no idea for uni

I know i want to go to uni but i dont know what course i want to do. I know i want to go into something computer science related but then theres so many things out there, its so overwhelming and i dont know how to make a decision where everything has their pros and cons.
I'm going to the UCAS exhibition on Tuesday and see what happens but i just dont know how to rule out unis?
Should i focus on the campus and then the course if i cant decide? How do i decide, how did others decide? Did they find it easy or did they panic at the last minute. idk im just scared and the more i think and research about it, the more stressed i get rip

Theres so many things out there, i dont want to regret doing something or not doing something...

Reply 1

JustOneMoreThing

21

Open days will be key for you, you'll get a feel for the campus & the course which will make it a lot easier to decide.

If you're interested in computer science then go for that, the simple answer is often the right one. Also, have a look at the modules each uni offers along with their stats on student satsifaction and employment prospects, you'll find this at the bottom of every uni course page (it's a green box).

Original post by Anonymous

I know i want to go to uni but i dont know what course i want to do. I know i want to go into something computer science related but then theres so many things out there, its so overwhelming and i dont know how to make a decision where everything has their pros and cons.
I'm going to the UCAS exhibition on Tuesday and see what happens but i just dont know how to rule out unis?
Should i focus on the campus and then the course if i cant decide? How do i decide, how did others decide? Did they find it easy or did they panic at the last minute. idk im just scared and the more i think and research about it, the more stressed i get rip

Theres so many things out there, i dont want to regret doing something or not doing something...

Hey there!
When it came to picking my course, I chose to do an overall Media degree as I wasn't sure what I wanted to do yet but knew university was the right path for me. Looking back now, I wish I'd put more thought into it because I now know what career I want and there's just not enough of that specific thing in my degree so I'm having to find outside work experience alongside my studies. If I was going back now to the time I was picking my degree, here's what I would have done differently.

1 - Read over the course content
As I saw my degree as an overall Media course, I didn't fully look into the ins and outs of what the course would contain. Studying now, I find there's a lot of TV and film work in it, as opposed to the business and content creation side of it that I enjoy. If I was going back, I'd check the course content of every single one of my choices including core and elective modules as well as how I was going to be assessed. If you don't do well with exams then it may be better for you to find one that's assessed purely on coursework. When they say things are assessed on coursework, this might not mean a creative task. It could also mean writing an essay, it just depends on the module. For me, it was very important to have a course that offered a placement year because most employers in the creative industry these days are looking for experience and it's difficult to get when you're just studying. If that's important to you, that's also something you might want to put into consideration.

2 - Take time with the decision
All of my friends knew exactly what they wanted to do so I felt such a rush to catch up that I just made a rash decision without properly thinking it over. Don't let anyone else influence your decision because you will come to regret not just listening to yourself in the end. Take time and make use of what the universities are offering you. I found that the virtual open days that places were offering were not that great and I couldn't get the full picture of the place online. In the end, I went to visit the places in my own time so that I could get the feel of what it would be like living there. This really helped when choosing my firm and insurance because the courses were so similar, I just preferred the city of Sheffield more.

3 - Use online resources
Even The Student Room is a great place to read up about what other people's experiences are like at universities. Make use of the student reps that are on the site and ask them any questions you have about university life and what it's really like to study at that university. I believe there is also a website that ranks universities on success rates if that's important to you, although don't get caught up in grades and entry requirements because if the city is not for you then it's not for you and you'll be miserable. My sixth form college tried to drill the importance of going to a Russell Group uni to everyone and it just wasn't for me. I later found out they only do that so it looks better for them in their "success stories" book. It's all about reputation and not about the quality of teaching. My insurance choice ended up having higher entry requirements than my firm (Hallam) but I just preferred the uni and the city so much more so went for that.

4 - Take into account your home life as well
Are you someone who really gets on with your parents and would seriously miss them if you lived ages away? Would it be easy to get back home by trains on the weekends or would it be far too expensive and take a lot of time? For me I chose Sheffield because it's not super close to home so it makes living here worthwhile and it's two hours on the train but I only have to change once. Tickets aren't extortionate prices with a railcard and it always feels worth it to go home for the weekend. If you're living 6 hours away from uni by train and you have lectures on a Friday and Monday, meaning you can only go home Friday night for two days, it's a lot of money for a two day trip. Do you have a lot of friends at home that don't go to university? Will you miss being away from them? Also, it's important to take into account the moving in and moving out. If it's a six hour drive cross-country to get to your university, will your parents happily help you move in? Will there be a huge fuel cost to get you there? How will you bring all your things back after the Christmas holidays?

