So, my placement has finally come to an end. After a little over a year (54 weeks to be precise), I’ve handed back the staff access pass and said my final goodbyes. Reaching the end of the placement has brought with it very mixed feelings, I’m glad to have finished and I’m looking forward to a few months off before getting back to studying again. But it’s also a sad time because I’ve enjoyed the work I’ve been doing over the past year and I’ve made some great friends and I will miss everyone immensely.
The real question that I’ve got to consider now, after finishing my placement, is….
What have I learnt and what’s next?
As far as the learning side is concerned I’ve gained lots of valuable skills and techniques both within this industrial sector and further beyond. I covered the learning aspect in the blog from last month so I won’t dwell on it here.
When it comes to what’s next this is where everything becomes a little trickier…
In the immediate future I’ve got 1 year left of my degree which will be mainly research based and I’m really excited to work on my dissertation project in the next academic year. However, after my degree is finished I’m not entirely sure where I want to go. And that is a perfectly acceptable place to be, not everyone will know exactly where they want to go and even if you do think you know it’s also fine to change your mind! Personally, I’m looking at 3 main paths after I finish my last year and I probably won’t decide which one I want to do until the end of next year.
Option 1 – Finish my degree, take a small break and do a PhD – I’ve really enjoyed the research aspect of this year on placement and I can see myself feeling the same way about further research projects in the future.
Option 2 – Finish my degree, take a small break and do another degree – This option may sound pretty crazy and in a way, it is! Doing a second degree is really expensive and I’ll need to seriously consider the cost before this option can be seen as a viable one. But, that being said I think a second degree, probably in something like astro or particle physics, could be the choice for me.
Option 3 – Finish my degree, take a small break and do a PGCE to become a teacher – Teaching is something that I’ve tried several times in the past and I’ve always found it incredibly rewarding. Having the opportunity to influence the lives of young people is something that I can really see myself enjoying.
The most important thing here is that these options aren’t mutually exclusive. There’s no reason why I couldn’t do an astrophysics degree and then become a teacher. Equally, I could get to the end of my degree and decide none of these paths are for me, the options are really wide and variable. If only one piece of advice from all of these blogs sticks, make it this one – When it comes to thinking about what you want to do in the future, never be afraid to change your mind and never be afraid to go against the grain and do what YOU want to do with YOUR life.
And with that this brings the blog series to an end. Hopefully you’ve found these articles useful, I’ve definitely gained a lot from writing them! Good luck in the future whatever it is you decide to do.