Year 9 Students, 

You are coming to a very important transition in your education when the choices and decisions you make will affect your future and career paths. For the first time since you started at primary school you have some choice about what you will study next year. This needs to be taken very seriously so that you make the right choices for you. You will be guided through this process by the Year 9 Team, Miss Sweet, Heads of Faculty, and your parents- however the final decision is yours. 

Here is some advice I'd like to share with you:

• 'Do something you enjoy. You will be studying the subject for five hours every fortnight for the rest of your time at secondary school'.

• 'Don’t choose something just because your friends are, as you are not guaranteed you will be in the same group'.

• 'Don’t choose a subject because you like the teacher as the teacher may not be here in the future'.

• 'Try to think about a possible career that interests you and you would like to do when you are older. Then research what subjects are needed to allow you to be successful in working towards your career goal'.

• 'Think about picking a subject with a practical element to allow you to have variety in learning that is not just theoretical'.

• 'Choose subjects you are good at to prevent as much stress as possible. You need to be able to do well in the subjects you pick as they will be your stepping stones to your future career as an adult'.

• 'Consider studying a language as employers and Universities look at students who have studied a language favourably'.

• 'Make sure the options to choose are the ones YOU want, not friends or family'.

Ms Down