Six tips for selecting subjects for Year 11 and 12

You want to plan for your future – without knowing exactly what that future looks like, which can be a bit scary. What happens if you make the wrong choices? What if they’re too hard or too easy? Don’t worry, Year 10s, we’ve got six hot tips to help you get on the right track.

Select what you love

It’s important to follow your passion. Don’t just select subjects because you think you’re “supposed” to do them for prestige or glory. The best way to find a career you love is to study the subjects you love. Think about the classes and topics that excite you the most, and use them as the starting point for your subject selection process. It’s a lot easier to commit your brainpower and energy to something that interests and inspires you.

Do your research

If you have a strong idea of what you’d like to be in the future, a great way of selecting your subjects is to find out what you need to know. Some uni courses have assumed knowledge or prerequisites (we don’t), so do your research to figure out a pathway to where you want to be. Having an end goal will help you make better decisions now. (Bonus tip: it’s OK if that end goal changes between now and then – just because you wanted to be an astronaut when you were seven doesn’t mean you want to be one at 17.)

Keep your options open

Of course, not everyone has a clear idea of what they love studying or the career path they’d like to follow. If that sounds like you, we recommend spreading your choices wider. Select a few different subjects to explore different interests and see what fits. Over the next two years, you’ll continue the process of narrowing things down, and having that broad foundation will be a big help. In the meantime, you might discover a talent or passion you didn’t know you had.

Think about your workload

You only have so many hours in a week, and you don’t want to spend all of them on schoolwork (there’s also eating, sleeping, gaming, exercising, TikToking). Time limitations are especially relevant when it comes to subjects that feature major works. How many of these do you want to commit to completing in Year 12? Find out how much attention and energy you’ll have to put into that artwork, extended essay or live performance, then decide how much you’re willing and able to tackle.

Challenge yourself

Look, there’ll be plenty of external challenges over the next couple of years but that doesn’t mean you should always take the easy path. There are huge personal rewards to going above and beyond the bare minimum, especially if you’ve got a competitive streak. Aim high, expand your horizons and discover what you’re truly capable of. (Bonus tip: if it turns out you’ve taken on too much, you can always drop down a level in Year 12.)

Don’t stress

This is an important point to keep in mind. No matter what you select now, there are many different ways to get to where you want to be in life. Year 12 is important, true, but it’s not the only path to finding that career you love. If you want to know more about alternative pathways over the next two years, you can always chat to one of our Course and Careers Advisors about the different ways of getting to university.