Georgie is a RMIT student completing her Bachelor of Business (Marketing). Georgie is currently undertaking her work placement (a year of paid industry experience) as part of her course. Looking back Georgie reflects on her time finishing year 12 and the emotions she went through.
What a perfect time to have absolutely nothing to do. After a year of working so hard, this is the best time to get to know yourself again. It’s summer and you’re (hopefully) eighteen so make the most of it. Go to the beach with friends and live it up. Use this time to totally refresh your mind before you start the next phase of your education.
This will be one of your most memorable summer breaks. However while enjoying yourself there is the looming ATAR result that awaits. Try not to anxiously anticipate your ATAR as I did, because there are actually so many options for you with respect to higher education. Some of the friends I made in the third year of my bachelor degree had actually just completed the associate degree and went straight to the third year of the bachelor. They knew all of the same content that I had learnt in the bachelor and will finish at the same time as me. You should not feel less-able for taking an alternate route, so try not to wait anxiously for that score and simply enjoy the freedom while it lasts.
During this wait period, I regret not doing research around the different course options available to me. I told myself that once my exams were over, I would do some more investigating in to the course that’s right for me. However, once I had no obligations, I didn’t feel like setting any time aside to research yet another long haul of study. In hindsight, I would recommend setting some time aside to read about job opportunities in your chosen field and obtain some background knowledge around the basics of your course. This will help give you a head start but also ensure that you are choosing the right course for you before change of preference time closes.
So many friends of mine chose a course based on what their parents told them to or chose a course based on the wow factor they would get from friends. However, the reality is that you have to commit to a course for 3 to 4 years and in most cases, those friends didn’t continue with the course and ended up switching to something they enjoyed at a University that reflected their values. It’s definitely important to reflect on what you enjoy doing. That’s the best way to predict whether or not you will enjoy your course.
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