NONFICTION - Oct. 12, 1986

WHERE TO START: AN ANNOTATED CAREER PLANNING BIBLIOGRAPHY, FIFTH EDITION 1985-1987 by Madeline T. Rockcastle (Peterson’s Guides, Box 2123, Princeton, N. J. 08540: $12.95; 278 pp.). It is no secret that what the oldest, most prestigious colleges and universities do for their students after graduation can be more important than what they do before graduation. These are the schools that bring most experience and organization to bear on the task of turning a new grad into a prosperous and contributing old grad. And these are the schools that have the most effective on-campus career planning offices.

“Where to Start” is not a guidebook to career planning. Each career, after all, has different first moves and would require its own guidebook. It is, rather, Cornell University’s annotated bibliography of books that can be used for guidance in an enormous variety of careers. Thus (utterly at random) “Opportunities in Landscape Architecture” (National Textbook Co.: $6.95) is annotated: “Information on the life of the landscape architect: education, development, and practice.”

The Cornell guide has been built up gradually over 15 years as Cornell’s coordinator of library services acquired a specialized library for the university’s Career Center. A good book for anyone beginning, or changing, a career.