8 Tips on Choosing a Degree Right For You

High school students planning to go to university face a bewildering variety of degree options. There are so many areas of study that choosing just one can be an arduous decision and for those with lots of different interests, it can be even harder to decide.

So this guide offers 8 tips that can help make your task a little easier. It encourages you to question what you really want to do in life and will hopefully help to narrow your focus to one or two areas of genuine interest.

Questions to ask yourself

When considering degree options, ask yourself the following questions about each area of study;

Is it a subject you’ve always been interested in and are you likely to still find it interesting 10 years from now? If the answer’s not a resounding ‘yes’, then perhaps you should choose a more general area, rather than specialising right away.

Is it an area where you’ll be able to find regular employment once you earn your degree and will you be able to make a reasonable living from it? Again, if you’re not sure, perhaps consider something less specialised to begin with.

Is it an industry or area of expertise that’s likely to be around for the long term? When answering this, take into consideration the fact that with the rapid pace of technological change, traditional industries are being disrupted all the time.

8 tips to help you choose a degree

Here are 8 tips to help you narrow down your choices even further and hopefully settle on the one main area of interest where you know your heart lies.

1. Look at subjects that align with your abilities – shortlist those that fit with your current skills, but don’t discount others where you lack ability. Include them if they still hold an interest for you, because that’s what study is all about – learning new skills.
2. Look at subjects that align with your values and core beliefs (i.e. environmental science if you’re passionate about the environment). They could lead to a highly rewarding career, because you’ll be doing what you truly believe in. Bear in mind though that values can change over time.
3. Look at subjects that you’re interested in, because there are worse things in life than getting paid for doing what you enjoy. Again, remember that interests can and do change over time and your years at university might introduce you to many more that you never even knew about.
4. Look at subjects that you’re passionate about, because this is most likely to be the best career choice for you. If you’re lucky enough to have a burning lifelong desire to achieve something in a particular field, then you’re more likely to stick with it for the long haul.
5. If you’re unsure about which specific area you want to end up in, choose a subject that teaches skills that can be used in a number of different fields. Studying journalism for example, puts you in an excellent position to be able to work across just about every industry sector, because the ability to write well and tell stories is always in demand.
6. Ask for help in making your choice. Although it’s ultimately your decision, it can be helpful to get some input from others with different viewpoints to your own. These can include high school career counsellors, university career advisors, students already attending university and your friends and parents.
7. If you really don’t know what you want to study, remember you don’t have to decide right away. You can always take a gap year to think about it while you travel or work and hopefully come back with a fresh new perspective.
8. If you think you know what you want to study, but aren’t 100% sure, consider a lower level qualification first such as a certificate course. This can give you a quick snapshot of whether it’s the subject you really want to commit the next three or four years of study to.

Once you’ve decided on a degree, you need to shop around for the right university. As well as the degree major, look closely at the electives being offered and also the university itself including things like fees, calibre of teaching staff, research opportunities, internships and campus facilities.

Hopefully these tips have helped you to focus more clearly on your academic goal(s) and you now have a better idea of the area of study you want to pursue.

If not, then another option is to choose a generalist degree. This would allow you to explore your options without having to specialise in anything in your first year of study. For example, an arts degree would let you study a wide range of diverse subjects, any of which you could then choose to go on to specialise in for your second year of study.