what do i do at uni? 😭

Hi, i have no clue what i want to do for uni but i need to decide! I want to go into a practical career in which i would be doing something for the world, and i am particularly interested in the environment and animals.
I’m currently saving to go volunteering abroad with animals in thailand as it’s one of my interests, specifically with turtles, but i wouldn’t be interested in marine biology.
The alevels i’m taking are biology, chemistry and DT, so if anyone has any interesting courses they recommend that would be great!
(note i’m not a geography girl, i didn’t do it at gcse either, science is what i enjoy)

Reply 1

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Why aren't you interested in marine biology? Is it the biology aspect specifically?

If you're interested in ocean science more broadly, maybe consider a course in oceanography - while the name of the course sounds like geography, it's fully a science degree focusing on the marine environment, from physical, chemical, and biological perspectives, and very much in the context of human activity and the environment over the long run, etc. As well as traditional labwork, it also involves more practical fieldwork - especially boatwork (i.e. on scientific research vessels) :smile:

There's a few such courses around, arguably Southampton is one of the better known ones as their course is also based at the UK National Oceanography Centre (also where their marine biology and geology/geophysics courses are based, so you may be able to take some optional modules in either of those areas).

Reply 2

posie rosie

OP

5

Original post by artful_lounger

Why aren't you interested in marine biology? Is it the biology aspect specifically?
If you're interested in ocean science more broadly, maybe consider a course in oceanography - while the name of the course sounds like geography, it's fully a science degree focusing on the marine environment, from physical, chemical, and biological perspectives, and very much in the context of human activity and the environment over the long run, etc. As well as traditional labwork, it also involves more practical fieldwork - especially boatwork (i.e. on scientific research vessels) :smile:

There's a few such courses around, arguably Southampton is one of the better known ones as their course is also based at the UK National Oceanography Centre (also where their marine biology and geology/geophysics courses are based, so you may be able to take some optional modules in either of those areas).

my cousin did it and sadly got no where so my family isn’t keen on me doing it 😅
I’m also not keen on doing something very niche, although all my interests point towards that sadly haha.

I’m doing Dofe gold at the moment and am doing a residential in conservation, EPQ in carbon capture technology usage towards net zero, and hopefully completing CREST award in designing a nest box suitable for dormice. Problem is i find all these things which are a quite a bit different very interesting so a wide ranged course possibly would suit me better i think.

Reply 3

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by posie rosie

my cousin did it and sadly got no where so my family isn’t keen on me doing it 😅
I’m also not keen on doing something very niche, although all my interests point towards that sadly haha.

I’m doing Dofe gold at the moment and am doing a residential in conservation, EPQ in carbon capture technology usage towards net zero, and hopefully completing CREST award in designing a nest box suitable for dormice. Problem is i find all these things which are a quite a bit different very interesting so a wide ranged course possibly would suit me better i think.

Well of the two people I know who did oceanography (at Southampton incidentally), one went on to do a PhD and continues to work in academia I believe, and the other became an oceanographer for some marine surveying company. They seem to have done well enough for themselves. You also could go into e.g. various civil service schemes (scientific/technical or non-technical), both relating to those areas you've mentioned (such as within Defra) or elsewhere (most civil service departments are engaging with net zero matters from various ways for example).

It's worth bearing in mind though that the majority of graduates don't go into jobs related to their degree, and most graduate schemes don't have any requirements in terms of degree subject. While I understand (having been there myself) that it feels like your degree subject will define your career and life, the reality is that it won't. If your cousin got nowhere with their degree, more likely than not that was due to your cousin not making the most of things to aggressively pursue internships and placements and make themselves employable.

The days where getting a piece of paper saying "bachelors of X" and being guaranteed a job have been long since past for 25+ years now. You need to actually do something to make yourself employable, and employers care more about that "something" than whatever your degree certificate says. The degree is a tick box for employers - do you have a degree of 2:1 or above yes or no? Once they tick that it's not really a factor anymore.

So I'd strongly suggest pursuing a degree you actually find intellectually stimulating and enjoyable - because realistically, you're going to be doing the same kind of work in most cases at the end of the degree anyway. And if you want to do something more specifically technical or involving lab/fieldwork you need to do a more specific degree for that purpose anyway.

Reply 4

LJMUStudentReps

Official Rep

12

Hi there!

