18 plus

Answer these questions to help you decide your next move!

• What type of qualification do you want? You might want an academic qualification like a degree or a qualification which gives you work based skills such as the Advanced Apprenticeship.
• What career are you aiming towards? Some employers only recruit degree level graduates, whereas others are looking for a qualification that matches the requirements of the job. Browse our careers links [link to careers section]
• What subject do you want to study? You could improve on a topic you’ve studied at A-Level or BTEC National, try something completely new or even choose a combination of different subjects.
• What about a sandwich year? Some qualifications offer a year in industry, giving you a real opportunity to gain some hands on experience and get to know if it’s the career for you.
• What is the style of assessment? If you know you’re better at exams than coursework consider this when choosing a course.
• Where do you want to study? You might prefer to stay at home or live somewhere completely new?
• Campus or city? Most campus universities offer everything you need in one location whereas city centre universities might spread out across many different areas.
• What are the entry requirements? Look at the qualifications required by the college or university against your predicted grades.
• What else do you want? The societies, sporting activities and nightlife offered in the place you want to study can be very important. What do you need to pay? The cost of living can be dramatically higher if you study somewhere like London, so check you have the budget before making the application.
• What about finance? There are student loans and universities also offer their own financial help so you will need to check them out.

The amount of information you sometimes need to help make your decision can often be overwhelming, so let your Personal Adviser help you do some of the work.

For more information, look at out Moving on @ 18 publication [link to moving on at 18 pdf?]

Useful links for higher education:
www.aimhigher.ac.uk
www.timesonline.co.uk click on education for Times uni guide
http://education.guardian.co.uk click on university guide
www.push.co.uk A more alternative guide

Websites for Careers Information
http://www.careersa-z.co.uk/
http://www.connexions-direct.com/jobs4u/

For up to the minute online information go to http://www.lifetime-publishing.co.uk/apps/clips/startup.asp

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