How to choose what you want to study at university

By Sophie

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Did you graduate from high school and don’t know what program you want to study at university? Are you hesitating between a couple of programs? Or have you started university but then realized that the program you’ve chosen isn’t right for you? If this is the case, then you’re in the right place. I’ll give you some tips on how to choose a program that will correspond to your interests. 

Going to university is a big step in someone’s life: everything is new, the classes are usually bigger and the workload too. In addition to all these sudden changes, you also have to choose a program which you’ll be studying for at least three years – and yes, three years do go by fast but it’s important to like and be genuinely interested in what you’re studying.

Below, I’ll give you several tips that I’m hoping will help you handle the stressful situation of choosing your university path:

• Look up several universities and compare their courses: it may be a lengthy thing to do but it’s important to look up multiple universities that you would possibly consider to apply. Also, a same program can have different courses depending on the institution.

People you should contact:

• The program coordinator will be able to give you more details about the program, its requirements, discuss the workload, assignments, and exams.
• Student advisor: if you have any personal issues you would like to discuss with them and see how they would be able to help you throughout the academic year.
• Students or alumni who’ll give you the ‘real deal’ about the university, what life on campus is like, or a heads up about certain strict professors.

However, I have to be realistic and say that it isn’t likely you’ll find a program in which you’ll find all the courses interesting. Of course, there will be some dull courses (hopefully, not too many of them) that are compulsory, but you’ll just have to power through them. The most important thing is for you to enjoy the program overall!

Now let me tell you a little story about myself.

I studied online during my Bachelor’s degree; however, I didn’t feel lonely as I had multiple extra-curricular activities. During my whole BA degree, I had 6 modules which I generally liked. However, when choosing them, I discussed the options with my parents and they preferred for me to choose a more ‘secure’ path - a path that will help me find a job more easily. I do regret this though. I’m not blaming my parents as they wanted the best for me but I do wish I stood my ground and chose modules I really enjoyed instead of ‘generally liking’ them. For instance, I wanted to take creative writing but didn’t…

However, even if you don’t take a course during your Bachelor’s degree or during your studies that you deeply like, it doesn’t mean that you’ll never study it. I promise that one day it’ll come around. For instance, after finishing my BA, I took two journalism courses during lockdown and I found them fascinating! They were practical: I got the opportunity to conduct online interviews and I wrote articles that made me feel free and although newspaper articles have to be balanced, I wrote them in my tone, with my voice.

I also applied to two universities to do a Master’s degree as I love the process of learning and working. Yet, I applied for an MA in Politics even though I’m not even interested in that subject and an MA in business management. I got accepted for both programs but I declined the offers. Politics just isn’t my cup of tea and although I enjoy business, management wasn’t the right fit for me.

It took me some time to find what I’m genuinely interested in and even though today, I’m studying media and I’m enjoying most courses, I’m not 100% sure if that’s what I want to do all my life.

All this to say that no matter what path you take, the most important thing is that it pleases you and only you because you’ll be the one sitting in class and listening to the lectures. But don’t worry, it is never too late to change university or even career paths.
Most importantly, remember that whether you choose to study at university or not, this is not what will determine your success in life. If you’re keen to learn, motivated, and want to explore, then that’s what counts the most.

“Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think” – Albert Einstein

Good luck if you’re currently struggling to find a university program, I really hope this article has helped you in a way. I’m sure you’ll find something that will make your eyes sparkle with interest!