The Sims 2 life simulation video game comes with 10 career tracks. Careers are an important part of most Sims’ lives, and advancing in a career is part of the game. Each track requires a range of skills and a number of friends in order to advance. Here’s what you need to know.

The Sims 2 Primary Career Tracks

There are 10 levels in each career track, each with a unique pay and work schedule. Moving forward in a career is a linear process, because each job has certain criteria that must be achieved before a Sim can move to the next level of pay in that career track.

This guide applies to all platform versions of The Sims 2.

As the Sims make progress in their careers, they can earn a Career Reward object that makes learning one of the required skills easier.

The 10 career tracks in The Sims 2 are:

  • AthleticBusinessCriminalCulinaryLaw EnforcementMedicineMilitaryPoliticsScienceSlacker

Initial Job Application and Career Track Status

To get started in a career track, a Sim needs to get a job in that industry. Jobs are listed in the newspaper and on the computer, or the Sim can personally go to the job location. Interestingly, it matters what the source of the job is: A job from the newspaper starts further down in the career track, while one from the computer starts higher. If a Sim has a university degree, he can start higher still, assuming his major is related to the career track.

How High Can You Go?

Even when a job is the Sim’s first job in a career, he can advance as high as level 9 if he has both a relevant degree, skills, and friends, and he uses a computer to get the job.

The Sims 2: University Expansion Pack Career Tracks

The Sims 2 University expansion adds four career tracks. For young adult Sims, majors help in their careers by earning skills required for promotion. With this expansion pack, any teenage Sim can go to college and pursue one of these four careers.

  • ArtistNatural ScientistParanormalShow Business

The Sims 2: Pets Career Tracks

The Sims 2: Pets is the fourth expansion pack released for The Sims 2. Pets can have careers using the Careers for Pets track. A Sim can find a job for his cat or dog using either the newspaper or the computer. Cats are paid more than dogs (naturally).

The Sims 2: Seasons Career Tracks

The Sims 2: Seasons expansion pack was the fifth pack released for The Sims 2, and it provides seasonal activities, including four seasonal career tracks:

  • AdventurerEducationGamerJournalism

The Sims 2: FreeTime Career Tracks

The seventh The Sims 2 expansion pack, FreeTime mainly features group activities and hobbies. It includes the following career tracks:

  • EntertainmentDanceArchitectureIntelligenceOceanography

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