Do you think ‘take what you enjoy doing’ as a degree is good advice?

[Timetakesacigarette]

At school, dd was encouraged to take what she enjoyed and is subsequently part way through a Chemistry degree at a very good uni (but not Oxbridge). She’s struggling to get internships/work experience but her friends who took maths/computer science or finance are faring better (a lot didn’t get the top grades she achieved). She could have taken medicine (but her heart wasn’t in it).
I feel guilty as I wasn’t clued up about Stem and was happy to go along with what she/the school wanted. My friend pushed her son to do maths (even though he wasn’t keen) and he’s is now a high flyer earning very well.

I’m hoping it all pans out in the end but the grad market seems difficult now. She will need to earn a decent amount as we can’t support her financially very well in the future.

She has a couple of friends on degree apprenticeships. They’re not enjoying it all that much but at least they’re earning well for their age and will have the experience and a degree at the end.

I don’t think it’s good advice any more. These days university is so expensive, and the graduate market is so brutal, that you need a really clear plan as to the value of doing a specific degree. Just doing something because you enjoy it isn’t enough anymore, unless you’re so wealthy that you can just have fun for 3 years without planning for the future.

I think discussing employability when choosing whether to go to uni and if so what subject to choose is important. However, it is one factor alongside interest and aptitude etc. In the end you can only discuss the likely benefits and costs/negatives. The young person has to make the ultimate decision about their future. I dont think studying something you really dont enjoy is ever a good idea. However, things are normally a continium - a subject with high employability that you have some interest in even if it isn't a passion might be a good choice. Also whilst some degrees do lead to a higher chance of highly skilled emloyment there is a range of outcomes across a range of subjects. It is often about the whole package (personality, work experience, drive etc.) not just where and what was studied that matters. There are graduate opportunities open to any subject, although it is doubtless some subjects widen the range. I know a maths graduate who has never had a 'graduate' job and someone who took a subject much derided on MN who got onto a graduate training scheme and went on to develop a lucrative career. I think non-STEM degrees have value for some young people.

If my daughter had followed her dream, she would have done a degree in something English related, maybe journalism, but she knew it was a subject that was unlikely to get her a job, or the earnings she knew she needed, if she was to achieve her other dreams: travelling, buying her own apartment and owning her own car.
Instead she did an apprenticeship degree in Computer Science, which she was good at, but didn’t have a passion for, she was paid a very good wage and all her uni fees paid.
Now, at 25, she is in an excellent job, with good promotional prospects, does travel, has her own apartment and her own car.
She still writes in her spare time, and she may decide when she’s older, to do a degree for pleasure, rather than career prospects.
I think a mixture of where the degree will take your daughter, how good she is at it, and if she enjoys the subject, all have to be taken into consideration.

I work for a large built environment consultancy and run the graduate and apprenticeship programs, we take non cog degrees but it's tough, we had over 6,000 applicants altogether. It sounds as if she needs to improve her interview skills.

I will be advising my kids to research into what career paths it can lead into as a priority.

I still think it's good advice especially when it's still a respectable subject like a core science. The others could have those jobs or be doing well for a variety of reasons not just the subject they studied.

Agree with other posters, chemistry is a solid degree OP.

If all else fails 10 years or so ago we used to get some chemistry/science students being picked up by the accounting firms to do those qualifications. Often when they've had a few years extra experience trying to work in the field but maybe not enjoying that side as much. I assume it's the same now (this would only apply to the UK where you don't need an accounting degree to be an accountant). After doing the accounting qualification there's tonnes of finance routes available. Just to show an alternative option!

It is sensible to consider career aspects. Paying £30k to study leisure & tourism or sociology is unlikely to be a worthy investment. The grad market is much tougher now so that will be more true than ever. Hopefully it might have improved by the time your daughter graduates!

The graduate job market is tough, but the job opportunities for young non-graduates is statistically even tougher. This doesn't mean people should embark on degrees without thought to future employment opportunities, but it is an important to recognise this when considering options and pathways. High quality alternatives to degrees are not always ease to source.

https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/latest/insights-and-analysis/graduate-outcomes-what-latest-data#:~:text=The%20unemployment%20rate%20for%20graduates,at%2014.3%25%20in%20early%202025.

Try not letting your 18 year old pick their own degree. Have you met any 18 year olds?

I think for a lot of people it is what you make of it.. I did what would be considered a fairly useless degree really but I enjoyed it and have managed to a good job in a fairly niche aspect of it. I have friends who did physics, chemistry, classics and music who are all in very well paid jobs some related and some not related to their field. I'd say it's just luck and perseverance, and it's hard for today's graduates.

I can to some extent understand concerns over some subjects eg media studies or theatre studies.

