UCAS - making the right choice
Which course is right for you? And which institution?
Type of course
Most undergraduate degrees in the UK lead to either a Bachelor of Arts (BA) or Bachelor of Science (BSc) qualification. Usually this is directly related to the subject, i.e. you would have to do a BSc in Biology, however Psychology could be either.
Students usually study one academic subject (a single honours degree) or two (joint honours) however modular courses are making it increasingly common for universities to offer combined honours degrees allowing you to follow a wide range of subjects.
Most modern degree courses are modular, meaning that you can often take up a small amount of studies not directly related to your course, such as a language.
Many courses now offer a year abroad e.g. languages, American studies, business studies, anthropology. This has the potential to be an amazing opportunity - sharpening up your CV and building your skills and experience. The same goes for taking a placement in industry, it even has the added bonus of earning some cash.
Scotland has a different system - a basic degree takes three years, but an honours degree takes four. In the latter, students take a broader range of subjects to begin with, and then specialise later on.
Subject
Most importantly choose a subject that interests if not fascinates you. Three years is a long time to study something that bores you rigid.
Try and choose something related to any career aspirations you might have. Otherwise, a more general degree followed by a specific masters may be a better option. Talk to a careers advisor to work out what is best for you.
Look at university websites for more details of courses. If you want more information on a course or would like to know whether it would be relevant to your career plans you could try contacting the institution directly.
Check you are taking the right subjects to get onto your preferred course. If you have doubts, ask your careers advisor or phone the institution to see if your situation would be acceptable.
Look at the entry requirements, if you have some idea of what grades you will get in your A-levels, try to choose courses that you will be able to get on to, plus find a good course asking for lower grades just in case.
Institution
Ask yourself these questions:
- Do you want to study in a town or a city?
- Would you miss the countryside or are you desperate to be by the sea?
- Do you want to stray close to home or get as far away as possible?
- Do you have a hobby that you want to continue at uni e.g. Surfing requires sea, ice-skating needs a rink, check that the place you'd like to go has the facilities there.
- Do you want a big university or a small college?
- North or South? East or West?
- Campus based (all in one place) or scattered across the city?
- What are the research interests of your department?
- What is the social scene like?
- Are student-resident relations good?
- Is it a protected city like Winchester where all pubs and clubs close by midnight?
- What is the cost of living there? London rents are at least double those of Wales.
- Does it have a good academic reputation and pass rate for the course you are interested in?
Once you have narrowed the list down to the last few, aim to visit a couple and get a feel for the place. Some universities such as Sheffield offer the chance to go up for an open day and then go out with students in the evening. Ask around, have friends or relatives been to any of your choices? How did they find it?
Finally
At the end of the day, student life is what you make it - so trust your own instincts and go enjoy.
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