going to uni - deciding on course?

want2bmortgage3

how did you decide on your course? how much did you think about it? was it a natural progression of the subjects you were good at in gcse/a-levels? or was it the best route to the career you decided to aim for? or was it not so important, you just wanted the uni experience?

just wondering coz i'm late 20 s and thinking if i take the step back into education (which i feel i missed out on) i want to do it right.. i dont feel i have any time to mess about any more, i can't afford to make the wrong decision now!

alwaysonthego_2

I chose my course based on the career path I want to undertake. BTW I am also a mature student.

Badger_Lady

I couldn't decide - didn't have a clue what I wanted to do. So I went straight into work and quickly became successful using traditional routes.

Now, looking back, I can see how important it would have been to get some real understanding of the career options out there - talk to people in different jobs, arrange mini work experience visits if possible... it's only now that I know I would have liked to be an Architect, and there's unfortunately only one route into that...

want2bmortgage3

funny you should mention architecture badger, as its something i'd love to study. i believe it is still possible to study as a mature student, but the course is longer than most other degrees.

Badger_Lady

It is indeed a long course, not available part-time and therefore much harder to study maturely when you've already got used to a good salary (mortgage, car etc). I'd have to give up a £35k a year job to do it now - not easy to stomach.

So I guess my only recommendation is, whatever you choose, make the most of the opportunity - this is the easiest time for you to do something serious so don't compromise or dither and end up faffing around for 3 years or you could come out of it up to your eyeballs in debt and still no idea what to do with your life! :eek:

Edit to add: I'm 25 and I apologise for missing the fact that you're older than me and already work-experienced

Oldernotwiser

I think that most mature students these days go back into study either because they definitely need a specific degree for a future career or because they've found that they can't progress in their existing one without being a graduate.

For good or bad, I don't think that many people feel able to take on debts of over £18,000 just for "the university experience" any more.

blue_ashleigh

Definitely do something you enjoy. I know quite a few people who took what they thought they 'should' i.e. Finance or business because they thought it would be a good qualification to have when leaving uni - but found because they had no passion for the subject that they just couldn't muster the effort for 3 years to get a good degree or to stay on at uni.

I took a dual honors - maths and psychology degree. It means that I have more that one thing to think about, it's not all just one subject which I would get bored with. Plus I could branch out into either area if I wanted, or I could have majored in one subject in my final year. May be worth thinking about if you're not sure which subjects to take/ don't have a set career plan/ or you get bored easily!

I think the most important thing, if you do decide to do a degree, is to do something you enjoy because three years is a long time to pursue something you aren't passionate about.

I also, possibly going against what a lot of people think, that you should choose the uni on how much you can see yourself fitting into the life there (do you like the city or quiet rural, spread out uni or a campus etc) rather than the position the uni is in the league table. I chose Keele (an average uni in league tables) because it's a pretty campus uni and I really like it, whereas I know some people who went to Sheffield (which is quite a good uni in tables) but hate it because they don't fit into that way of life.

Wow... rambled on a bit there!!!

Good luck with deciding

TDQO

B-A has it pretty well there... the course has to be something which you genuinely enjoy otherwise you'll either drop out or get an awful grade. But it also needs to be relevant, there's no point getting a degree in knitting just because you love knitting, you won't get any career benefit from it.

Personally I chose my A levels so that I could do any engineering degree I chose or a humanities or an art degree.

My best advice is to use the UCAS list of available degrees to see what is out there and then research a whole list of possibilities. I was interested in engineering so entered that and got a list of all possible engineering degrees. This brought up hundreds but as I was scanning it the word "mining" popped out and I started researching it... The course content was different to your average degree and there was a heavy practical element. This got me interested so I visited the campus and that completely sealed the deal for me.

I'm a country boy at heart and after visiting 3 city based unis I really didn't like any of them due to the concrete, dirt and anonymity. However when I was dropped off at the campus down in Cornwall I immediately felt at home. It's a small, friendly, very green campus in a small, friendly town. Even before I'd spoken to a lecturer or seen the rest of it I had made up my mind.

To make sure I still visited other unis and other courses but they didn't do anything for me so 4yrs later I'm now living in Australia working as a mining engineer!

Good luck with your choices and remember, it's a combination of heart and head that will get you the degree you want and need.

Lokolo

Heres my story:

I did Computing, Maths and Business for A Level. When thinking of univeristy I wanted to do Comp Sci/Programming/Games

I eventually chose Computer Games Programming. I love to play games (as most geeks) and I love to program, so that was my choice made up.

Now into my second year of the course and some of the games content has actually put me off working in the games industry and I have opted for a general Software Engineering job.

I have applied for a placement with IBM and I am (was meant to today) having a final quick telephone interview tomorrow with the hiring manager to make sure I am suited to the role and to make sure he can offer me work. IBM = Games? Nope, nowhere near, but I cannot bloody wait to work there. :cool:

Oldernotwiser

blue_ashleigh wrote: »

Definitely do something you enjoy. I know quite a few people who took what they thought they 'should' i.e. Finance or business because they thought it would be a good qualification to have when leaving uni - but found because they had no passion for the subject that they just couldn't muster the effort for 3 years to get a good degree or to stay on at uni.

I took a dual honors - maths and psychology degree. It means that I have more that one thing to think about, it's not all just one subject which I would get bored with. Plus I could branch out into either area if I wanted, or I could have majored in one subject in my final year. May be worth thinking about if you're not sure which subjects to take/ don't have a set career plan/ or you get bored easily!

I think the most important thing, if you do decide to do a degree, is to do something you enjoy because three years is a long time to pursue something you aren't passionate about.

I also, possibly going against what a lot of people think, that you should choose the uni on how much you can see yourself fitting into the life there (do you like the city or quiet rural, spread out uni or a campus etc) rather than the position the uni is in the league table. I chose Keele (an average uni in league tables) because it's a pretty campus uni and I really like it, whereas I know some people who went to Sheffield (which is quite a good uni in tables) but hate it because they don't fit into that way of life.

Wow... rambled on a bit there!!!

Good luck with deciding

Your advice is excellent for somebody of 18 but possibly less appropriate for someone in their late twenties.

Navsy_thesmurfette

I'm 20 and currently in my second year at uni doing a joint of Healths Studies and psychology and i wouldn't look back at not going. I was a late starter as i stayed an extra year at college as i wasn't sure what type of health field i wanted to go in i just thought im interested in mental health so i went for a combined course that will lead onto other options if i decided the mental health career path wasn't suited for me.
I haved had 4 of my friends quite uni after a year sme for personal reasons but for another it was because after all the hype of going to uni they decided that it just wasn't what the wanted and is now happy doing a with a part time job and childcare course.
Also i have a friend who i studied with last year in healthstudies who decided that he wasn't enjoying it and wanted to pursue psychology instead. he is now happy as larry enjoying the challeng of it all as he belives its a step harder then his previous course when i meet him for study buddying.
I think uni is fantastic but it has to be right for the individual as its alot of debt which is now being considered to be increased per year!
However i love it and have made fantastic friends for keeps young and mature and will be an experience of learning and maturing that i am fully appreciative of Navs X