University: A New Chapter

With my chosen University course continuously changing, I have decided to make 'University' the topic of this section allow the content to be slightly broader than its original title of 'Physics'. Within this first post, I will be explaining my reasoning for wanting this path of education, exploring different course options and expressing my thoughts and feelings on the concept of going to University!

First, let me state why I would like to go to University. Often people feel that this is the only path available for them nowadays. In the past, it was less encouraged, by I have noticed that often it is expected that my generation should choose University. For a lot of students, this is not the correct decision, and that is okay, but for me, University seems like the most appropriate option.

The main reason for this is the chance to push me outside of my comfort zone. Living in halls, partying with friends and meeting a plethora of new people seem extremely exciting. These experiences are attracting me to this option, however, the multitude of opportunities that Universities offer are equally enticing. There are chances to enter an array of high paying careers, volunteering roles, extra-curricular activities and thousands of like-minded people to communicate with. The only drawback for me, like many people, is the sheer amount of work, but that is to be expected when completing such a high level of education. But that does not truly matter if you enjoy the subject matter, and so I have never considered the workload as a significant negative aspect of the experience as a whole.

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I wanted to study Physics at Oxford, Warwick or Bristol University, but that plan has since changed. Currently, I am looking to study Chemical Engineering, with my top choice of University being Cambridge. The reason for this decision is because when I visualise my future, I cannot see myself spending my entire working life inside a lab. Therefore in choosing Chemical Engineering, I feel that I allow myself a greater variety of career prospects in the future, which is less daunting for me as I will not feel confined to one field of work. For example, I could become a teacher, a researcher or a Chemical, Petroleum or Energy Engineer, all of which seem interesting and exciting.

Additionally, as a child I always visualised myself being an Architect. However, the content of the Architecture course did not seem overly appealing, and I had not chosen the correct subjects at GCSE or A-Level. I feel that in choosing Chemical Engineering I can combine my want to design and construct buildings and machinery with the more intense and lab-based aspects of science.

Recently, I have begun the initial preparations for achieving a placement within this course. I have chosen Maths, Physics and Chemistry, which are the three subjects that are required. I have started a blog in the hopes of finding a passion and demonstrating my ability to multitask different responsibilities. I have taken up an EPQ, which will allow me to research my subject content and prepare myself for writing University dissertations, and I have saved many videos in preparation for writing a personal statement. These actions may seem unnecessary so early, but I am a person that needs to feel prepared and under control of my future, which I can do by preparing myself adequately. Many people can leave this until the last moment, but I am not one of them.

Over the coming year, I will conduct further research into specific Universities that I would like to apply to and begin applying. But first, I need to ensure that Chemical Engineering is what I want to pursue. That brings me to why I have created this section. I am hoping that documenting my thoughts and feelings about my course will allow me to discover whether it truly interests me. The content of these specific posts may not apply to everybody. However, I would encourage you to read them as I will sprinkle in advice, as always, and you may learn about something new that interests you too.

In summary, I have explained what I intend for this section to contain, and I have become even more excited to open this new chapter of my life! Thank you for reading!