what opportunities are there for switching degrees? or gap year...

9

i'm in year 13 and have applied (and received offers) for biological sciences. now i do enjoy biology and i have looked into some biology-related careers that i would enjoy but there's also a part of me that's wondering if there is another degree i'd enjoy more and i'm scared i'm making the wrong decision and that i'm going to waste 3 years for nothing.
i was looking into nursing as i've always been interested in healthcare and i have all the entry reqs for the course but it requires an interview so i'm unsure that i'd be allowed to switch during first year.
does everyone else feel this unsure about the degree they have chosen or should i think about taking a gap year to figure out what i truly want to do. i'm a very indecisive person and i'm worried i'm never going to figure it out.
if anyone has any advice or has been in the same position pls lmk

Reply 1

De Montfort University

Official Rep

17

Original post

by evsurfer

i'm in year 13 and have applied (and received offers) for biological sciences. now i do enjoy biology and i have looked into some biology-related careers that i would enjoy but there's also a part of me that's wondering if there is another degree i'd enjoy more and i'm scared i'm making the wrong decision and that i'm going to waste 3 years for nothing.
i was looking into nursing as i've always been interested in healthcare and i have all the entry reqs for the course but it requires an interview so i'm unsure that i'd be allowed to switch during first year.
does everyone else feel this unsure about the degree they have chosen or should i think about taking a gap year to figure out what i truly want to do. i'm a very indecisive person and i'm worried i'm never going to figure it out.
if anyone has any advice or has been in the same position pls lmk

Hiya lovely

Honestly, what you’re feeling is completely normal and a lot more common than people admit, especially in Year 13 when everything suddenly feels like a permanent life decision. Being unsure doesn’t mean you’re making the wrong choice, it just means you’re actually thinking about your future rather than blindly picking something. Biological sciences is also a very flexible degree, so it definitely wouldn’t be a “waste” of three years it can lead into healthcare, research, teaching, biotech, public health and even graduate entry healthcare routes, so you wouldn’t be locking yourself into one path. The fact that you’re also considering nursing makes sense because there’s a big overlap in interests, but the key difference is that nursing is very hands-on, patient-facing and placement-heavy, whereas biological sciences is more academic and broad. That said, loads of people start uni unsure, change their minds, switch courses, or pivot careers later on, you absolutely don’t have to have everything figured out at 18. A gap year can help, but only if you actually use it to gain experience (like healthcare volunteering or work experience), otherwise it can just give you more time to overthink. From what you’ve said, it doesn’t sound like you dislike biology, it sounds more like fear of making the “wrong” decision, which is something almost everyone feels but rarely talks about.

Kind regards Aneta PhD Forensics

Reply 2

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post

by evsurfer

i'm in year 13 and have applied (and received offers) for biological sciences. now i do enjoy biology and i have looked into some biology-related careers that i would enjoy but there's also a part of me that's wondering if there is another degree i'd enjoy more and i'm scared i'm making the wrong decision and that i'm going to waste 3 years for nothing.
i was looking into nursing as i've always been interested in healthcare and i have all the entry reqs for the course but it requires an interview so i'm unsure that i'd be allowed to switch during first year.
does everyone else feel this unsure about the degree they have chosen or should i think about taking a gap year to figure out what i truly want to do. i'm a very indecisive person and i'm worried i'm never going to figure it out.
if anyone has any advice or has been in the same position pls lmk

Have you done any nursing work experience? That would be the most important thing, as nursing is a vocation and you need to undersatnd if you actually want to be a nurse, not just study it as an abstract concept!

Reply 3

Kingston Sarah

Official Rep

14

Original post

by evsurfer

i'm in year 13 and have applied (and received offers) for biological sciences. now i do enjoy biology and i have looked into some biology-related careers that i would enjoy but there's also a part of me that's wondering if there is another degree i'd enjoy more and i'm scared i'm making the wrong decision and that i'm going to waste 3 years for nothing.
i was looking into nursing as i've always been interested in healthcare and i have all the entry reqs for the course but it requires an interview so i'm unsure that i'd be allowed to switch during first year.
does everyone else feel this unsure about the degree they have chosen or should i think about taking a gap year to figure out what i truly want to do. i'm a very indecisive person and i'm worried i'm never going to figure it out.
if anyone has any advice or has been in the same position pls lmk

Hi,

You can switch after first year, but try and contact your own university instead first of applying through UCAS. If they can offer you an interview, go ahead and do it. I recommend to read a lot about nursing before going through it, it’s a very mentally and physically demanding degree that is at the same time very rewarding, there are also 4 types of nursing (adult, children, mental health, disability), explore which one you prefer more.

-Sarah (Kingston Rep)

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