As you approach the end of your high school education, you face some pretty big decisions.
It doesn’t mean there’s no turning back from the choices you make now—you’ll probably change your mind about where exactly you’re headed several times over the next few years. But it is an important time to start thinking about what you might like to do, so you can make wise decisions that will keep your future study and career options open.
Subject selection
One way of doing this is to select the right HSC subjects. A good starting point is to think about jobs or careers that interest you.
If you already know what you want to study, you’ll need to select the subjects required for your course. For example, if you’ve always dreamed of becoming an aeronautical engineer, you’ll need to study maths and science for your HSC.
In some courses, it is ‘assumed’ you have completed certain subjects at high school, for example, if HSC Mathematics Extension 1 is ‘assumed knowledge’ for a particular degree and you have studied HSC Mathematics, then you may find some subjects in your degree difficult. You could find some subjects in your degree easier to follow if you successfully complete the HSC subjects we recommend.
Of course you also need to think realistically about your academic ability. What subjects are you good at? If you love English, a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature might be suited to you... or perhaps a Bachelor of Communication, majoring in Journalism.
Future Finder helps you choose the right subjects for your desired study program—and can also recommend which study programs might be best for you. You should also develop an understanding of the ATAR and scaling.
Do
Investigate what’s required for the courses you’re interested in…
- Talk to your career adviser or teachers
- Ask family and friends for their opinions and ideas
- Speak to someone who specialises in an area of study that interests you. Visit them in their workplace or arrange work experience
- If you know someone who has studied or is studying an interesting program at uni, chat to them about their experience
- Take a look at career resources at your school, in libraries and on the internet
- Attend university campus tours. The best way to get a feel for an institution and what it might be like to study there is to actually look around the place and speak to teaching staff and students
Don’t
A few things not to base your subject choices on include:
- Your friends – they probably have different abilities, interests and motivations
- Teachers – don’t select a subject because your favourite teacher is taking it
- Excursions – don’t endure two years of misery for one particular excursion
- Rumours – ignore rumours about jobs, marks or ATAR weightings—do your own research
- Easy subjects – there aren’t ‘easy’ subjects—your success in a subject is down to your commitment and enthusiasm
- Boys’ or girls’ subjects – if you’re good at or interested in a subject, then it’s right for you
