The task of getting a course that fits you might be enormous when you have no counselor to put you through while in secondary or high school. This might be due to some factors you need to consider when choosing a course to study at the university.
For instance, in Nigeria, after a student has completed his JS3, he is expected to proceed to a science, art, or commercial class. At this point, you will know whether you are to study a science course, art course, commercial course, etc. A student who is not well informed might miss the opportunity to get it right at this point in his life.
Someone once said that the course you study can determine your earning power. For this reason, I have decided to write on this topic as a way to help students who have no certified counselor in school who can put them through.
Information on the available Courses
The first thing to do is to know how many programs are available in the area you want to focus on. It will be difficult for you to choose wisely if you don’t know the available courses you can study at university. For example, if you want to study a medical-related course, it is expected that you should be thinking of medical laboratory science, medicine and surgery, dentistry, physiology, nursing, pharmacy, etc. You must know the available programs at your desired universities.
Be Passionate
Oprah Winfrey said, “Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.” Steve Jobs also alluded to the importance of passion when choosing a career path, saying, “The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” Passion is the inner guide that navigates you to your place of best fit in life.
Next, look at the course that resonates or interests you out of the available programs in that area. For instance, a student who has been presented with medical-related courses might like studying Nursing science at the university. I have a student, Peace Bello, who loves chemistry and mathematics. It was these two courses that informed his decision to study chemical engineering. Because of his love for this course, he put in his best to graduate as the best graduating student in the department. The truth is that if you love what you do, you will want to put in your best.
Proficiency in the Subject Area
A student must know that before studying a course he must be proficient in some subject areas. For example, if you want to study engineering, you must be proficient in Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry. A Student who is not sound or isn’t ready to learn these three subjects (Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry) shouldn’t bother going for any engineering course at the university. The above point is important because to gain admission into any university, you must have satisfied all the requirements of the school, which include having credit passes in all relevant subjects.
Prospect of the Course
You need to be informed of the prospects of the subject you choose before pursuing a degree in it. A researcher carried out a survey and he concluded that the subject you choose at university can advance or limit your career path and can determine your earning power.
It is pertinent to let you know that the prospect of a course can be determined by geographical location. For instance, some courses have no prospects in Nigeria but have it in the UK or US. So, you need to find out courses with good prospects in your location. I would like you to ask yourself, “What is the essence of studying a course that has no real value to offer your immediate environment?” The prospect of a course is in the value it offers to people and the environment.
Employability Rate
One reason the unemployment rate is high is that some graduates study certain courses that have a low employment rate. A course with a high employability rate is a course with high relevance in society. According to the Stutern team (Jobberman, PushCV, Co-creation Hub, and BudgIT), in Nigeria, graduates of computer science, medicine, engineering, economics, accountancy, and law have a high employability rate. This research was carried out in 2016, and I think those courses still top the chart now. As I said earlier, the value and relevancy of the course must be a factor to consider when making your choice.
