Choosing the best degree
The following websites are useful reference tools
Eva Chan, Careers and Employment, UNSW
Universities in Australia offer a great variety of courses every year to cater for the study interests of prospective students. With the wide variety of choices, it is not uncommon for students to be browsing through long lists of options and even selecting their preferences based on the names of course/degree programs.
There is no doubt that this can be the quickest way in determining preferences. However, this may not be the most effective way of choosing a degree. Here are a few tips on how to make the best decision.
- Know yourself - If you feel overwhelmed by the options available, why not take a step back and reflect on yourself. Ask yourself questions such as: What is important to me in my career? The answer may be work/life balance, prestige, money, or the opportunity to be inventive and creative. You are more likely to enjoy a career that matches well with your values.
- You may also want to consider your interests and abilities. Both are equally important when choosing a career path. For example, you may be good at typing or sending SMS messages; however, this doesn't necessarily mean that you want to have a career in data-entry. Equally, you may enjoy chatting with your friends over the phone, but this doesn't mean you will be a good telemarketer. Taking a step back to reflect on your values, skills and abilities will often help you to evaluate your options in a more systematic manner.
- Think beyond the course / degree program - It is great to enjoy the courses you study. However, when making a decision about a degree program, you should think beyond the courses themselves. A typical university degree program takes 3-5 years to complete but you might be in your career for many more years. It is important to consider your career aspirations / goals, and then work backwards in terms of the qualifications / degree program that you will need to complete. Having a strong career goal not only guides your decision making, it will also keep you focused throughout your degree.
- Make informed decisions - Consider how much you know about the courses / job titles you are interested in. What other research have you done beyond reading the information available online? It is very important to speak to professionals in the area that you are interested in, attend open days and contact students who are currently enrolled in the course to get a better insight into your potential career path.
"Examining the median starting salary growth indices covered by the period 1988- 2010, we see the median starting salary for optometry graduates in 2010 was equivalent to 266.2 per cent of the median starting salary for optometry graduates in 1988, the largest growth (compared with an average of 213.0 per cent across these fields of education for this same period)."
Graduate Salaries 2010, GradsOnline
"In areas such as the sciences, humanities and related areas, and psychology, many students proceed directly to further full-time study, including to an honours year or to the second half of a combined degree program."
Graduate Salaries 2010, GradsOnline
By understanding your abilities, interests and values, and gaining insights in possible career paths, you are more likely to successfully select the best course / degree program for you.
Science offers great careers
Science is a huge field and studying science provides an education for life. Science training equips you with a toolkit of skills - a foundation of logical, analytical, lateral thinking, team work, communication and the ability to creatively solve problems. UNSW graduates have great success in getting jobs and developing careers in all areas of management, research, policy development, administration and communications.
UNSW offers students a wide range of science programs, and as such science graduates work in a huge range of careers. UNSW graduates have great success in getting jobs and developing careers in all areas of industry, research and business. You can work in management, policy development, research, education, communications or administration.
Learning scientific method is a big plus for any career: it means that even if you don't go directly into a job in science, your training equips you with strong transferable skills.
A Bachelor of Science offers you the most flexible degree program, enabling you to study a wide range of options in Science as well as other areas of interest which can then provide scope for career flexibility.
There are also specialised degree programs in areas such as Communication, Aviation, Environmental Science and Psychology. A combined degree offers you the opportunity to study in different areas - such as a language or business studies combined with science.
