetts Resident’, using your zip code.
- Create a free MassHire Career Information Systems (CIS) Portfolio Account.
- Then, go to the ‘Assessment’ section to find the ‘Reality Check‘ tool.
JumpStart Reality Checking Tool
Take a survey to get some feedback about how the lifestyle you want matches up with the career you are interested in.
Living Wage Calculator by MIT
Click on a state and a county to find out how much you will need to get paid per hour (as a single person, single person with a child, etc.) to make a “living wage”. You will also find a breakdown of typical expenses and salaries for some of the more typical jobs.
CareerWise Dream Jobs Reality Check
Do you have a dream job in mind? Find out what your chances are of becoming a celebrity or professional athlete.
Paying for school
Click the link above to find some additional tools to help youth get some perspective on education debt – including strategies for dealing with it.
The Cost of Living in Cities (Video)
This brief video provides information on how your finances could be affected by moving to a city.
Salary Search Tool
To find the typical salary for a given occupation.