I hope this helped, please try not to stress and what's meant to be will be and you've just got to go out there and embrace the experience.
Lucy - Digital Student Ambassador SHU

Reply 3

millirose

1

Original post by Anonymous

I know i want to go to uni but i dont know what course i want to do. I know i want to go into something computer science related but then theres so many things out there, its so overwhelming and i dont know how to make a decision where everything has their pros and cons.
I'm going to the UCAS exhibition on Tuesday and see what happens but i just dont know how to rule out unis?
Should i focus on the campus and then the course if i cant decide? How do i decide, how did others decide? Did they find it easy or did they panic at the last minute. idk im just scared and the more i think and research about it, the more stressed i get rip

Theres so many things out there, i dont want to regret doing something or not doing something...

If you're really unsure then my best advice is not to rush into things, you don't lose anything from starting uni a year or more later - you could even earn some money in the meantime to fund your degree. If you're certain that you want to go now then make sure you attend the uni open days, they're a million times more useful than just reading about courses. Meet the staff - make sure you find them engaging, look into how your course is assessed, check that the modules they teach are of interest to you, get a feel of the campus and rooms you'll be learning in - after all you'll be spending a few years of your life there. If you're unsure about the exact course then there might even be staff at the uni who can put you on the right path/ give suggestions. Good luck :smile:

Reply 4

University of Huddersfield

Official Rep

16

Original post by Anonymous

I know i want to go to uni but i dont know what course i want to do. I know i want to go into something computer science related but then theres so many things out there, its so overwhelming and i dont know how to make a decision where everything has their pros and cons.
I'm going to the UCAS exhibition on Tuesday and see what happens but i just dont know how to rule out unis?
Should i focus on the campus and then the course if i cant decide? How do i decide, how did others decide? Did they find it easy or did they panic at the last minute. idk im just scared and the more i think and research about it, the more stressed i get rip

Theres so many things out there, i dont want to regret doing something or not doing something...

Anon,

It might be an idea to try and make a list of things which are important to you.

This will help you narrow down your options.

Here are a few questions to get you thinking and to help with your list.

Do you want to stay at home and commute to university or move to a new place?

If you want to stay at home, what universities are commutable and what are there computer science courses like?

If you want to move to a new place, do you want to move to a city or a town? How far are you prepared to go to university?

What computer languages are you good at or want to develop skills in? What would be your ideal computer science role? What would it be useful to learn?

Do you have any sports or hobbies that you want to continue to pursue at university? Is there a new hobby that you want to try at university?

Hope that helps.

All the best,

Oluwatosin – 2nd year student – University of Huddersfield

Reply 5

DarylO

18

I was stuck for a long time too, couldn't decide which field of engineering I wanted to go into. Two things helped: Going through the university modules of a possible list of courses I could like. It might not tell you much since you haven't even started studying those modules but a lot of times, people have wrong assumptions of the content of a course. Seeing the modules helps clear that up.

The second thing I did was to make a list of the possible careers you could go into through a chosen degree. Then, I watched a lot of 'Day in the life of...' videos. A lot of them will tell you the pros and cons of the career, how much they make, etc. In the comments, you'll be able to read the experiences of those working in the field. There are also 'Day in the life of...' videos for those studying a course. You can look at such videos too.

Reply 6

Coventry University Student Ambassadors

Official Rep

16

Original post by Anonymous

I know i want to go to uni but i dont know what course i want to do. I know i want to go into something computer science related but then theres so many things out there, its so overwhelming and i dont know how to make a decision where everything has their pros and cons.
I'm going to the UCAS exhibition on Tuesday and see what happens but i just dont know how to rule out unis?
Should i focus on the campus and then the course if i cant decide? How do i decide, how did others decide? Did they find it easy or did they panic at the last minute. idk im just scared and the more i think and research about it, the more stressed i get rip

Theres so many things out there, i dont want to regret doing something or not doing something...

Hi there,
Deciding what course to do can be scary as there are so many choices. I found that actually doing to the uni for a day or the city was a great way to understand where I felt most comfortable. If you start and you really do feel that you have made the wrong choice then there are ways for you to change course and university. If you are concerned it might also be worth attending open days and speaking with the course lecturer if that's an option.

I hope this helps,

Eleanor F

Student Ambassador

Reply 7

University of Sunderland Student Ambassador

Official Rep

11

Original post by Anonymous

I know i want to go to uni but i dont know what course i want to do. I know i want to go into something computer science related but then theres so many things out there, its so overwhelming and i dont know how to make a decision where everything has their pros and cons.
I'm going to the UCAS exhibition on Tuesday and see what happens but i just dont know how to rule out unis?
Should i focus on the campus and then the course if i cant decide? How do i decide, how did others decide? Did they find it easy or did they panic at the last minute. idk im just scared and the more i think and research about it, the more stressed i get rip

Theres so many things out there, i dont want to regret doing something or not doing something...

Hi there,

I think the best way to rule out universities is by going to open days! You will probably find that you are drawn more to a particular campus or a particular course which has modules on it that you find really interesting. I personally decided based on which campus felt right to me, I felt so at home and welcomed on the open day for Sunderland and I decided then and there that this was the uni for me.

