Five Ways to Decide What to Study at University

Going to university is a big step, so you want to get it right. You know that the course you study will have a huge impact on your university experience, but how do you get it right? There is no one set way to decide what you study at university, so don't feel pressured to do what everyone else is doing. Do what's right for you and you're bound to make a good choice!

But with so many courses to choose from, how do you go about narrowing it down? I've come up with a few methods that can help you pick the right course for you:

1. Choose a university. It might be that you already know exactly which university you'd like to go to. Maybe it's where your older sibling went or perhaps you just love the city. Either way, this is a great way to narrow down your choices to a more manageable selection. Visit the university's websites and have a look through the courses they have available, go to an open day or simply request a prospectus! Now you can pick a shortlist of courses that interest you most and apply to them.

2. Choose an area of interest. Perhaps you already know for certain what you want to study. Great! But for many courses such as the humanities, languages and the arts, what you actually study differs from one university to the next. Look on UCAS to see what universities offer the course you'd like to study and visit their websites to find out more. Make sure you look at the different modules as well as course requirements and the method of examination (such as coursework, research or exams). This way, you know that you'll be studying something within your specific area of interest.

3. Choose a career. It might seem daunting to think about what you want to do for the rest of your life, and that's fine! But if you do know roughly what you'd like to do when you leave university, then that can be really helpful! Look at job adverts to see what degrees employers like to see and then think about which of those degrees would suit you. If you find that none of those courses sounds interesting, think about why you want to pursue that particular career and if another career might be better suited to you. Remember: it's ok to change your mind!

4. Look at your A-Levels. I know it sounds quite obvious but it can be really helpful to consider which of your A-Levels you've enjoyed the most. It might be that the random extra subject you decided to take has turned out to be your favourite, so why not study something similar at university?

5. Browse on UCAS. Like any good online shop, UCAS has a whole host of filters that you can use to find the perfect course. This is a great way to find interesting courses that you hadn't even heard about or courses that combine two seemingly unrelated interests of yours. If you have absolutely no idea what you want to study, scrolling through UCAS will help you rule out the definite no's, and show you the definite maybes. Just make sure you make a note of the courses that sound interesting so you don't forget!

Hopefully, these tips will help you find the perfect course for you but don't worry if you're still finding it difficult. There is so much choice out there that it can feel quite overwhelming. The most important thing to make sure is that you actually want to study that subject.

And if you pick a course but then a week into your new degree find that you don't like it? You can always transfer, so don't feel like you're stuck with your choice forever!