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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

Original poster

How do you find university course?

58 replies

Areyousorted12 · 19/10/2019 22:08

DH or I never went to university. DD is going GCSEs this summer but is being asked to pick A levels now. I said think about what you want to do at university. I have no idea says DD. What do I say to help her pick something? What should she be looking at? Any tips/advice very welcome.

OP posts:
Xenia · 20/10/2019 10:03

Not so sure. You might well want to change the world but are unlikely to be able to do but if you get a well paid job you will have more choices including opting to be an activist.

I agree that it is good to pick a subject you enjoy however and with many high paid careers the original degree does not matter from a good institution with very high marks.

It tends just to be the rich who have the luxury of picking something without considering earnings and it is not a wise choice unless you are happy to be on mument in 15 years' time wrting about how to save money on the weekly shopping bill by buying your shopping at one cheaper supermarket over another one.

Embracelife · 20/10/2019 10:03

Looking ahead is a good exercise
I want to be an a ctor
Ok what are the routes to get you there
I dont know but I am motivated by money
Ok lawyer business. Engineer architect (obv top ones )
I want to save the planet
Science geography sociology sustainability

titchy · 20/10/2019 10:10

Does she want to go to university?
What are her likely GCSE grades going to be?
Are her favourite GCSEs science, languages, humanities, creative subjects?

Never mind all the esoteric questions above -far too deep! If she / you can answer the basics above that's a good start.

MaidenMotherCrone · 20/10/2019 10:14

I find working class students (sorry for the jumping to this conclusion about you) tend to opt for courses that lead to a set career eg nursing, teaching but there is a whole world where a degree in any subject is the only criteria.

Hmm
QuaterMiss · 20/10/2019 10:22

Perhaps I didn’t explain well. Though I did use the word purely deliberately. Of course income potential will be one consideration. But it would be good if today’s teens are encouraged to think about what sort of society they want to live in. One with no Art Historians? Or only a tiny number of trustafarian Dramatists, Philosophers, Archaeologists, Classicists, Orchestra members?

“How do I want to change the world?” might mean designing the most comfortable chair for people with a particular health condition; or writing a ‘new’ sector of society into her favourite soap or video game or simply demonstrating that I can be involved in this hitherto closed occupation.

That is, activism through primary occupation and example.

AllStarBySmashMouth · 20/10/2019 10:49

I didn't know what I wanted to do either, so I chose the subjects I was best at so I would get the best results. It worked.

Remember she's not required to go to university straight from school. If she's really not got her heart set on a field of study, don't push her.

Abetes · 20/10/2019 11:21

I didn’t know what I wanted to do either so I picked the subjects that I loved and was good at. They weren’t science so cut off scientific degrees, but were all standard facilitating A levels and kept my options open. Again for University I didn’t know, so I did joint honours but in two standard respected subjects which showed that I could analyse information well, had a mathematical mind and could write well. From this I had a huge range of careers open to me - law, banking, accounting, management, teaching, etc. If you have no idea just pick the subjects you love and will do well in.

ErrolTheDragon · 20/10/2019 12:36

I haven't RTFT I'm not sure if this has been mentioned but I'm sure she doesn't have to firmly choose her A levels before she's even done her GCSEs - presumably the school just wants to get a rough idea of numbers. So at this stage naming the ones she finds most interesting and is good at may suffice. But it's a good idea to start thinking ahead.

She might find going to one or two uni open days next year interesting - take a look at a few different departments just to get a feel? There's usually some after summer exams and then more in the autumn term.

Original poster
Areyousorted12 · 20/10/2019 13:11

Thank you all so much for your advice. It's very kind of you all to take the time to give such considered and detailed advice.
So she is thinking Geography German and Economics. DD has no ideas about a career yet but we will be following the fabulous advice on here to help with that.

Having read another thread on here and because its an option would you pick A level or IB if you are not sure of a career st this stage. ?

OP posts:
titchy · 20/10/2019 14:58

Those three are a great combination! Is she on target for grade 7+ GCSEs? In which case is the option there to add Maths, at least for a year?

