He is really down. He feels that all his friends know what they are doing and he is the only one that is failing.” The Mother of a 20 year old young man in University explained.
This student had started a Science degree. He failed his First Year, but passed the repeats. Now at the start of Third Year, he really feels he is doing the wrong thing and that he has totally wasted nearly three years. He told the counsellor that he finds it really hard to go to lectures as he is not doing well and has no clear idea of where he is going.
“I don’t know why I ever did this course. I don’t get on with the people. I don’t find the lectures interesting. I think I just fell into this because I didn’t know what else to do.” he stated.
The student completed the psychometric assessment. The patterns that emerged were of a young man who was full of ideas. He loved business and had a real desire to start up his own enterprise. He loved taking the initiative and trying new things.
“It seems I have done totally the wrong course! Will I have to go back and start all over again!!?”
The counsellor explained to him that a degree in any discipline is a very useful step as it allows him access the area of Post Graduate study. At this level he could take a post-graduate diploma in Business. This is designed for graduates who do not have a primary degree in Business but who are interested in the area.
The only challenge would be that he would need to get a second class honours in his Science degree. Initially the student was skeptical. They then explored together the opportunities which a post-grad degree in Business would open up to him. He said that he would love to do the Business Diploma and then specialize by doing a Masters in Marketing afterwards. The student became excited. But how was he going to ensure success in his degree?
Now that he had a goal and he knew where he was going. Together they identified areas which presented particular difficulties and arranged grinds in these areas. The Careers Counsellor also referred him to a counsellor who agreed to support him emotionally in the intervening period. He also met with the careers counsellor at regular intervals to make sure that the plan was on track
The results of the final exam were enough to get him into the area he really loved. He was worried about taking on further study, but when he began to study Business, he had no further problems as the area interested him so much. He managed to change course and follow his heart’s desire by putting in a lot of extra work but loosing little time.