Uni Degrees and Various Careers- Yr 12 Student

LNoidea00 on 07/09/2017 - 12:37
Last edited 07/09/2017 - 12:37

Hey I saw a similar post to what I'm posting now and figured I should post as well.

I'm a yr 12 student about to complete my HSC, I'm looking for advice on a variety of careers and degrees. My marks are good and I expect to get a atar of around 90 but I don't want to jinx it or be overconfident.
I'm looking at several degrees and careers but these do not include law or medicine. I wouldn't mind doing engineering but I didn't do physics in yr 11 and 12 thus I doubt I will be allowed entry in the course.

My interests lay in IT, computer science, business, architecture and design building management as well as engineering.
Btw I will be deferring semester 2 of uni next year to go to Europe.

My questions include:

  1. if you're working in or completed a degree I stated above, what is it like? Salary? Working conditions? Is it boring? How is the job availability and will this job available in say 4 years?

  2. how can I get into engineering without ping physics?

  3. Is IT boring?

  4. How is the job opportunities in computer science?

  5. I really want to do architecture or in the design process of creating buildings ect but how do I get in the degree as I will likely not receive a 99 atar for architecture at UNSW

  6. what do you recommend me to study? Obviously factoring a good paying job (80k plus obviously not starting salary) and job prospects. Also take into account the job prospects in availability in the future.

  7. how do you like your career?

  8. I want a 100k plus job in the degrees listed above, is it possible?

Ps I do realise I'm asking random people on the internet for advice. I just want different perspectives. There is bound to be grammatical errors here so please don't be too hard on me.

Please don't tell me use google or something similar as I have and it's best to use multiple perspectives and sources to help me decide my future.

Thanks, I appreciate all feedback.

Education & Work

Comments

  • Word on 07/09/2017 - 13:00

    How can I get into engineering without ping physics?

    Bridge/apply.

    Is IT boring?
    Depends.

    How is the job opportunities in computer science?
    67% employment.

    I really want to do architecture or in the design process of creating buildings ect but how do I get in the degree as I will likely not receive a 99 atar for architecture at UNSW?

    UON/Melbourne.

    what do you recommend me to study? Obviously factoring a good paying job (80k plus obviously not starting salary) and job prospects. Also take into account the job prospects in availability in the future

    Surveying.

    I want a 100k plus job in the degrees listed above, is it possible?

    Yes.

  • o53djz7qTPY4der on 07/09/2017 - 13:11
    +1

    Best piece of advice I ever received re. Uni - take some time to think about it.

    Try to get a short internship or work experience in the field you think you want to study. A proactive Year-12 will go a long way. Not only will the internship give you an idea of what the daily grind will be like once you graduate but also, depending how good you are, develop very useful contacts for down the road.

    If that does not work, re-evaluate and try again - there is no rule that says you must go to uni immediately after Year-12. Take your time.

    I did a BSc in Psych and now, after 10 years experience in Education I am doing my Masters in Linguistics. I have contacts who I can hit up once I complete my MA for jobs or references and, if all else fails I have 10 years experience to fall back on. Not to say you should take 10 years, but don't underestimate the value of contacts/experience.

    Enjoy Europe - Party hard.

    • Noidea00 on 07/09/2017 - 14:01
      +1

      Thanks I will party hard.

  • SeaSalty on 07/09/2017 - 13:19

    If you want big bucks, become a registered mining surveyor. As a current surveying student, if you want to get into engineering you'd have to take physics in first year. All engineers have to.

  • cypher67 on 07/09/2017 - 13:32

    1- Starts around $60k and once you are adding real value $100k is fairly average

    2- If you don't understand and enjoy physics in high school, I'd suggest it is probably not for you as a career

    3- Depends what you are working on and the area etc. I would say it comes down to the people you work with mostly.

    4- Good, however there is so much offshoring and migrants moving it with the skill sets that it is getting harder.

    5- Have a gap year and apply as a mature age student

    5- Think bigger $80k is not much.

