Matching a career direction with a university pathway
Now that you have a career direction or two to pursue, you need to make plans about what training and qualifications you will need to get into your chosen industry. You'll see and hear this referred to as your 'learning pathway' or 'career pathway'.
There are many pathways that can take you to the same field of work. Each pathway has its own benefits and disadvantages. Which one is best for you will depend on your own circumstances and priorities. More and more pathways are becoming available as tertiary education options widen. You now have more options than basically TAFE or uni. It's important that you understand the full range of available possibilities before you decide which one to work towards. Our resource concentrates on uni and TAFE.
Here are some steps for finding out which career pathways are available and suit you best:
- Check out the facts about which qualification will gain you entry into your desired career. Find out about any minimum or registration requirements to work in the industry you are interested in.
- Find out about as many pathways as possible into the career of interest to you. Sometimes you may be better off using more than one pathway, such as completing a TAFE course and then going to uni.
- Compare factors such as length of time to gain qualification or entry into the field, starting salaries via each pathway, support available to students and relevant costs.
- Get good advice about the pros and cons of each option and carefully weigh it up. For expert advice about the possible pathways for you, speak to your school careers adviser, uni staff and contacts already in the industry you are interested in.
- Attend careers days at unis and other career market events throughout the year. Search the internet and speak to your careers advisers to find out about where and when these events are being held.
Useful websites
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Universities Admissions Centre (NSW & ACT) (UAC)
UAC's website provides course information about all undergraduate courses available at NSW & ACT unis. The course information includes details of the course itself, the career opportunities the course may lead to and course entry requirements. -
myfuture: Australia's career information service
Allows students to explore future career options based on personal strengths and preferences, including information about uni pathways to specific jobs. This webpage from myfuture website provides a search engine for specific uni (and other) courses. -
OZJAC
An Australian computer database providing information about jobs, careers, and tertiary courses. A significant cost is involved in accessing this website. However many high school, TAFE and uni libraries will have this database available. -
Job Juice
A government website by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations to help young Australians to think about deciding on a career and finding a job. The website provides information about career planning while still at school, gathering career information to help decide on a career and how to get a job. -
Good University Guide
The 'Good University Guide' is a good resource for comparing some of the basic outcomes for uni graduates completing similar uni courses, including starting salary, rates of employment and other criteria.