To ask if you could start again what would you study??

[Londoner90]

Or would you study at all? Would you go to uni ? Would you consider money as in what salaries might be in the industry or would you follow your passion ?

I am currently in the middle of a career change. I was a teacher and I had enough. I applied for a paid apprenticeship programme. They are paying me to do a degree in microbiology and pharmaceutical science. I am working 3 days at a fantastic company with great benefits (pension, health insurance and bonus) and at college 2 days. I love it and I'm earning more than I was teaching part time so it's a win win!!

I’d study medicine and whatever else you need to be a psychiatrist.... the list is long! though I expect it’s nothing like I’d imagine. Possibly counselling, would love to help people recover, but not sure I could accept the failure of being unable to ‘cure’ someone.

I wouldn't change I studied architecture and it was a brilliant course and I've worked continually since qualifying. Its a long course and isn't as well paid as other careers however if you are successful you can earn well.

I wouldn't choose for salary as in every path it is possible to earn well or badly. Choose your passion and be good at it.

Chemistry, chemical engineering, engineering or possibly medicine. Had the grades for any of them, no bother.
I did ecology. I've specialised and work for a brilliant employer, but I do wish the economic reality had been made a bit clearer.
DH pretty much exactly the same position. Scottish uni; lots of his pals did geology and are loaded. We know it's not the most important thing in the world, but we were both in the lucky position of being able to choose absolutely anything, and there's a vague sense we both massively screwed that up.

Medicine ideally

But the comprehensive secondary I attended (86-91) did not give option of doing all 3 sciences at GCSE, it was only in 2 slots in the timetable so was not possible to choose all 3 (this was pre combined science being an option) so looking back even if I had decided I wanted to study medicine it would have been tricky to do the right combination of subjects.

I did business studies at uni and went into marketing. If I could redo my life, I'd have done a heritage craft - silversmithing, pargetting, textile conservation, thatching. Something beautiful and niche.

I wish I'd done an apprenticeship in nursing. I never believed in my abilities and have always just done admin but I wish I had done more

Interesting that a number of people would go back and study History. DS started an engineering degree, dropped out after Yr 1 and studied History instead - which he loves and is now on his Masters.
I didn't go to Uni but as I've got older I've become fascinated by people's behaviour so would love to study Psychology. Alternatively I'm interested in dietetics.

Forensics or cyber security.

I wish I had gone to Uni would go and do a history degree

I am starting again. Off to uni this year to follow my dream of being an osteopath. 36 when I start, 41 when I qualify.
This year has taught me life is too short to keep wondering about it.

Fine art. I was talked out of it and never held a paintbrush again. Now lost any skill I had.

For me it would have been a year later and in a different university. I'm not going to say which one I went to, but I now describe it as the University of the Boring.

Drama.

I'd have gone straight into business (I have an MBA now) and probably done a more media & communications focused undergrad.

I did English & history as an undergrad -- the English part overlapped with communications and I think I would have enjoyed that more.

I don't regret the history studies in the slightest, some might see that as wasteful since it's completely irrelevant to the everyday life, but I still enjoy reading & studying history and having a slight academic foundation certainly taught me a lot about how to read and judge sources when forming conclusions.

Which, I suppose, isn't all that irrelevant today after all.

Medicine or law.

Accountancy. Did a Primary Ed degree, been teaching maths for years. I still enjoy it but can't see myself doing it forever. I also don't have a maths degree so if I lost my current job I'd probably be screwed despite years of excellent results

I wish I’d learnt a language to degree level.

I read archaeology and work in museums (normally) but I wish I’d gone more towards conservation lab work. I’d probably still be out of a job though.

I wanted to study archaeology but our careers advice teacher had studied that and said ‘noooooooo don’t do it!’. I’ve been on a few digs and, actually I’m pretty content in a muddy hole, scratching away.

Midwifery. I'd love to be a midwife, I'm too old now to start the process. It'll be a lifelong regret.

Some people train to be midwives in their 50s.

I stick with what I did - physics- but I’d like to have done more computer science.

My delightful physics teacher used to say that he didn’t like girls in his class and that’s we should be doing Home Ed... absolute arse of a man (and an alcoholic).

I wish I'd done something with firmer employment opportunities at the end of it - my degree is only really worthwhile if I follow it up with postgraduate study, which at least right now is inaccessible for me both financially and location wise.