The Student Room Group

Hating my degree, advice needed

Hi everyone, some advice is much needed

I’m a first year history student at a top uni and I have my exams in under 3 weeks, I have zero motivation and cannot force myself to revise.

This has made me realise how I don’t enjoy history and perhaps I’m on the wrong degree, the readings don’t interest me and I’ve lost all drive and motivation that I had at a level.

I’m not doing very well with essays either, been getting 60-63 (low 2:1) and feel like I’m not going to pass exams at this point. I feel so stupid compared to everyone else who just seems to “get it”

I don’t think switching degrees will help because I’m not passionate about anything, neither do I want to drop out because I have no idea what I want to do. I’ve always been told that uni is the only option by my family and school as I’ve always been a high achiever (i got A*A*A* at a level) I seriously regret not considering a gap year or other options

I feel so lost right and don’t know what to do, it’s making me very unhappy. Perhaps it’s just the exams that are causing this and I should just push through for 2 more years, but i don’t know if next year will get any better.

What can I do? Any advice is much appreciated

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1
I'm guessing you are a school leaver?

If so you have plenty of time to figure out what to do. Finish this year as best as you can and speak to your personal tutor about options. If your grades are as good as that then you may be able to transfer to something else that takes your fancy - or at least leads to options for a career.

If you really can't think of anything worth studying currently then take that gap year - but be sure to make the most of it. Don't sit in your pants playing video games.
Reply 2
Yeahh I’m a school leaver, did A levels last year and is coming to the end of my first year of uni

I think you’re right, will try and finish my exams as best as I can. My problem is that I don’t know what I want to do, perhaps a gap year will help. It just seems like a waste dropping out or transferring considering that I’ve already done 1/3 of my degree
Reply 3
Significantly less of a waste of doing 2 more years massively unhappy and coming to the same conclusion!
Taking a year to figure out what you want to do in my opinion is significantly better than grinding through because in the grand scheme of things two years is nothing. The key is to have a plan though, figure out your interests and a pathway to you studying them and leading to a career you enjoy at the end of it.
Touching base with your personal tutor sooner rather than late would be my first step, you might find they have some good advice or ideas, plus you will want a good reference for the future.

As an opposing view - if you have a career in mind that requires a History degree, then grizzing it for 2 more years isn't the worst idea. Post grad is an option, as are certain grad schemes that I am sure are available (without personally knowing the options available to a History grad).
Original post by _HS
I think you’re right, will try and finish my exams as best as I can. My problem is that I don’t know what I want to do, perhaps a gap year will help. It just seems like a waste dropping out or transferring considering that I’ve already done 1/3 of my degree
Reply 4
Thank you so much!!! I will definitely talk to my personal tutor. I thought university will help me figure out my interests and help me decide on a career path but so far it hasn’t...
Have you got any ideas at all what course you would study instead? What were your other A level subjects?
Original post by _HS
Hi everyone, some advice is much needed

I’m a first year history student at a top uni and I have my exams in under 3 weeks, I have zero motivation and cannot force myself to revise.

This has made me realise how I don’t enjoy history and perhaps I’m on the wrong degree, the readings don’t interest me and I’ve lost all drive and motivation that I had at a level.

I’m not doing very well with essays either, been getting 60-63 (low 2:1) and feel like I’m not going to pass exams at this point. I feel so stupid compared to everyone else who just seems to “get it”

I don’t think switching degrees will help because I’m not passionate about anything, neither do I want to drop out because I have no idea what I want to do. I’ve always been told that uni is the only option by my family and school as I’ve always been a high achiever (i got A*A*A* at a level) I seriously regret not considering a gap year or other options

I feel so lost right and don’t know what to do, it’s making me very unhappy. Perhaps it’s just the exams that are causing this and I should just push through for 2 more years, but i don’t know if next year will get any better.

