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Unsure of what career path I want to go down

I'm 16 years old, achieved passes in all my GCSE subjects but I have no passions and am mediocre at everything. I'm currently studying English literature, fine art and health and social care A levels.

English and health and social were not my first choices for subjects as I wanted to do psychology and biology instead but unfortunately the classes were full. Im currently very behind in all 3 subjects and will most likely fail as I have 0 motivation as I do not enjoy them.

I would love to do a practical job involving art however there are no opportunities for these type of jobs near me. I just want a job that earns enough money for me to live that I enjoy. I feel I am going to be stuck with a job I do not like for the rest of my life and that will not help to add on to my already severe mental health problems. Someone please help I am so unsure of what to do now?

(edited 3 months ago)

Reply 1

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by gcerys

Well picking subjects that you don't want doesn't help. Just out of interest, if you wanted an arty job, why did you pick art?

If you wanted to do something related to psychology and biology, biiology would be a highly recommended subject. Psychology degrees generally don't require specific subjects, so doing it at A Level isn't a strict requirement. The unis that are picky about subjects for their psychology degrees tend to ask for either psychology or biology, so you'll be safe with biology.
If BTEC Applied Science is available to you, then it's the next best thing if you can't get onto Biology A Level. However, this would limit the sort of unis that you can apply to for certain life science degrees, since a number of them would ask for Biology A Level.
The next alternative to BTEC would be Access to Science (or a related subject) with at least 15 credits in Biology. If you complete your A Levels, you would likely require to pay for this yourself. Costs can range from £1000 (online) to £3500 (offline), but there is Advanced Learner's Loan if you apply to an approved offline college. It's also said that you can get it for free at an offline college if you go to uni immediately after the course, but I don't know the specific terms and conditions for that.

If you need Biology A Level no matter what, then consider doing it as a private candidate, although it would cost a bit if you decide to do the practicals along with it. Exams cost £250-350 for exam centres outside of London + roughly £1000 practical (optional depending on your exam board) + £400-900 course fee (if applicable; if not, the textbooks cost £50-ish).

Define "practical job". Do you mean it's something that involves you painting or working on a computer producing art pieces? Will you not be happy being a curator or teaching/lecturing art?
No, art jobs tend to be scarce and you're more likely going to find them in larger cities e.g. London.

There are various creative jobs, but they are competitive. Most of these won't require a degree. Those that strictly do would include architecture and teaching/lecturing art. Otherwise, you just need a fancy portfolio to show to employers and clients. Apprenticeships are recommended if you want to get a foot in the door, but the hours can be long (don't expect a 9-5, especially when you have pressing deadlines).

If you want the full breadth of creative careers possible, see:
https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/job-categories/creative-and-media
https://www.careerpilot.org.uk/job-sectors/arts-crafts/job-profiles
https://www.careerpilot.org.uk/job-sectors/design/job-profiles
https://www.careerpilot.org.uk/job-sectors/fashion-textiles/job-profiles
https://www.prospects.ac.uk/job-profiles/browse-sector/creative-arts-and-design
https://discovercreative.careers/explore/#/
https://creativeaccess.org.uk/about-us

Until I have the specifics, it's a little difficult to give you further information.