IB is indeed great for all rounders. I assume you know she'd have to take Maths and English, as well as four other subjects, theory of knowledge etc?

If IB is open to her then I'm guessing she's at a private school, or high achieving state school? In which case ask their advice as to which is better for her.

clary · 20/10/2019 15:01

Op brilliant that she wants to do German, so few schools are offering it now (former MFL teacher here).
Do be aware that it's tough to get a top grade due to the high percentage of native speakers taking A level - but please let that spur her on to work harder not put her off!

Original poster
Areyousorted12 · 20/10/2019 15:18

@clary,,- I did not think of that. It's a very good point to consider.
@titchy she is on target for 7s. But that makes it harder as she's good across the board. She likes Geography but says she can't do it at uni as it would not lead to a high paid career.!!!
School being a bit useless in this area to be honest, apart from saying let us know what you are doing for 6th form. Piling on undue pressure. Although I accept she needs to decide what she wants to do and then I'm sure they would be more helpful.

OP posts:
titchy · 20/10/2019 15:42

Loads of things she could do with a geography degree! High paid and low paid. She needs to be aware that the majority of careers, incl those that are well paid don't need a specific degree.

Piggywaspushed · 20/10/2019 16:09

I always think 16 year olds don't really have a notion of what 'high pay' means. They think this means they will earn peanuts....

The school surely has an options process??

Original poster
Areyousorted12 · 20/10/2019 16:27

School do have processes but you need to know what area you are interested in pursuing to get more specific information. She likes Geography but does not think it would lead to a successful career. I think she is scared of making the wrong decision.
So if she wants to do Geography would you recommend that she does it at a RG uni so she can pursue something else afterward.

Although I am thinking she should look at joint honours.
I think we will off to some open days over half term so she can talk to people herself to help her decide.
I am so very grateful for everyone giving advice and information. She will be the first to go to uni in our family so I am a bit useless at giving advice and welcome everyone taking the time to help. .

OP posts:
QuaterMiss · 20/10/2019 16:53

She likes Geography but does not think it would lead to a successful career. I think she is scared of making the wrong decision. So if she wants to do Geography would you recommend that she does it at a RG uni so she can pursue something else afterward?

If she likes Geography the first thing she should do is find out what sort of jobs/careers people have gone into with a geography degree.

Having spent some concentrated time researching that she may feel there are specific jobs she might be interested in - or she may prefer to spend the three years getting the best geography degree possible as a starting point to any of a wide range of graduate careers. Or it may become apparent that combining Geography with another specific subject is the best route.

What she must not do is dismiss a host of possibilities based on completely un-researched hearsay or opinion.

aibutohavethisusername · 20/10/2019 17:06

www.ucas.com/job-subjects/geography

Original poster
Areyousorted12 · 20/10/2019 18:40

Thank you all so much for all the links.
Im glad its half term. I have shown her this thread and she will digest everything over the break.
I tend to agree some specific research will help her cross things out so she can focus on options and make an informed choice.

OP posts:
HugoSpritz · 20/10/2019 19:09

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Xenia · 20/10/2019 20:01

Geography German and Economics are a very good combination. My daughter read geography at university and is a fairly high paid lawyer actually in London so don't discount geography degrees from good universities (particularly BSc rather than BA geography)

wineandsunshine · 20/10/2019 20:12

My son is at the stage of applying and has absolutely no idea what to do 🙄 anyhow, have a look at Which...it's great online and really helpful!

zzzzzzzx · 20/10/2019 20:18

If she has no career in mind I’d say choose A levels first and a degree second.

Original poster
Areyousorted12 · 20/10/2019 21:36

@Xenia interesting re Geography degree then a law career as that's something DD talked about. Did she do a law conversion afterwards?
We will add which to the list. Thanks @winesndsunshine.
Have not name checked everyone but this really is Mumsnet at its best. Knowledgeable folk helping someone out with some bloody fantastic advice. I am genuinely touched people are taking the time to reply.

OP posts:
Xenia · 20/10/2019 21:39

Yes, both my daughters did a law conversion afterwards. The exam system is about to change for lawyers but probably will retain something similar to a conversion course after the 2021 or later changes.