What can I do? Any advice is much appreciated
Reply 6
I did English history and economics for a level, i have no idea what course I would want to study instead... I feel like I’m not passionate about anything, so no matter what I study I will end up feeling how i feel now
Reply 7
It's not an easy thing to do. I have flitted around different jobs for 11 years since I dropped out of my Mechanical Eng in 1st year. I start a Computer Science degree in September and for the first time in a while I am stress free!
Original post by _HS
Thank you so much!!! I will definitely talk to my personal tutor. I thought university will help me figure out my interests and help me decide on a career path but so far it hasn’t...
Well, degree in history is worthless, and doing a worthless degree you do not enjoy is probably the worst thing you can be doing. Apart of teaching Hitory there is no path where degree in History is a requirement. In the age of edx, coursera and YouTube, degree in History is just weird hobby and your faculty is essentially a daycare centre.
Original post by _HS
I did English history and economics for a level, i have no idea what course I would want to study instead... I feel like I’m not passionate about anything, so no matter what I study I will end up feeling how i feel now


I'm in your same situation except that I'm in the final stage of my bachelor degree. I don't know if I have chosen wisely my course three years ago and right now I feel unmotivated and I don't know what to do in my life
(edited 4 years ago)
Reply 10
Original post by CommanderKeen
Well, degree in history is worthless, and doing a worthless degree you do not enjoy is probably the worst thing you can be doing. Apart of teaching Hitory there is no path where degree in History is a requirement. In the age of edx, coursera and YouTube, degree in History is just weird hobby and your faculty is essentially a daycare centre.


Emmm not completely untrue
Original post by CommanderKeen
Well, degree in history is worthless, and doing a worthless degree you do not enjoy is probably the worst thing you can be doing. Apart of teaching Hitory there is no path where degree in History is a requirement. In the age of edx, coursera and YouTube, degree in History is just weird hobby and your faculty is essentially a daycare centre.


What are the worth and worthless degree for you? Just asking :smile:
Original post by _HS
Hi everyone, some advice is much needed

I’m a first year history student at a top uni and I have my exams in under 3 weeks, I have zero motivation and cannot force myself to revise.

This has made me realise how I don’t enjoy history and perhaps I’m on the wrong degree, the readings don’t interest me and I’ve lost all drive and motivation that I had at a level.

I’m not doing very well with essays either, been getting 60-63 (low 2:1) and feel like I’m not going to pass exams at this point. I feel so stupid compared to everyone else who just seems to “get it”

I don’t think switching degrees will help because I’m not passionate about anything, neither do I want to drop out because I have no idea what I want to do. I’ve always been told that uni is the only option by my family and school as I’ve always been a high achiever (i got A*A*A* at a level) I seriously regret not considering a gap year or other options

I feel so lost right and don’t know what to do, it’s making me very unhappy. Perhaps it’s just the exams that are causing this and I should just push through for 2 more years, but i don’t know if next year will get any better.

What can I do? Any advice is much appreciated


Maybe a gap year?
Assuming that you do not intend to go to an academical/primary research or to teach, then there is no point in studying a subject that will not increase your value on the market. Having a degree for the sake of having a degree is not a good strategy. Arts & humanities are hobbies, good ones, but still hobbies. Times when Universities had the monopoly on education in Arts and Humanities are long gone, therefore there is no point in wasting time and money by attempting a BA in History.
Pushing pressure on kids and making them think that they "need" to have a degree to succeed in life in completely misguided idea. Majority of kids aren't clever enough to study STEM or similar so they end up in Arts & Humanities because everyone who speaks some English can get a degree.