It might also be helpful to ask for the advice of any parents/guardians you have or teachers at school/college. It is really helpful to get a different opinion and it can help you see different sides of the pros and cons.
While it is ultimately a decision that has to be made by you for you, you can definitely seek advice and help.

I really hope this helps,

Ellen
Y3 Medical Student
Uni Of Sunderland
Digital Ambassador

Reply 8

Kiddo276

8

Original post by Anonymous

I know i want to go to uni but i dont know what course i want to do. I know i want to go into something computer science related but then theres so many things out there, its so overwhelming and i dont know how to make a decision where everything has their pros and cons.
I'm going to the UCAS exhibition on Tuesday and see what happens but i just dont know how to rule out unis?
Should i focus on the campus and then the course if i cant decide? How do i decide, how did others decide? Did they find it easy or did they panic at the last minute. idk im just scared and the more i think and research about it, the more stressed i get rip

Theres so many things out there, i dont want to regret doing something or not doing something...

I was very much similar. I chose to do physics at a Russel group, but the dropped out because not only did I lose interest, I didn't want to work harder.

I honestly don't think it's not a bad idea to skip uni till you've researched enough what you want out of a career. Unless there is definitely a subject which you really really really see yourself doing because you're doing good at it and also because it comes naturally to you.

(edited 1 year ago)

Reply 9

Lancaster Student Ambassador

Official Rep

15

Original post by Anonymous

I know i want to go to uni but i dont know what course i want to do. I know i want to go into something computer science related but then theres so many things out there, its so overwhelming and i dont know how to make a decision where everything has their pros and cons.
I'm going to the UCAS exhibition on Tuesday and see what happens but i just dont know how to rule out unis?
Should i focus on the campus and then the course if i cant decide? How do i decide, how did others decide? Did they find it easy or did they panic at the last minute. idk im just scared and the more i think and research about it, the more stressed i get rip

Theres so many things out there, i dont want to regret doing something or not doing something...

Hey, anon! For Computer Science specifically, if you're having trouble deciding which sub-discipline of CS you're interested in, it might be worth testing the waters with a general CS degree. I'm not sure if this is the same for other universities but Lancaster has this thing amongst the majority of their Computing courses where their first year curriculums are identical and they allow you to switch between their courses before second year. So if you apply and start off with Computer Science, find out later that you want to switch to Software Engineering, that's definitely possible in your first year. I'm a final year CS student here at Lancaster and I've really enjoyed my time here :smile:

I'd definitely recommend it. Our Computing department has just done a bit of a revamp of the modules so there are more optional modules available now! You can find out more on the Computer Science course page here.

As for choosing which university you want to go to, this decision is probably going to be a lot harder! This largely depends on your priorities in a uni. For example, would you prefer campus vs. city unis, do you want to regularly commute to uni or stay in dorms/stay there for term time, league tables, etc. For the most part, you're going to university to study so you should ideally feel excited and motivated by a university's curriculum for the degree you want to do. Check the course pages of some universities where you qualify for the entry requirements with your current/predicted grades and go from there. Are there optional modules for you to choose from? Do you like the module topics they offer? How are they assessed? Would you prefer more coursework-based or exam-based assessments?

Next, open days are super helpful as you'll be seeing things in person. If travelling and visiting the university isn't an option for you, many unis may offer online open days. There is also the option to talk to current students in the degree you want to get into via a platform called Unibuddy (or even here on TSR!) but this depends on the university. Lastly, there are some great resources online that may help with your decision, things like YouTube, the videos the university posts, articles etc. Just keep in mind that every university has limitations and there may not always be good things mentioned about a university but, depending on the issue, these can differ from person to person and the university experience is all about what you make of it when you get to uni.

I hope this helps, anon. All the best for your endeavours and try not to stress too much! While it may be an important decision, there's always time. And if you still can't decide on things, a year out could be beneficial!

- Sophia (Student Ambassador)

Reply 10

Hannahleyla

6

I know that it snot what you want to hear, but if your really that unsure, then dont go, I made the mistake of choosing a course I wasn't sure about, and I regret it so badly. please dont go to uni unless its something you are super passionate about x

Original post by Anonymous

I know i want to go to uni but i dont know what course i want to do. I know i want to go into something computer science related but then theres so many things out there, its so overwhelming and i dont know how to make a decision where everything has their pros and cons.
I'm going to the UCAS exhibition on Tuesday and see what happens but i just dont know how to rule out unis?
Should i focus on the campus and then the course if i cant decide? How do i decide, how did others decide? Did they find it easy or did they panic at the last minute. idk im just scared and the more i think and research about it, the more stressed i get rip

Theres so many things out there, i dont want to regret doing something or not doing something...

no idea for uni

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