No idea what to study at uni - advice please!

[Houseplantmad]

Dd in Year 12, is starting her personal statement, UCAS application etc but she has no idea what she wants to study at uni nor what she would like to do beyond uni. She is doing economics, textiles and psychology for A level and loves them all. She's a mad keen hockey player so that's an important factor. Can anyone advise where to start please as I'm at a loss.

Has she considered other options? Why does she have to apply to uni if there’s nothing she wants to study?

Perhaps she should wait a year or two and get a job till she figures out what she wants.
Student debt is a big undertaking if you aren't even sure that you will do anything with the degree at the end of it.

She could try this. It's Australian not British but subjects/ jobs are equivalent.

www.opencolleges.edu.au/careers/career-quiz

She should take a gap year. Get a job, do some travelling. Maybe decide not to go to university at all. Why saddle herself with around £50k of debt studying something she doesn't care about? Maybe a year a two of real life will focus her a bit and give her some direction.

No actually don't bother with the Australian one. The Irish one is much better,

careersportal.ie

You have to create an account (free) and go to the Interest profiler in the career file.

Thanks @Haffdonga - I'll get her to look at that.

I think she's worried about being left behind by her peers if she doesn't go next year and is up for the university experience i.e. away from the learning. I think she'd do well if she went out to work or did some kind of apprenticeship as she's quick to learn, very practical and quite entrepreneurial but she seems set on going to uni. I'm not in favour of acquiring such a big debt for something that she's not certain about.

Given that she may never completely repay her student loan, the way round to think of it is that a false start now - even if she actually completes a course and gets a degree out of it - affects her right to funding later on, should she then discover something that she really wants to do. (The student loan is for a first undergraduate degree, btw, so this applies even if this time were to be self-funded).

How academic is she?
In what way does she think she'll be left behind by her peers? All her school friends wont be going to the same university, presumably? And not all will do 3 year course. Plenty of students will have taken gap years.

It makes sense for her to hold off applying until she has a firm idea of what would be worth her while.

Her A-Levels are a real mixed bag. Would she look after uni at a general graduate recruitment programme for perhaps civil service or a large company? If so I would go for any respected subject which is probably economics or business studies given her current studies. Textiles would really limit her options (I suspect) and a psychology degree is insufficient for a career in psychology, she would need post graduate qualifications. Would she consider teaching? I agree with other posters. Best to take a break until she knows what she wants to do as otherwise unnecessary debt and high chance she drops out.

I probably wouldn't advise university. Is there any other options such as apprenticeships etc.
In my experience the school wanted everyone to apply for uni as it looked good for them. A lot of people went to university and done courses such as psychology, English etc and currently working in jobs that do not require any degree. As they went to uni willy nilly and didn't think of jobs at the end of it. I went to uni to train as a nurse, husband done IT at university and is one of the only ones in his year actually using their degree.
The people that have been more successful have been people doing apprenticeships and doing training on the job and their work putting them through a degree whilst getting paid.

I would only apply to university if you have a specific field you want to work in and you need a degree for that.

For any sport enthusiast have a look at Loughborough. They have sports from the level of representing the hall of residence you are in up to National level.

Something like Sports Tech might suit her, it's basically designing and engineering sports equipment.

I read Economics but that's gone very mathmatical these days and its better to have A level maths for that. Business Studies might work - contains elements of economics, she's interested in business, consumer behaviour can be related to psychology and it covers marketing too. I would have a good look at careers first especially maybe see if anything anyone psychology would be of interest, not sure of the options within that. Though do need to consider the cost of the degree. It maybe better to wait or look at jobs though an incredibly difficult time to be entering job market. Maybe look at employer entry schemes even if they are limited now to see if anything sparks an interest. You can also do joint honours degrees if she is split between two.

We had a similar issue with DD. You won't be able to do it at the moment but we took her to the local uni open day and went to the sample lectures and presentations for 4 subjects that she'd been considering. Earth Sciences really lit her up so that is what she's applying for.

