How to make subject choices!

Subject choices take place in grade 9. This is an important decision young people will ever make in their lives, as it determines the type of work they’ll be pursuing in the future.

Why is preparing for subject choice so important?

The subject choices young people make in grade 9 determine their career path and the type of a career they will pursue post school. Most of the learners choose subjects in grade 9 or 10 and then decide on a career path they want to pursue later. This contributes to the mismatch of what the institution requires you to have and the choice of subjects you have made.

It can be confusing!

Unfortunately, some discover when they are in matric that the combination of their subject

choice doesn’t meet the requirements of the course they intend to pursue.

This may lead to your application being declined and may course diversion from your personal choice into another course that may lead you into a career or job you do not like that is less in demand or offers less employment opportunities.

Steps to preparing for subject choices:

Step 1: Know who you are.

Know who you are (strengths, weaknesses, interests, likes and dislikes)

When you don’t know yourself:

It will be difficult to make a career choice without knowing who you are, as that decision is based on external influence.

You will pursue something that your heart is not in, that you have no passion and excitement for.

What you were meant to be will always be a shadow of you and will haunt you.

When you don’t know who you are you are easily influenced and swayed into any direction.

You will live other people’s dreams, goals and purpose.

You will do something that is foreign to your authentic self, something you’re not naturally good at. Chances of thriving in that career will be slim.

When you know yourself:

• When you know who you are, you are not easily swayed, as you know what you want, why you want it and what you don’t want.

• You will no longer be apologetic about who you are.

• You will no longer doubt yourself and your self-esteem will be enhanced.

• You will embrace your strengths and weaknesses and you will love and nurture who you are.

• You will stop comparing yourself to others.

• Knowing who you are helps you have a clear vision about your destiny.

Decisions about your future will not be influenced by the external factors but about your internal influence, which is knowing yourself from the inside out.

Step 2: Discover your future vision

See yourself in the future, identify your dream career doing the work you desire to do when you’re older. What problems are you solving?

You may see yourself as an artist, mechanic, designer, doctor, building homes, making furniture, addressing poverty, unemployment, helping businesses grow, working a lawyer, working in a bank etc.

• What are you doing daily and what is your work related to?

• What type of problems are you solving here on earth?

Step 3: Create a personal SWOT analysis

SWOT helps you identify your strengths and weaknesses, things you’re naturally good at and things you’re not good at that need improvement:

Remember to ask your loved ones, teachers, friends and family what they think your strengths and weaknesses are, since they know you better.

Step 4: Create a list of 3 careers of personal choice.

Create a list of 3 careers of your personal choice in order of priority and give reasons for

each as to why you want to pursue that career. What is the motivation for my choice or decision? Is it money, status, to impress someone or is it about my passion?

Step 5: Research the admission requirements

Choose 3 institutions of study that offer what you want to pursue and compile a research to find out what the entry requirements are.

The institution will highlight what subjects you ought to have to be admitted in the course you want to pursue.

Having a wrong combination of subjects can hinder or delay you from pursuing the career you want to pursue. It is critical and important to make sure you have the right subject from grade 9 and 10.

Step 6: Research your choice of career

Conduct research to check if your choice of career is indeed what you want to pursue and are interested in.

How to conduct research:

Speak to someone in the field you want to pursue,

• Get to the working environment if possible, to research each item on your shortlist by

How to Research

speaking to someone in the field, visiting companies to explore what it feels like to work in the job environment of your chosen field.

• Don’t wait until you get to matric to decide what you to do post matric

• Consider the future stability of that career.

• If you do not like the day-to-day requirements of the job and its environment, remove that job from the list and continue until you get to the top three and give reasons why the three have remained on your list.