Interview: One Student's Journey from the HSC to Enrolment at the University of Sydney

What were your experiences in year 12- how did you make your decision?

During year 12 I was at the stage where I knew I wanted to go to uni and continue studying, but wasn’t sure what I wanted to do in the future. I liked both commerce and science and had done those subjects for the HSC. I didn’t really have a specific type of profession in mind, so I placed bachelor of science (adv) and commerce at Sydney Uni, along with B Science, B commerce as one of my top preferences.

Unfortunately during high school I didn’t really seek much career advice. I knew that commerce could lead to an accountancy job and I wasn’t sure what science would offer me- perhaps a researcher or maybe a health professional in the medical field ? The attraction of the combined degree was that it offered variety. I didn’t want to get bogged down with too much commerce or science and I also had the option of completing one degree first, in case one particular degree was not right for me.

Did you ask anyone for advice ? Where did you obtain your information from? Did you go to courses and careers day?

I obtained most of my information about courses from booklets and paraphernalia collected from all different unis, but I found that asking friends and family for advice was probably the most helpful in deciding what I wanted to do in life. I was told: no matter which degree I chose, it was the skills and experiences I would develop that would help me land that dream job (what ever that may be). So doing a course that I liked, that I was interested in and yet still offered career prospects were important considerations. The way I saw it was, why spend 5 years of your life doing something you didn’t enjoy?

Admittedly, I was a bit clueless about uni to begin with. Studying at uni is very different from high school, at that stage I don’t think I really knew what a major or minor was or what credit points were. So asking friends and family about how uni works (and understanding some of the terminology that they use) also helped.

I went to the courses and careers day in August, to see whether the type of degrees I had in mind were right for me. I found that going to and listening to the presentations about each course/ degree was definitely helpful as it gave me an idea of what they were about, and what they didn’t offer. It was also useful to listen to the Q&A session as other people had questions that I hadn’t even thought about. I also went to the faculty information booths, and asked some of my own questions, as some of the lecturers who take the course themselves were there to answer some of the questions.

What other factors did you consider?

Not all degrees at different unis are the same, and it was important for me to ask about and also consider things like duration of degree, the subjects offered, flexibility of choice and also whether I had the option of transferring if I didn’t like the course.

There were also other factors like transport/travel time and the appeal of social/ extra curricular activities which made Sydney Uni more attractive to me. I thought, while I might not completely enjoy my course/ subjects, at least I would enjoy the uni life.

What did you do when you received your results?

The HSC waiting game is always frustrating. Once I received my results, I thought that it was high enough to get into the B Science (adv)/commerce course based on last year’s UAI. As we know, the UAI can change every year, so I still had to think about my backup plan (which should be a consideration, no matter how confident you are). So I thought more about what I wanted to do with my life: what other options did I have, and were there other ways to get into the course that I wanted?

Did you change anything after you received your results?

I didn’t actually change my preferences after I obtained my results, however I was also concerned about choosing which uni I would call home for the next 5 years. I went to the information day in January, just before we had to put in our last preferences to clear up some last minute questions. I think the main attraction with Sydney was the chance to study a wide range of subjects, I knew that Sydney offered the TSP program and thought it would be interesting to take part in it. I also thought that Sydney Uni’s huge clubs and societies programme would be fun to get involved in.

Is there anything you learnt from your or your friend’s experiences?

Although I was lucky enough to get into the course of my choice, some of my friends weren’t so lucky. At uni, there are always other options. Having missed out on getting an offer into his first choice of B Medical Science, my friend was offered a spot in B Science. He realised there was an opportunity to transfer to B Med Sci in second year, and asked staff from the faculty for advice (what kind of marks were required, what were the chances of getting in etc). He worked quite hard to keep up his marks, and was able to transfer to B Medical Science the next year.

I also have friends who did get into their preferred course, but changed their degree or direction along the way, having realised that perhaps the degree wasn’t suitable for them. My friend started doing B science (adv maths) and changed to B Science/ B Education. As changing degrees can be complicated, it is good to plan ahead and also make sure you have chosen the right subjects to satisfy the degree requirements.

Is there anything you wished you had done?

I think the most important thing is to really think about what you want to do in the future. Work out what your strengths and weaknesses are, and find a course that will promote your strengths (subjectwise/ interests/ skills) and if possible build on your weaknesses. It is hard to know what exactly you want to do, but if you have an idea, it really does help you plan ahead. Planning the majors you want to do before you start your degree is really important, figure out what is required of you to actually complete your degree and read the relevant information in the faculty handbook- because it will save you time and stress in the future. It all sounds quite daunting at the moment, but you can always ask a staff member from the faculty for advice.