    6- Meh

    7- Most of those degree's with 5 years experience should all pay $100k

  • Savas on 07/09/2017 - 13:46

    Thanks for posting this for me, except I am doing physics. I decided to start applying for ADFA to do engineering.

    • Noidea00 on 07/09/2017 - 14:01

      Sorry what do you mean by posting this for you?

      • Savas on 07/09/2017 - 14:03

        I am also in year 12, will get atar of about 90 and want to do engineering. but I am not going to Europe.

        • Noidea00 on 07/09/2017 - 15:45
          +1

          Oh yeah cool, I just didn't pick physics in yr10 cause I didn't think I'd want to do engineering but a lot happened in 2 years.

  • woodwa on 07/09/2017 - 14:07
    +2

    Have you considered GIS? or related spatial fields

    I can testify that after 15 years Im still enjoying my career choice.. Its relatively tough to get a foot in the door as everyone wants experience. Once you have done this 100K isn't too hard in the private sector if you are good with computers/GIS skills and have good people skills.

    pathways there.. IT.. Spatial Sciences, Civil Engineering, Surveying.. Environmental Science.. Agricultural Science.

    • Noidea00 on 07/09/2017 - 15:48

      I'm pretty good with computers and have good social skills. What exactly is GIS. I googled it and it came up with Geographic information systems. How's the job availability ? What degree do you recommend to get into this field?

      • woodwa on 08/09/2017 - 07:57

        GIS/Spatial is a fairly broad skill and marketplace.. Key markets are Government(all 3 tiers), Utilities, Defence, IT sector, environmental, and commercially driven users(eg Coleworths market planning strategists)

        Here's a "What is GIS" video from the market leading software(ESRI)
        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHDCRjAxpI0

        My summary on what GIS is: Location information or information with a location that can be analysed, visualised(as maps or online map content) and queried. It also includes the processes of capturing, improving and maintaining the spatial information.

        I got into the industry by chance holding an IT Degree. By chance I mean I was asked to research GIS in my job before after I finished Uni. We subsequently landed a bunch of work in the field when we added a GIS component. I'm now in my 4th job 2 in the private sector and 2 in Government currently on 85K but if I was to pursue work in the city(sydney) as opposed to out of sydney I should be able to achieve 100-130k fairly easily.

        Other reading:
        Surveying and Spatial Sciences Industry (SSSI) the professional org behind spatial are missing a website atm..
        https://sssi.org.au/

        Australian spatial news:
        https://spatialsource.com.au/

        Other spatial news and interesting reads. Position magazine.
        http://position.realviewdigital.com/?iid=125666#folio=1

        • Noidea00 on 08/09/2017 - 08:04

          Could I get into take field with a computer science degree?

      • singlemalt72 on 08/09/2017 - 07:57

        GIS is a real growth field, it basically takes spatial data and allows you to perform queries and produce reports/maps/infoographics related to how those datasts 'interact'.

        Big uses in environmental science, retailing, urban planning, real estate, Lands management, mining, Emergency services, disaster planning, n=banking, weather forecasting, Agronomy, disease control, tourism…

        Here is a list I just found, but there are many other businesses not currently using GIS that could and should be.

        http://gisgeography.com/gis-applications-uses/

        • woodwa on 08/09/2017 - 14:32

          Great List.

          I'm forwarding to a manager :)

  • MayhemVC on 07/09/2017 - 21:33

    I would say that all of those degrees have the potential to lead to a career earning more than $100k.
    There are IT people who will top out at $60k and others that will go beyond $250k.

    My two pieces of advice would be:

    Don't be a number. It's very hard to differentiate yourself as an accountant in a large accounting firm full of accountants. I studied chemistry and started work at an engineering firm. I wasn't smarter than the engineers, but there were 2000 engineers and only one chemist. I became 'difficult to replace' and was paid accordingly.

    Learn as much as you can outside of your core area. I know some chemistry, but I'm not the world's best chemist by any stretch. However, I learned a lot of engineering, I qualified as a project manager and got involved in business development. I can work across several disciplines and as a result am never without work. This makes you attractive to an employer so they are keen to retain your employment.

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