I'm a sixth form tutor I'd be telling her to look at high level apprenticeships, better to be being paid to study rather than paying for something she's not sure about

Sounds like Liberal arts would be perfect for her. But, I'd always, always recommend a vocational course. She needs to work backwards. What can she imagine spending 40 plus hours a week doing for ten years plus? Because that's the reality of choosing a degree. Unless you do lots of retraining.

I took 4 years out before I went to uni. I was the only one in my year who didn't go straight after school and it was the best decision I made. It allowed me to gain experience in multiple areas before I was confident in the career I wanted

A degree is only enjoyable to do if you’re passionate about the subject or if you can clearly see where it’s leading. Paying to potentially do quite badly at something you don’t really love just to be able to party and play hockey is crazy. Like everyone else, I suggest a year or two out. Consider an apprenticeship. Some bigger firms and the civil service will sometimes fund a degree for you if you do their apprenticeship - but you’d do the degree after you’ve had some work experience and worked out what you enjoy and what motivates you.

I would agree with PPs - if she genuinely doesn't know what she wants to study, why go to uni? Unless she has a passion (or at least a strong interest) in the subject, it will be a bit of a slog for her at uni.

Her A levels are also a bit of a mix, so she may find she doesn't meet the subject requirements for a lot of degrees.

Has she looked at degree apprenticeships? They're a relatively new concept in the UK, but combine hands-on training and work, with part-time study towards a degree. At least then she will learn some practical skills, earn some money and get a useful degree, without saddling herself with debt to study something she doesn't care about.

www.prospects.ac.uk/jobs-and-work-experience/apprenticeships/degree-apprenticeships

Definitely don't choose something for the sake of it. You only get funding for the first course you do at each level so if she finishes the degree she won't get funding to do another degree later on if she decides on what she wants to do which could make retraining quite difficult

You can use the gov.uk to search fro current opportunites (make sure you select 'degree' under 'apprenticeship levels').
www.findapprenticeship.service.gov.uk/apprenticeships?SearchField=All&Keywords=&Location=E1+6AN&WithinDistance=0&ApprenticeshipLevel=Degree&DisabilityConfidentOnly=false&Latitude=51.518895&Longitude=-0.078378&Hash=-1168730439&SearchMode=Keyword&Category=&LocationType=NonNational&sortType=Distance&SearchAction=Search&resultsPerPage=5&DisplayDescription=true&DisplayDistance=true&DisplayClosingDate=true&DisplayStartDate=true&DisplayApprenticeshipLevel=false&DisplayWage=false

You can also browse by category: 'e.g. Arts, Media and Publishing', 'Business, Administration and Law'

Sorry for the mulitple posts...

Something like this one, a degree apprenticeship in Visual Merchandising with L'Oreal, would combine skills from all three of her A Levels!
www.findapprenticeship.service.gov.uk/apprenticeship/-524293

Thanks all. I'm going to get her to read your very helpful replies - that way she'll recognise the theme herself rather than thinking it's just me coming up with the idea not to go just yet!

She is academic - a real all rounder and I know will be successful as she has a great personality, very mature and empathetic for her age which has given her opportunities already. .

Her brother is going this autumn and he's known what he's wanted to do since he was very young and it was so much easier!

To those saying what's the point of getting into debt if you don't really know what you want to do - I couldn't agree more. It depends on the school though. My DD's grammar school had a "what to do after A levels" evening where apprenticeships were covered in two sentences and largely dismissed. All DD's friends went on to university and the only "gap year" was a friend who didn't get all A or A* so resat her A levels.

I wish that I'd read a subject I loved (English) rather than one I thought would help me progress in my career (accountancy) because it wouldn't have mattered. I didn't realise that at the time. It's only medicine, I think, where you have to make that decision early.

I would advise her to pick a university where you don't have to decide for sure until after the first year.

I encouraged my dd to do a vocational degree as the likelihood of having a job is higher. But then medicine, nursing, physio etc are all things she likes. She hasn't started yet due to a health issue but she wants to be a doctor, she has the grades needed and she will be great.