Decisions, Decisions, Decisions... (1 Viewer)

[Clue Less]

I'm seeking some guidance from all you experienced folk about university. Prepare for the giant spiel.

Right off the bat, I'm going to say that I'm indecisive as hell. I find it incredibly difficult to make final decisions on anything. Especially those which are going to affect me for some time. Hence I'm struggling with my university decisions. I'm pretty sure I've completed every careers quiz to exist without really having an epiphany. How did you all come to a decision?

I'm unsure of exactly what career I want to pursue when I complete university, so it's not narrowing course options down one bit.
However, during school I've always loved maths, leading me to undertake Extension 2 in year 12. I didn't get the mark I expected to get, but I thoroughly enjoyed some of the maths processes behind it. This has lead me to look into engineering as a possibility. Is it an issue that I haven't done physics in years 11/12 for engineering? Should I look into doing a bridging course, despite my completion of Ext. 2? I'd most likely go for the flexible first year program.
However, I'm also fascinated by the functioning of the world. I also did legal studies, and I thoroughly enjoyed that because it gave me some real-world knowledge that I could use to simply understand current affairs on the news. Which is also drawing me to economics. I never studied it in year 12 so I'm not sure what to expect. Would economics be the happy medium for me between the humanities and maths (getting an extra insight into the function of the world while still using my maths)? I've heard that it can be quite maths-intensive at times?

I've looked into engineering at primarily UNSW and that's definitely my preferred uni when it comes to it. I haven't heard much about UTS, and I've heard mixed reviews of USYD's engineering faculty. When I went to their Open Day, USYD's engineering facilities were VERY underwhelming, as opposed to UNSW's which were very impressive.

Unfortunately, my ATAR has restricted some of my ideas. I'm unable to get into UNSW, even with bonus points and I didn't apply for FEAS as I was a little too optimistic with my ATAR. Because of this, I've looked into other universities, leading me to the B Engineering Honours (Flexible First Year) at USYD. My current idea is to complete the first year of this course next year. If I enjoy it, I'd look to transfer to UNSW. Otherwise I'd transfer to a separate degree within USYD. Is this a logical plan? Or would it be better for me to complete this first year at UTS instead? I've heard that it's easier to transfer between Go8 universities, which is lending me towards USYD slightly. Is this true?

Just from this little snapshot of my interests, what else could you brilliant people recommend to me? If you need some more information, please ask.

TL;DR: Not sure what to do at uni. I enjoy maths, some humanities (law, possibly economics; for an enhanced real-world, 'current affair' knowledge, to be able to watch the news and understand it). Engineering better at USYD or UTS? Easier to transfer between Go8 universities, or is that just a 'prestige' myth?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Squar3root]

I guess you could say you're clueless about a career path

 

[Squar3root]

tl;dr

do engineering/law ez

UNSW is the best

 

[Clue Less]

I guess you could say you're clueless about a career path

My indecisiveness has definitely influenced my username choice .

 

[Clue Less]

tl;dr

do engineering/law ez

UNSW is the best

How would I see myself get into that course? Go well in my first year and transfer? I'm not 100% sure about how transferring works.
I notice you're completing a double degree. Are they quite intensive? I would assume that a combined law/engineering degree would be one of the hardest things you could do HAHAHA.

 

[Squar3root]

How would I see myself get into that course? Go well in my first year and transfer? I'm not 100% sure about how transferring works.
I notice you're completing a double degree. Are they quite intensive? I would assume that a combined law/engineering degree would be one of the hardest things you could do HAHAHA.

well getting into unsw, you'd need a competitive atar (80+). If you do well in your 1st year, yes you can transfer internally. I am not sure specifically but your WAM must be pretty good

yeah it's "hard" and engo/law takes 6.5 years iirc

 

[OzKo]

To answer your question about economics being a good combo of maths and humanities, I would say you've got the right idea.

Economics teaches students new ways to think about real world issues, but economic theory cannot be applied at face value. With the applied economics units, you'll gain an appreciation for decision-making and optimisation.

I would definitely recommend combining an Economics major with a more applied major so you gain a better appreciation of economics as a 'tool' for management.

 

[Clue Less]

To answer your question about economics being a good combo of maths and humanities, I would say you've got the right idea.

Economics teaches students new ways to think about real world issues, but economic theory cannot be applied at face value. With the applied economics units, you'll gain an appreciation for decision-making and optimisation.

I would definitely recommend combining an Economics major with a more applied major so you gain a better appreciation of economics as a 'tool' for management.

That's exactly what I needed to hear.

Degrees talk about choosing a major, is that what you're referring to? And then choosing an additional, optional major on top of that for a more wholesome understanding? Do you have any examples? I'm just unsure what degree to pursue then.

 

[OzKo]

That's exactly what I needed to hear.

Degrees talk about choosing a major, is that what you're referring to? And then choosing an additional, optional major on top of that for a more wholesome understanding? Do you have any examples? I'm just unsure what degree to pursue then.

For all intents and purposes, a degree is only a set of administrative requirements. For example, a 'B Comm' or a 'B Sci' means nothing unless you know which majors were completed.

This is a list of majors available to USYD students studying a B Sci. As you can see, these majors can be significantly different to each other so two B Sci students may graduate with a completely different set of skills and qualifications. This is why majors are more important than a degree. Also keep in mind that some majors are available to students completing differing degrees. For example, my first major was Resource Economics (which was managed by the Faculty of Agriculture & Environment) while my second major was Geography (which is managed by the Faculty of Science).

My advice would be to look at the student handbooks for all the universities you are interested in. You will be able to gauge which majors are available to students of a particular degree program, and see how you can mix and match to suit your own interests.

 

[enoilgam]

To answer your question about economics being a good combo of maths and humanities, I would say you've got the right idea.

Economics teaches students new ways to think about real world issues, but economic theory cannot be applied at face value. With the applied economics units, you'll gain an appreciation for decision-making and optimisation.

I would definitely recommend combining an Economics major with a more applied major so you gain a better appreciation of economics as a 'tool' for management.

This pretty much - Economics is definitely a very versatile major in terms of skills provided. A lot of people falsely believe that an economics degree is useless because it doesnt often lead directly to a profession. The generalist skills provided by such a degree can be applied to a variety of business areas. Whilst there arent many "graduate" opportunities, you can still enter businesses via alternate methods and work your way into your desired field.

 

[BlugyBlug]

How would I see myself get into that course? Go well in my first year and transfer? I'm not 100% sure about how transferring works.
I notice you're completing a double degree. Are they quite intensive? I would assume that a combined law/engineering degree would be one of the hardest things you could do HAHAHA.

UNSW engineering accepts people below the ATAR cutoff even if you factor in bonus points. It depends quite a lot on supple/demand, but the strict cut off of 91 isn't always true for later round offers. You definitely won't get an offer in the main round, but later offers might have good news. (seen ~84atar get into unsw engineering with bonus points)

 

[anomalousdecay]

UNSW engineering accepts people below the ATAR cutoff even if you factor in bonus points. It depends quite a lot on supple/demand, but the strict cut off of 91 isn't always true for later round offers. You definitely won't get an offer in the main round, but later offers might have good news. (seen ~84atar get into unsw engineering with bonus points)

Are you sure this is not through the Faculty of Engineering Admission Scheme (FEAS) ?

https://www.engineering.unsw.edu.au/feas

The interviews for that would have been about 6 weeks ago now.