Help with degree

3

Hi. I am a student currently studying biology chemistry and Spanish at a level. I really enjoy Spanish and it is my favourite subject but don’t know whether to pursue it at university as I don’t know whether it would generate me a good income. I was considering doing international relations - what are the salaries and work opportunities like and would it be better to stick to something in biochemistry to secure a better job. I am aiming for a high status uni but not oxbridge as not interested

Reply 1

Scotland Yard

Universities Forum Helper

20

Original post

by Zara_yb

Hi. I am a student currently studying biology chemistry and Spanish at a level. I really enjoy Spanish and it is my favourite subject but don’t know whether to pursue it at university as I don’t know whether it would generate me a good income. I was considering doing international relations - what are the salaries and work opportunities like and would it be better to stick to something in biochemistry to secure a better job. I am aiming for a high status uni but not oxbridge as not interested

Doing languages pays. At a minimum you'd be able to become a teacher, which has a reasonable salary. Not super high, but not super low either. And then it just opens so many other doors - translations, diplomacy, etc.

I'll also say that the only reason I've been able to find a job at uni was because I spoke another language. And on the weekly email from my careers service I also often get job listings that are specifically looking for people that speak other languages (more often than not Spanish and Italian, but I believe they might be specifically targeting these job adverts to me!). In any case, there seems to be a market for languages so if you enjoy it, definitely keep looking into Spanish!

Reply 2

McGinger

20

Yes, you can do a degree in Spanish, or a joint degree 'with Spanish', or a degree 'with Study Abroad'- or you could any degree subject and keep up your Spanish skills as an extra-curricular activity (example - Languages for All - Department of Language and Linguistic Science, University of York).

Its not a great idea to pick your degree subject based entirely on 'potential salary'. You do have to be actually interested in the degree subject, and have some academic motivation to complete a degree successfully. Salaries come with career building, skills and time-based experience, and often have only limited connection with an original degree subject.

Go to some Uni Open Days. Sign up for subject presentations for some very different subjects - Biosciences, Politics/IR, Law, Pharmacology, Natural Sciences, whatever. Which ones actually interests you intellectually? This is what is going to motivate during the day-to-day study slog of a 3 or 4 year degree - not unrealistic ideas about graduate salaries.

Reply 3

University of Bradford

Official Rep

18

Original post

by Zara_yb

Hi. I am a student currently studying biology chemistry and Spanish at a level. I really enjoy Spanish and it is my favourite subject but don’t know whether to pursue it at university as I don’t know whether it would generate me a good income. I was considering doing international relations - what are the salaries and work opportunities like and would it be better to stick to something in biochemistry to secure a better job. I am aiming for a high status uni but not oxbridge as not interested

Hi @Zara_yb. I was a former student like you so I understand what your going through. It is completely normal to be uncertain. I will give my best advice so it becomes clearer for you. I would say Spanish is a very good skill and can definitely boost careers. However subjects like Internationals Relations and Biochemistry both lead to various career paths. International l Relations entail careers in global organisations, policy and the government and the salaries for these are typically around £25-45k and higher. On the other hand, Biochemistry can lead to careers that specialise in science such as a Biomedical Scientist and the salary for this starts around 40k. It's important to see what you enjoy though and it's also important you don't always look at the salary as you may not enjoy it. I hope this helped! 😀

Kiran

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