So if the kid that started this thread went with a higher apprenticeship of tried to get level 6/7 CIPS he would be way better off. But he thinks that he needs a degree, any degree. He has no specific interested in any academical area, he just feels like he simply needs a degree.
Try to put up with it for at least the first year. You will have plenty of time to reconsider in the summer and evaluate the situation.
Reply 15
Think about it this way. Would you rather have a 18/27k student debt (don't know if history is 2 or 3 years) for something you don't enjoy and will never take advantage of, or have just 9k of debt after your first year that didn't contribute to anything but with a different degree (or alternative) that you enjoy.
My daughter was in a similar position but she stayed on into second year before telling us she didn’t want to continue- an expensive mistake cause you are allowed 4 years funding but I’d like her you use two years then to start another degree you would need to find fees for first year before they give you final 2yrs of funding. So decide now if it’s not for u so you have 3yr funding for next course if u move.
I'm in a similar situation with not knowing what I want to do completely but I've applied to medicine looooool. A history degree is pointless unless you enjoy studying it- that's the only reason anyone should ever go into history. Other degrees, even if you don't enjoy studying them, at least they are of more worth. Probs take a gap year and have a think, it will be ok. I'm on my gap year now but am still not sure so you might not come out with all the answers but at least you will have had a break and may go back feeling more motivated and have a slightly better plan.
Original post by _HS
Hi everyone, some advice is much needed

I’m a first year history student at a top uni and I have my exams in under 3 weeks, I have zero motivation and cannot force myself to revise.

This has made me realise how I don’t enjoy history and perhaps I’m on the wrong degree, the readings don’t interest me and I’ve lost all drive and motivation that I had at a level.

I’m not doing very well with essays either, been getting 60-63 (low 2:1) and feel like I’m not going to pass exams at this point. I feel so stupid compared to everyone else who just seems to “get it”

I don’t think switching degrees will help because I’m not passionate about anything, neither do I want to drop out because I have no idea what I want to do. I’ve always been told that uni is the only option by my family and school as I’ve always been a high achiever (i got A*A*A* at a level) I seriously regret not considering a gap year or other options

I feel so lost right and don’t know what to do, it’s making me very unhappy. Perhaps it’s just the exams that are causing this and I should just push through for 2 more years, but i don’t know if next year will get any better.

What can I do? Any advice is much appreciated
Original post by _HS
Hi everyone, some advice is much needed

I’m a first year history student at a top uni and I have my exams in under 3 weeks, I have zero motivation and cannot force myself to revise.

This has made me realise how I don’t enjoy history and perhaps I’m on the wrong degree, the readings don’t interest me and I’ve lost all drive and motivation that I had at a level.

I’m not doing very well with essays either, been getting 60-63 (low 2:1) and feel like I’m not going to pass exams at this point. I feel so stupid compared to everyone else who just seems to “get it”

I don’t think switching degrees will help because I’m not passionate about anything, neither do I want to drop out because I have no idea what I want to do. I’ve always been told that uni is the only option by my family and school as I’ve always been a high achiever (i got A*A*A* at a level) I seriously regret not considering a gap year or other options

I feel so lost right and don’t know what to do, it’s making me very unhappy. Perhaps it’s just the exams that are causing this and I should just push through for 2 more years, but i don’t know if next year will get any better.

What can I do? Any advice is much appreciated


You mention that you have been told "uni is the only option" - this is a common misconception. Whilst it can work for some, university is not a guaranteed route for success. It doesn't suit everyone and their career path. I feel a lot of schools push university as the only option, when there are other paths such as apprenticeships or going into employment and working your way up available.

The problem arises is when students rush into going into university and just select a subject without doing research into its career options, the course and whether university is actually right for them. If you aren't 100% interested in history, chances are you will lose the motivation to do well (as you have done). You may have benefitted from taking some time out, like a gap year, to consider your interests and the right path for you.

I don't think you should stay on at university if you feel it is definitely the wrong thing for you. I would take some time out rather than rushing into reapplying for another degree. You could go into employment or do some volunteering to discover what your career interests are. If you decide that you want to go back into study, the option is always there in the future (you would still be eligible for student loans).
Definitely keep in mind your student loan entitlement, you get one year on top of your course length as grace so if you carry on into second year then drop out and decide to pursue a different degree in the future once you know what you want to do with your career, you would need to fund the first year yourself.

If you know it isn't for you then I would advise to do your best at exams to complete this year and make it worth something before leaving and knowing you can still go to uni in the future without having to find over £9K out of pocket.

Quick Reply