Career Goals: What They Are, Examples, and How to Create Them

Written by Coursera Staff • Updated on

Use these career goal examples to reflect on what you'd like to accomplish in your career.

[Featured image] A scientist works toward his career goals while writing out formulas on a glass panel.

A career goal is something you hope to achieve professionally, either in the short term or the long term. There are many different kinds of career goals, depending on the phase of your career and what you'd like to accomplish. Learn more about career goal examples, as well as how to create a career goal of your own. Afterward, keep developing your skill set by expanding on something you already know—or learning something entirely new—with a Coursera Plus subscription.

What is a career goal?

A career goal is an accomplishment that you are progressing toward in your work. With clear professional goals, you can center all of your professional actions and decisions around your ultimate career aspirations.

Often, people will categorize their career goals as short-term or long-term. Generally, short-term goals can be accomplished more immediately—say, within a few months—and long-term goals will take more time, perhaps a year or longer. Acknowledging how much time your goals may take you to accomplish can enable you to set realistic expectations, prioritize tasks, and track your progress.

6 career goals examples

Below, you’ll find some examples of potential career goals, some ideas on how you might structure your short-term and long-term goals, and how you might talk about each goal with a potential employer during a job interview.

When discussing your career goals during an interview, aim to:

  • Outline the steps you’re taking to achieve your goal

  • How your career goal connects to your potential future role

1. Advance to a leadership position.

Your specific path toward a leadership role greatly depends on your industry and where you’re starting out, and it can take many years to accomplish. Along the way, you may aim to accomplish some of these goals:

  • Short-term goals: Gain necessary experience with entry- and mid-level positions, attend leadership training, set up informational interviews with potential mentors and team leaders, network with cross-functional colleagues

  • Long-term goals: Get a promotion, earn a professional certificate or advanced degree, work toward a specific title

“What are your career goals?” sample answer: Currently, I’m working on a project to unify our internal analytics processes across data analysis, data science, and data engineering departments by liaising with representatives from each department to identify and address pain points. I’m also attending weekly leadership training sessions to build my managerial skills as I build the skills I need to ultimately become a Director of Analytics.

2. Become a thought leader.

Thought leaders exist in many areas within every industry, and their knowledge base can be expansive or niche. Depending on the type of thought leader you envision yourself becoming, you may aim to accomplish some of these goals:

  • Short-term goals: Attend specialty training sessions, take relevant classes, attend industry conferences, and build a social media following

  • Long-term goals: Earn a professional certificate or advanced degree, publish articles, write a book, speak at a conference

“What are your career goals?” sample answer: I’ve been taking online courses in social work from the University of Michigan to strengthen my knowledge base as I work with community organizers toward our team goals. I’m sharing our progress by writing for our company blog. In the next couple of years, I hope to apply for Michigan’s MSW program to make an even stronger impact on our company and community.

3. Learn or strengthen a skill.

Expanding your skill set—or professional development, as it's often called—is about strengthening your abilities so you can be the best version of yourself for your role. When talking about any of the following, remember to connect them back to the work you’re doing for your organization:

  • Short-term goals: Fill skill gaps with classes or training sessions, take on a new project at work, network with leaders you admire, find a mentor

  • Long-term goals: Lead with your values, learn a new skill, practice work-life balance, change careers

“What are your career goals?” sample answer: I’d like to be seen as a valued connector within our organization, so I’ve been working on strengthening my communication skills to better determine how our lean IT team can respond to customer needs. Over the next few months, I’d like to lead more formal research into the matter and pilot a new request ticketing system.

4. Shift into a new career path.

Talking about a desire to change careers during a performance review can be tricky. You don’t need to share every detail of your career goal with your manager; it’s okay to stick to the transferable skills you are building. Here are some things you may work toward as you approach a career change:

  • Long-term goals: Work toward a specific job title

“What are your career goals?” sample answer: I envision myself as a strong communicator, and I’d like to be selected to help with our team’s presentation during the next annual report meeting. I’ve been writing monthly progress recaps and distributing them on our team’s Slack channel to build my skills. I’m also practicing my PowerPoint skills in an online Microsoft 365 Fundamentals Specialization.

5. Experience career stability.

If your career goals aren’t your central life goals, you may be more focused on career stability rather than growth. Having a job that supports your broader life goals can be crucial. If you are working toward career stability, some of your goals may be:

  • Short-term goals: Hone skills that support stability in your role, build time management skills, build strong work relationships

  • Long-term goals: Earn a specific salary, get a job with strong benefits, practice work-life balance, build a strong reputation at work

“What are your career goals?” sample answer: My goal is to be seen as a strong colleague whom others view as reliable and attentive. I’ve been trying to welcome our newer coworkers by making myself available for any questions about our processes and compiling their inquiries into an employee playbook that they can reference and share.

6. Create a career goal.

Goals tend to shift over time as we learn more about ourselves and the world around us, and there will likely be times when you aren’t sure what your goal is. Not only is that normal, but it’s also a great time to explore your interests and think about your priorities in life. Here are some aims to consider:

  • Short-term goals: Attend seminars and training sessions, take a class, explore a hobby, learn a new skill, research various career paths, request informational interviews, network with people in different industries, find a career coach

  • Long-term goals: Master a new skill, incorporate a new skill into your career, find a mentor

“What are your career goals?” sample answer: I recently earned my psychology degree and am rediscovering my love of design. I’m currently exploring ways to integrate both into my career. I’ve started taking introductory UX design courses and reading popular UX blogs. I’m hoping to connect with some UI designers within the company over the next few months to hear more about their experiences and responsibilities.

How to create a SMART career goal

One popular method for goal-setting is to make them SMART:

  • Specific: Is your goal absolutely clear?

  • Measurable: Can you quantify your success?

  • Achievable: Is your goal realistic?

  • Relevant: Does your goal directly relate to your big-picture dream?

  • Time-bound: When will you achieve your goal?

Together, these five checkpoints can encourage goal completion—but they’re not the only key to success. Learn more tips for staying motivated as you work toward your goals.

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