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Changing careers is much more popular than ever. Whether a personal choice or an monetary necessity, people are realizing that they have to do something else. This notion is both liberating and scary at the same time, especially in our challenging national economy. The good news is that there's a lot more information and help offered today then ever before - and the majority of it is available for free online. In this article we’ll discuss a number of of these many free alternatives available specifically for the Twin Cities Metro Area (Minneapolis and St. Paul Minnesota). Libraries are a excellent place to begin researching career choices. In general, libraries are a large often-untapped source of job search data. Being a large metro area, there are a multitude of high quality libraries offered in the Twin Cities. Most counties and large academic institutions also have well organized library systems, often with much of the info accessible online. Hennepin County is the largest country in the Twin Cities. It has an extensive library system which has an superb website titled "Jobs and Careers". This website has links to many Minnesota-focused job resources and databases, including researching careers, salary surveys, community information, and help/information for those out of work. The University of Minnesota is the biggest academic institution in the the state of Minnesota (also one of the largest in the nation). It has an on-line library with a wide-variety of resources. As with other government websites, some patience is required to filter through all the content offered. The State of Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development publishes a website called Positively Minnesota. The website has areas focused on job-seekers, users seeking new careers, those with disabilities, and veterans looking for work. The website contains a multitude of detail on state provided employment websites, publications, and other resources. Almost too much data in an individual place, but it's well designed and regularly updated. The State of Minnesota also has over fifty Workforce Centers (many in the Twin Cities but also state-wide) where you can go for help and assistance. Each center is staffed and offers most of it's features free of charge. iSeek careers is an excellent Minnesota-focused career site. This website has a very nice free section on career exploration and a database of over 500 careers to browse. They have a 'Find a Job' area that has regional-specific information including employers, job openings, salary information, and top careers. Lots of the same tools the larger sites have, but with a Minnesota-angle. Though not Minnesota-specific, the Occupational Outlook Handbook (put out by the Federal Government) is a very good place to research careers. Published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Occupational Outlook Handbook is an priceless free resource for studying potential jobs and careers. For each career, the handbook shows the education and training requirements, expected job prospects, potential earnings, and the working conditions. The handbook is kept up-to-date and published every 2 years. There are just a few valuable, free resources available to the Twin Cities Career-Changer. Check them out! To find work in Minnesota use the Minnesota Job Bank HQ, the one source MN Job Bank.
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