July 4, 2018, by Guest Blogger

The new plan A – Honor’s tips for Clearing

Finding out you haven’t got the grades you wanted is hard, but sometimes pushing through and going ahead with plan B can be even harder.

When I found myself studying biology instead of medicine, it took me a while to come to terms with my new path. But, after finishing my first year, I think I’ve learnt a few things that would have been useful to know back in September.

1. Don’t dwell on the past

You may not be where you predicted, but sometimes the best things happen in ways you least expect. Think of this as an opportunity to learn about other paths you might not have thought about before. Find the things you love about your current course and focus on them. I’ve loved learning about evolution and plants – things I would have never learnt had I studied medicine, and the very last topics I expected to enjoy.

2. Every course has a bit of wiggle room

Whether you’re studying geography or English, you’ll probably find that you can choose optional modules outside of your school. This is a great way to learn something completely different to your other modules. Here at Nottingham, the psychology module, Addiction on the Brain, is popular with a variety of courses.

3. There’s different routes to the same place

I didn’t get into medicine at 18, but that doesn’t mean I can’t pursue a career as a doctor. With some exceptions, one course is not the only way to a certain profession. But remember there are so many types of jobs out there. Do your research and see what takes your fancy, then look into getting experience in those fields.

Looking back, I realise how restrictive my mind-set was. I fixated on an image of how my life should go and what steps I needed to complete.

In reality, it isn’t like that at all.

All I was doing was limiting myself to a certain path. I’ve learnt not to panic if things don’t go according to plan, because you never know whether the next opportunity will be better than the last. Sometimes you need to go with the flow to see where it takes you.

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