The importance of post-16 choices

As higher education advisers, we’re often asked by students and parents if their post-16 subject choices will affect their future education and career prospects.

If your young person knows what career they want to go into, then it’s important that they choose the right options to get them onto the right path. They can research their chosen occupation and find out what qualifications they need. This allows them to work backwards to choose the relevant options for their post-16 study.

There aren’t many occupations that require specific qualifications, other than the obvious examples such as doctors, engineers, and dentists. These professions require specific qualifications which need to be considered for post-16 study.

There are many post-16 options for your young person. Some of the most common post-16 qualifications include A Levels, Scottish Highers, T Levels and Apprenticeships.

The key is to be well-informed by undertaking research, and happily there are lots of online resources that can help. If your young person wants to go to university, it is important to note that not all degrees demand a particular set of qualifications.

However, your young person mustn't limit their areas of interest by taking the wrong subjects for their post-16 options. They can use websites such as The Russell Group Informed Choices web page to learn the pathways they could take. UCAS and UniTasterDays are also valuable sources of information.

If your young person wants to take a science pathway, then they'll need to take at least one science subject at Level 3, whereas social sciences, arts, and humanities subjects tend to have fewer prerequisites. If your young person still doesn’t know the path they want to follow for post-18 study, then it’s good advice to take a mixture of subjects for their post-16 qualifications. Most importantly, they should study subjects they’ll enjoy.

Reassure your young person that they don’t need to have everything figured out right now. Many students, even when they reach Year 13, still don’t know what they want to do. As a parent or supporter, simply be there to help them as they make their choices.

It’s also important that they don’t feel any pressure about making the ‘wrong’ choice. Remind them: they can change their mind partway through their studies, or even during their career. It’s never too late to take their future in another direction.