“What do you want to be when you grow up?” is not an unfamiliar question. Yet, most of us don’t have clear career goals, and that’s totally okay! However, our university decisions are often shaped by our career aspirations, and vice versa. This article is meant to simply highlight the career-related factors you should consider when choosing a university.
Are you interested in pursuing a career that requires a professional degree?
A professional degree is a degree that prepares you for a specific profession. These tend to be practice-oriented occupations where very specific knowledge and skills are required to perform the job. For example, a professional degree is required for pursuing a career in law, medicine, or accountancy. Interest in such careers will affect your:
Factor 1: Course of study
The knowledge and skills you acquire from a professional degree will be directly linked to what you do in your job, and are abilities everyone in the profession must master, even in entry-level positions.
*Note: If you are interested in such a profession, doing a general (non-professional) degree for your undergraduate education is possible, however that will mean that you will need to get a masters/doctoral qualificaiton in that profession.
For example, if you’re interested in a career in medicine, it is possible to get a degree in Neuroscience & Biology (pre-med track) at the undergraduate level, but to be a Doctor, you must then study medicine at the graduate/post-graduate level.
Factor 2: Where you study
Where you get your professional degree can have implications on where you can work. In some professions, the knowledge and skills needed for the job is localised, i.e. specific to a location, and more commonly, a country. This is to do with how institutions, regulations, and accreditation needed may vary from country to country. Typically, it is normally
*Note: In some cases, it is possible to get your professional degree in Country A and work in that profession in Country B. However, the qualifications you need to practice your occupation in Country B may be different from someone who obtained their degree from Country B.
For example, to practice law in Singapore, all candidates have to pass an examination called “The Bar”. Students who studied abroad need to complete both Part A and B of the exam, but local graduates only need to take Part B.
Factor 3: Which School You Eventually Choose
It is true that there are certain schools that are lauded as “good” schools (think Oxbridge, Ivy League, etc). However, there are other less well-known (cheaper!) schools that may offer courses that are either comparable, or even better than these generically “good” schools! As such, if you are interested in a specific professional degree, you should consider researching prospective universities based on how strong that specific course you want to study is at the school.
A professional degree isn’t for me. Now what?
If you’re not interested in pursuing a professional degree, that is completely valid. Law, medicine, accountancy, etc occupations requiring professional degrees are often considered “good professions” because they are associated with high salaries and social prestige. However, there are a whole host of other jobs which are equally well-paying and meaningful that do not require a professional degree.
Thus, your university degree may be directly or indirectly related to your future career. This makes your university options simultaneously more diverse and abundant, but also more confusing. As such, here are some ways to think about your degree in relation to your future career:
1. Think about careers/industries you’re interested in
… and reverse-engineer the decision-making process. Research which courses of study will allow you to work in these industries. A simple way of doing this is by Googling: “What degree is best for <insert career/industry here>”
2. Think about courses of study you’re interested in
… and find what jobs are available to people who study these courses. Think about the knowledge (both hard knowledge and ways of thinking) and skills taught in these courses, and try to map them to career paths.
A simple way of doing this is by Googling: “What can I do with a <insert course of study> degree?” or “Careers for <insert course> majors”
3. Think about skills and values that are important to you
It is not uncommon for people to develop their career in fields completely unrelated to their university degree. In fact, this is more of the norm than the exception! Your future degree/career can be thought of as means to an end; the end being to allow you to practice and develop skills and values important to you!
4. Speak to a mentor who has walked the path you are considering
After you have eliminated certain choices of degrees, you may be left with a few courses that you are perhaps more inclined towards. That’s where speaking to a mentor comes into play - hearing from someone who has actually gone to the school that you want to go to or taken the course you want to take can be extremely valuable to your decision-making. We recognise that it is not easy for some to find a suitable mentor in their social networks. That is why we created WahUni, to help bridge the gap in access to social capital (Sign up here and allow us to match you with a suitable senior).
Overall
There are many ways to think about your degree in relation to your career. You can think about your career first, and map it back to a degree. Or map your degree forward to a career. Or think about both not as learning and applying specific knowledge, but as embodiments of the more abstract skills and values that you find important. All these methods are valid, and regardless of what you eventually choose, remember that life is a journey: doors may open, some may close, and you may never know what obstacles and opportunities you may encounter along the way. So while you seek to develop a long term plan, don’t forget to stay present and remain open to short term spontaneity and change.
Up Next in the Starter Pack: Wah, Studying in Singapore
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