It is important to choose senior subjects carefully as your decisions may affect not only the types of careers you can follow later, but also your success at school and feelings about school as well. Even though there are many factors to consider, choosing your course of study can be made easier if you go about the task calmly and logically, and follow a set of planned steps.

Overall Plan

As an overall plan, you are advised to choose subjects:

· you enjoy

· in which you have demonstrated some ability or aptitude

· which help you reach your course and career goals

· which will develop skills, knowledge and attitudes that will be useful throughout your life.

The Wrong Way

Don’t take subjects simply because:

· one other person says they are good or bad

· your friends are taking them

· your elder brother/sister took or didn’t take them

· doing “harder” subjects gives you a better chance at a higher OP

These are quite general points, so it is wise to look in more detail at the guidelines outlined below.

Guidelines

Find out about career pathways.

It is helpful if you have a few career choices in mind before choosing subjects. If you are uncertain about this at present, seek help in trying to choose a course that will keep several career options open to you. Your guidance officer or school counsellor may be able to help you get started by giving you some suggestions on how to investigate jobs and how to approach career decision-making.

You will also need to find out about the various pathways you can take to obtain the skills, knowledge and/or qualifications you need to get a job in the career areas in which you are interested. Once you know about the different pathways, you can select the most appropriate one for you.

The following resources are available at Rockhampton State High School and give information on subjects and courses needed for careers:

· Guidance Officer

· FEET First Program

· The Job Guide provides information on subjects needed for particular occupations.

· The OZJAC computer program provides similar career information and is the most up-to-date source of information on courses in Australia

· Other career information, such as literature provided to schools by industry groups, show the various pathways to jobs within these industries.

· The Queensland Tertiary Courses booklet is useful for information on university courses and higher level TAFE courses.

· The Tertiary Prerequisites book provides information on the subjects required for entry to university and TAFE advanced diploma and diploma courses.

Understanding the following terms will help make subject selection easier:

· The Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) shows all the qualifications issued in post-compulsory education in Australia and how these qualifications relate to each other.

· Articulation is the process used to progress from one level of qualification to another.

· Credit transfer (or advanced standing) occurs when a person is given credit based on a previous course for part of their next course.

· Recognition of prior learning (RPL) is the process used to assess the competencies a person has gained from past experience and training.

· Competencies are the knowledge and skills a person must have to do a specific job or to gain a specific AQTF qualification. This is a term used mainly in vocational education and training.

· Prerequisite subjects are those which must be taken to gain entry to higher level courses or to future careers.

· Recommended subjects are not essential, but are likely to make future courses easier to follow.

· Useful subjects are not essential, but give a general background or help develop particular skills.

· Overall Position (OP) is the name given to the process used for tertiary entrance that eligible students receive at the completion of Year 12. In general, students wishing to gain entry to a degree course at a university at the end of Year 12 would need to obtain an OP. See your guidance officer for details of the rules for obtaining an OP.

Find out about the Full List of Subjects

Rockhampton State High offers QSA Authority subjects, QSA Authority-Registered subjects and vocational education and training qualifications.