Year 11 Choices
From a young age I always knew that I was interested in the arts. Therefore, when picking what GCSEs to do I decided to do Fine Art and Graphic Design. I also picked ICT as I though this would be useful for jobs and University (being able to type, use databases etc). I also picked Geography as I had found it interesting in previous years and lastly French as I thought it would be a good language to have and I loved Paris.
Sixth Form
After completing my GCSEs I decided to stay on at school and attend the Sixth Form. All my friends were staying on and the school had a really good reputation. I picked three AS/A Levels in Art, ICT and Sociology as I knew I enjoyed these subjects.
University
I knew that I wanted to go to University but I was unsure about where to go and if I was ready or not. Because of this, I decided to take a year out after completing my A Levels to consider my choices. I worked in a local Café for the year and during this time I applied to go to Goldsmiths College, University of London to do a Degree. Although there were a lot of courses available that looked interesting, I knew I wanted to do Sociology. However, when looking in detail at the course specifications Sociology and Cultural Studies seemed more appealing as it also included culture and the arts. I then decided to apply for this course. When filling out my UCAS application I also put down Bristol University (Sociology) in case I did not get accepted to Goldsmiths.
I got the results to go to Goldsmiths College University of London and was really excited about the move. I applied for a student loan to help me fund university and I had part time jobs during nearly all my holidays back in my home town to raise a little bit of extra money.
The three years at University absolutely flew by. I loved my first year, it was full of fun and I met loads of new interesting people, and of course did a little bit of work!
The second year was a lot harder (work wise) than my first and I realised that I was going to have to start working a lot more than I was if I wanted to get a good result. I had now moved out of halls and was living in a house with some friends. We were all in the same situation, so doing work for university just became habit.
My third year was stressful but still fun and interesting. I was able to chose my own dissertation topic which allowed my to pick something I loved and wanted to do research on. I picked Public Art because I found it very intriguing and thoroughly enjoyed writing it.
I ended up with a First Class Honours Degree which I was ecstatic with.
Nowadays
After completing my Degree I got a full-time temporary job to make a little bit of money. At the beginning of the summer I decided to apply for a Masters (a little bit late I know!) in my home town. It is also in Sociology and I am really looking forward to it starting.
Future Plans
I am not completely sure what I want to after I have completed my Masters degree. There are various options such as doing a PhD or going and getting a full-time job related to what I have done education wise. I guess I’ll just see what the next year brings, as well as go and get some advice from my Careers Adviser at University.
