long
brief, short
brilliant, distinguished, glittering (esp. BrE), illustrious, stellar (esp. AmE), storied (AmE), successful
He had a distinguished career as a diplomat.

promising
lucrative
prolific
She had a long and prolific career as a director.

rewarding
flagging (esp. BrE)
The movie revived his flagging career.

chosen
She achieved a lot in her chosen career.

academic, diplomatic, journalistic, literary, medical, military, political, teaching, writing
coaching (esp. AmE), playing, pro (informal, esp. AmE), professional, sporting
basketball, football, gymnastics, etc.
acting, film (esp. BrE), Hollywood, movie (esp. AmE), musical, recording, singing, stage
the album that launched his recording career

solo
All four band members went on to have successful solo careers.

build, carve, carve out, forge, have, make, pursue
He made a good career for himself in football.
She pursued a successful career in medicine.

begin, choose, embark on, launch, start, start out on
young actors just starting out on their careers

devote to sth, spend
She has spent her entire career in education.

advance, boost, further, jump-start
abandon, give up
jeopardize, risk
cut short, derail, end, finish, ruin, wreck
a car crash which wrecked his career

resume
rejuvenate, resurrect, revitalize, revive
change

last sth, span sth
Her stage career spans sixty years.

begin, start, take off
be over, end

break
a career break to have children

advancement, development, ladder, path, progression
a move higher up the career ladder

change, choice, move
a smart career move

opportunities, prospects, structure (esp. BrE)
The profession has no clear career structure.

high, highlight (both AmE)
His performance as Al in the movie was a career high.

earnings (esp. AmE)
the first golfer to surpass $2 million in career earnings

civil servant (esp. BrE), diplomat, soldier
girl (old-fashioned), woman
counselor (AmE)
counseling (AmE)
careers advice, careers guidance, careers information (all BrE)
careers adviser, careers officer (both BrE)
careers service (BrE)

during sb's career, throughout sb's career
She won many awards during her acting career.

career in
a career in computers

career with
a brilliant career with the San Francisco Ballet

the height of your career, the peak of your career
She was at the peak of her career when she injured herself.

a change of career

chequered/checkered, colourful/colorful, turbulent, varied
He has had a somewhat chequered/checkered career.

college (esp. AmE), school, working
She started her working career as a waitress.

have
start