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In Singapore, more and more secondary school students are entering poly. In fact, statistics show that now, more than half (52 percent) of our O level graduates are joining poly.
But choosing a poly course can be stressful. After all, you want to join one that you will enjoy and still succeed in.
Here are six tips from a senior poly student on picking a poly course.
Shortlist Courses Based on Subjects You’re Good At
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The best way to narrow down your course options is to base them on the subjects you’re good at. Did you score an ‘A1’ for your maths and sciences? Then you might want to look at the business, medicine and engineering courses.
Or if you took Arts Elective Programme and scored well in that subject, you might want to consider courses like architecture or design. When you choose your poly course based on the subjects you did well in, your chances of doing well in poly also increase.
This is because you have a solid base and understanding of the relevant subjects, making it easier to understand and complete the modules in the course. You are also more likely to enjoy the course if you do well, so that’s an added bonus.
Use Your Hobbies as a Guide
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Using your hobbies as a guide to choosing a course is a great way to ensure that you enjoy your three year journey in poly. After all, you’re doing something that you love and are passionate about!
You also have first-hand experience that you can apply to your assignments and projects, which helps you score better and get a good Grade Point Average (GPA).
If you have had this hobby for many years, you might have projects outside your course ones that you can add to your portfolio! This portfolio will help you when you apply for jobs and internships because your employers will use it to view your work.
Use Your Career Goals
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Sometimes, you might have an idea of what job you want for your future career or what company you want to work for. These are some career goals that you might want to use to guide your decision in choosing a poly course.
For example, if the position you want to work in is in the business industry, you might like to look at business courses. Another way to use your career goals to choose your poly course is by looking at the job requirements.
In certain jobs, you are required to have a diploma or a degree in a specific course, so consider applying to the specified courses.
Go for General Courses
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When selecting your course, I highly recommend going for a more general one. This is best if you don’t know what you want to specialise in yet.
General courses offer modules covering various specialisations, so you can experiment and see what you like. After that, you can choose your specialisation in your second year or university based on your experience and grades for the relevant modules.
For example, Engineering with Business has modules for various engineering specialisations like computer engineering and robotics and business specialisations like digital marketing and accounting.
Take an Online Aptitude Test
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Personality tests are not just a great way to have fun, they are also a great way to guide you to choosing the best poly course for you. In aptitude tests, you gain more insight into your strengths and weaknesses and the kinds of environments you thrive in.
When you take these tests, they direct you to industries or workforce positions that maximise your potential. This lets you narrow your course options down to those that work towards these specific positions or industries.
Here are some online aptitude tests that you can try out:
1. Career Fitter
2. Enneagram personality test
3. Quotev quizzes like ‘Which Ngee Ann Poly Course Is For YOU?’
4. Education.com career test
5. Career diagnostic quiz
Reach Out to School Seniors and Course Lecturers
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If you can’t decide what course to choose, you should reach out to school seniors and course lecturers. This gives you more insight into the courses you’re interested in.
Ask about the nature of projects, whether the assignments are manageable, and what students learn in the course. With seniors, you can ask about their experience in the course and what are their ‘expectations versus reality’.
With lecturers, you might want to ask about electives and course progression. You can also ask about internship opportunities and projects. If you don’t know anybody in the course, you might want to visit their open house instead.
Conclusion
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Choosing a poly course can be daunting, especially since it – more often than not- decides your future career path.
But hopefully, this article helps you to narrow down your course options and guides you to choose a course that is the most compatible for you.
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