Finding courses is always quite tricky so the first step is knowing what you like, which it's great that you know what kind of subject you'd like to do!
At LJMU, we offer quite a few animal based degrees, so I'll list them all below with links and some key info:

BSc Animal Behaviour

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Studying the behaviour of wild and captive animals

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Options with fieldtrips and residential fieldwork (both in UK and abroad)

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Opportunity to complete placements with organisations such as zoos, wildlife parks, NGOs, rescue centres

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Offered membership with the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour (ASAB)

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Entry requirements: BCC-BBC

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Modules include: Animal Behaviour, Physiology, Evolution and Inheritance, Practical Skills, Brain, Hormones and Behaviour, Animal Communication, Monitoring, Animals in Motion, Current Topics in Animal Behaviour, Animal Welfare, Zoo Conservation and Genebanks, Primatology, Social Systems

BSc (Hons) Animal Behaviour | Undergraduate course | Liverpool John Moores University

BSc Wildlife Conservation

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Accredited by the Institution of Environmental Sciences

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Many fieldtrips and residential to observe wildlife in their natural habitats, with an optional international trip in year 3

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Opportunity for a 4-6 week or 12 month placement in conservation centres or zoo settings

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Academic team has links with local, national and international conservation agencies

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Entry requirements: BCC-BBC

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Modules include: Animal Behaviour, Ecology, Skills for Wildlife Conservation, Marine and Freshwater Biology, Animal Health and Disease, Environmental Pollution, Conservation Practice, Applied Marine Biology, Contemporary Issues in Conservation, Sustainable Natural Heritage

BSc (Hons) Wildlife Conservation | Undergraduate course | Liverpool John Moores University

BSc Zoology

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Accredited by the Royal Society of Biology

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Option for residential fieldwork both in UK and abroad

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Easy access to local zoos and diverse habitat sites

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Study both living and extinct animals

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Entry requirements: BCC-BBC

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Modules include: Practical Skills for Zoology, Genetics and Evolutions, Ecology, Animal Physiology, Animal Evolution and Diversity, Comparative Animal Physiology, Genes and Genomes, Developmental Biology, Marine and Freshwater Biology, Animal Health and Disease, Current Topics in Zoology, Animal Learning and Cognition, Parasitology, Animal Welfare

BSc (Hons) Zoology | Undergraduate course | Liverpool John Moores University

It is worth noting that these course SHARE a lot of modules, so look at the ones that are specific to that course and decide which of those would interest you the most!

Hope this helps!
Jorja (LJMU Student Rep)

Reply 5

YSJstudents

Official Rep

15

Original post by posie rosie

Hi, i have no clue what i want to do for uni but i need to decide! I want to go into a practical career in which i would be doing something for the world, and i am particularly interested in the environment and animals.
I’m currently saving to go volunteering abroad with animals in thailand as it’s one of my interests, specifically with turtles, but i wouldn’t be interested in marine biology.
The alevels i’m taking are biology, chemistry and DT, so if anyone has any interesting courses they recommend that would be great!
(note i’m not a geography girl, i didn’t do it at gcse either, science is what i enjoy)

Hi @posie rosie ,

So first things first, university is definitely not everything. Don't worry if you find yourself at the end of A levels, and you want to take a gap year because you still want to figure out what you want to do. Furthermore, you may find degree apprenticeships related to animal care might be a good one to consider, considering you have already done a lot of practical work. Or even just heading straight into a job.

There are a lot of courses in animal care, animal management and way way more. Obviously, the environment plays a big role in a lot of courses and arguably there is a lot of discourse in them. What I what say though, is that whatever you decide to do, if you do go down the university route there's a lot of other things you can do alongside your course that can foster what you might want to do. For example, I'll use YSJ as example, but we offer things like Living Lab which focuses on sustainable practice on campus and for students. This is something I get involve with and care about a lot but my course doesn't focus on the environment as much, so it is good to get involved with those sorts of things.

So whatever you decide to, there is a lot of options you can get involved with. Even if the course/job you do doesn't specialise in everything you want to do, it allows you to focus on a lot of areas. For example, like us and Biomedicine the Biology involved and creating appropriate medicines which can be applied to humans and animals is a good starting point if that's a route your interested in. But you can also learn from a lot of other things that you can get involved with as well.

Hope this helps!
Koen.

Reply 6

AriTem

12

Maybe environmental science (the usual Oxbridge/Imperial but also Lancaster) or environmental chemistry (here again Lancaster but also Nottingham - Centre for Sustainable Chemistry and also York - Green Chemistry Centre for excellence)? Both are growing disciplines given the climate change we live in today.

what do i do at uni? 😭

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