Theatre Studies nationally has as good a post graduation employment rate & calibre of job as graduates of History or English. You are peddling an outdated stereotype there.

I think it depends on the person. Enjoying a subject at school is not necessarily a recipe for a career, however if you have a true passion then I think you should follow that while leaving your options open as far as possible.

I always find denigration of Humanites/Arts degrees is a bit sad. Who teaches these to your children, writes books and plays and poetry, makes tv, film, theatre, radio, art? Designs things, advertises things, makes music. I could go on...
I do appreciate MFL is really suffering at the moment but it is useful in so many ways!

I did a degree which was ultimately pointless (Law) because I wasn't interested in it but I had no burning passion so I thought I would do something with a job at the end of it.(and in retrospect shouldn't have gone to university).

Instead she did an apprenticeship degree in Computer Science, which she was good at, but didn’t have a passion for, she was paid a very good wage and all her uni fees paid.

I think the key thing for your DD @Pam100127 is that it was HER decision & forward planning. She sounds mature & sensible.

But I've taught a lot of kids who were "refugees" from degrees they enrolled for because they were pressured into those areas - because their parents were pressing (or even coercing) them; or because they had high marks so it was their "duty" to do Medicine or the like.

Long term, it does not make for happiness. Short term, it often results in mediocre results for the student.

Thank you.
You are right, we discussed it with her, but it was her decision.
Conversely her younger brother chose not to go to uni, and he got an unbelievable job, as a software developer, earning a huge salary, travelling the world and at 21 is very happy and contented.
The only condition we gave both of them was that they had to go into education, training, or a job, sitting around wasn’t an option.

My son did what he enjoyed and honestly I wish I had been firmer about doing a more practical subject (he wouldn’t have listened anyway). He does actually regret it although he loved uni as a whole. He’s doing ok, a year on from graduating, but he has a less defined path than his brother, who took stem.

I work at a uni and see what happens when students take degrees they think they should do - when their heart isn't in it, it often doesn't end well. It's so important for them to want to study the subject. Chemistry is a great degree to have with lots of transferable skills. The chances are very strong that she'll do just fine. She could speak to the university careers service about trying some mock interviews?

I’m posting this link because although a few years old I think it provides a really good framework for analysing why you weren’t successful in the internship round and what you can do about it.

There’s a lot of prep you can do. The uni careers service will have access to online training for the tests and AI interviews. They will also review your DDs CV and linkedin.

Your DD needs to think in terms of skills she is developing through her degree rather than content (unless she is taking her chemistry beyond ug degree). This shld also influence her module choice. Is she doing some applied modules eg chemistry in industry/developing drugs for the market or whatever (I am not a scientist!) and any entrepreneurship modules. Also any group work; I know we all hate it and a few people do all the work, but group projects are really good for developing teamwork skills and also answering the interview situational judgement questions (lots of egs of working with difficult people, when a project went wrong etc).

Doing a subject you love should mean you get the best result, but you do need to build a full CV through extra curricular activities too.

https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6940372

There are definitely worse degrees than chemistry I'd have thought. She might just find that applying is a numbers game, she needs to keep going. The advice about accessing her careers service at uni is good and she should be able to access them for a year or 2 after graduating.

It's a bit of both. There's no point in going to University to indulge your passion for late medieval history or basket weaving or Serbo-Croat unless you are also committed to gaining relevant skills for the workplace through your degree.

Similarly, you can't just choose a degree programme that you think will lead to a well paid career if you don't have the aptitude for it. You'll be miserable.

Chemistry is a great degree.

@WW3 said it better than me!

If she is getting through the first sifts then it's not her degree that's the issue, as they blknow she's on a chem degree. If she's failing at interview stage it's more likely to be something she's not doing at interview, other skills she's not demonstrating etc. I would say if she was forced to do finance and didn't do as well, she would have had to put down that she has a lower class degree than she will get doing something as she's interested in, which may mean not even getting through the first sifts.

You really are!

My DC is currently crashing out of a (very marketable) degree they chose themselves. They have done several excellent internships, but the application to interview to offer rate is REALLY low - they applied to literally hundreds. Suspect your daughter just needs to apply for loads more and keep interviewing, keep interviewing. Chemistry is a very good degree; she's getting 1st rounds, so it clearly isn't the issue.

The whole pipeline is completely exhausting and demoralising.

She possibly needs interview practice if she is getting selected for interview but failing at that stage. Her degree is not holding her back if she is called for interview.
Has she any work or volunteering experience to reference when being asked for example of how she deals with situations?
Belonging to clubs & societies or sports teams can also help.

Chemistry is a fantastic subject for applying to finance related jobs. They love the problem solving skills students have. Sounds like it’s more about her having better plan, more resilience when applying for opportunities, and a willingness to consider a range of sectors.