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Career Series: Choosing a Backup Plan
139 Plays3 years ago
In this episode we are speaking to Lisa: a recent graduate who is entering university to study her backup career option!
We discuss:
- The difficulty of getting into your desired career
- The importance of having a great backup course option
- How to discover the right backup course that you will enjoy and be great at
- ... and so much more!
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Check out our Instagram page @allthingseducation21
Stay educated everyone!
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Transcript
Introduction to Backup Plans
00:00:11
Speaker
Hello, hello, hello and welcome back, everyone, to the All Things Education podcast, where we learn tips and tricks to achieve our best in secondary and tertiary education.
00:00:21
Speaker
If you are new to this channel, hello, my name is Mary Coleman. And as always, I am so excited to welcome you to the episode today.
Lisa's Path: From Disappointment to Success
00:00:28
Speaker
Okay, so today we're actually going to be talking about how plans don't always work out. Specifically, we're going to be talking to an amazing guest. Her name is Lisa and she received an ATAR of 96.20. So you may remember her from our previous episode.
00:00:44
Speaker
Well, we actually spoke to four different individuals who all got an ATAR over 95. But even though Lisa is doing what she absolutely is super passionate about and will be brilliant at, it actually wasn't her first preference. So this episode, we are going to be exploring how great our backup options can be and how they can actually end up being the perfect career pathway. All right, let's jump right into the episode. Let's get educated.
The Importance of Having a Backup Plan
00:01:18
Speaker
Okay, so just before we jump into our discussion with Lisa today, I just wanted to talk a little bit about my personal story. So I didn't actually choose my backup option. I didn't really have a backup option actually. And I really just wanted to stress to you guys that it is super important to have that backup option, to have that backup plan. As we'll hear with Lisa in a minute, it's really easy to not get into the course that you want to and things can happen that
00:01:45
Speaker
you just were totally not expecting and that means you have to fall back on your backup plan which is why it is extremely important to have a solid plan B option my one and only goal was just to get into psychology and I did in the end which was great but if I didn't and I didn't have that backup option I'm not really sure what I would have fallen back on and that could have been really catastrophic for me so I would really guys like just to stress the importance of having that backup option
00:02:14
Speaker
Okay, so now we've got that out of the way and you guys have heard from me what not to
Challenges in Pursuing Dentistry
00:02:19
Speaker
do. Let us welcome Lisa, our guest on the podcast today, so how are you doing Lisa? Hi, so I'm good. Well, actually, I did get COVID about two weeks ago, but I'm recovering now.
00:02:36
Speaker
you know, experiencing some post-viral cough after COVID. So throughout this episode, if I do cough, then just don't mind me. Yeah, for sure. I apologise.
00:02:49
Speaker
No, that's totally fine. Do not stress at all. Okay, so let's just talk about, just to start things off, what profession did you want to go into? So initially I wanted to go into dentistry or oral health and get in. Yeah, wow. And how long have you been wanting to do dentistry slash oral health for?
00:03:13
Speaker
Um, I guess maybe since year 10 or year 11. Well, I think maybe year 10, because during that time we had to do this subject called PLP. Yeah. I don't remember what, I don't remember what it was this dance for, but it was just like,
00:03:30
Speaker
just had to like kind of play that your personal learning plan yeah yeah like you had to play that your feature yeah yeah and that's sort of when you figured out that's what you wanted to do yeah actually yeah like i actually wanted to do i wanted to go to a dental clinic for my work experience oh yeah but the thing is i didn't for some reason i couldn't get into any dental clinic like no one would accept me so then the only place that accepted me was
00:03:57
Speaker
my primary school, my old primary school. So I went there instead. Cool. Yeah, nice. And what was your motivation to explore dentistry and kind of explore that field?
00:04:10
Speaker
I think, I'm not too sure, but it just, it's quite random. I think it's because there's this one old scholar that went to our school and I kind of just look up to her a lot. So I looked up to her and I was like, oh, I want to do dentistry one day as well. And so I kind of just told my parents that I want to do dentistry and they're like, yeah, do it. It's such a great profession. Like, you know, good pay. And yeah.
00:04:38
Speaker
That's why I wanted to get into that field. And when your parents encourage a certain occupation, it does sometimes seem like it's the right choice because your parents are endorsing it. So yeah, I completely understand that whole side of things. And plus in the 11th, during research projects, classes, I would finish my work early and I have nothing to do. So I would go on YouTube and for some reason,
Backup Options and Family Expectations
00:05:04
Speaker
I would get video recommendations of team extractions, putting braces on. It's a sign. I thought it was a sign. I watched it and I was quite interested. Could you talk to us a little bit about how that didn't really work out for you? To get an offer in,
00:05:31
Speaker
those kind of professions. Yeah, the medical field. You have to do the UCAT and if you pass the UCAT, then you get an interview offer. So with me, I didn't get a good UCAT score. So I never got an interview offer. So that was an option for me at the end of the year too.
00:05:57
Speaker
And Lisa, I just did want to mention as a side note to the listeners, if you guys are interested in finding out more about applying for medicine and applying for the UCAT and kind of that whole
00:06:08
Speaker
side of things, you can check out our previous episode where we're speaking to Justina. But yes, Lisa, I completely agree. And the UCAT is so competitive, you would have wanted to have some backup options, I guess. I had a lot of backup options, actually. That's so good. Because I was quite indecisive. Some of my backup options were like, I wanted to go interstate or do occupational therapy, pharmacy, teaching. It's a bunch. I could literally list everything.
00:06:39
Speaker
I thought that I would have gone to like a health course because my sister is a nurse. So I think I had a lot of like expectations for my family that I have to go into like, you know, a health profession. Yes. Yes. And family expectation plays such a pressure point when you're choosing a career, because if you've got, like you said, an older sister or older siblings and family, friends,
00:07:08
Speaker
aunties, uncles, cousins, whatever, who are in a certain line of field. It definitely plays a big part on what you want to do, right? Because you feel this need to kind of
00:07:21
Speaker
do what they're doing as well because they're doing it in a way. And it's not necessarily peer pressure, but it is that kind of familial expectation. So I totally get that. So I guess how did you choose your backup option out of all of the options that you had? Was there anything that inspired you? So how did you figure that out?
Choosing Teaching as a Backup Plan
00:07:41
Speaker
So one of the backup options that I was quite solid. I knew that I kind of liked was
00:07:51
Speaker
teaching out of OT or pharmacy, et cetera. I knew that I liked science. My favorite subject is chemistry. And I was quite good with help deliver content to other people. So I did some tutoring, not tutoring, I was just looking up my friends in high school. I had a friend actually, so she's studying surgery at
00:08:18
Speaker
James Cook University this year. By the time that episode comes out, I think she's already in Cairns. Just a shout out to my friend Monica. She's the one who actually pushed me to pursue teaching. That's so beautiful. I remember at graduation as well, the old scholar who was ducks one year, how she spoke to us about courses and choosing the right career for you. I was quite inspired. She said something about how
00:08:46
Speaker
Just do a course that will make you happy and you don't need to care about what other people think about it, etc. You just do what you love. Yeah, something you're passionate about. And did that inspire you to then go after and pursue teaching?
00:09:02
Speaker
Yeah, so yeah, so the next day I actually emailed my maths teacher. Yeah. So I emailed my maths teacher because on my grand night I was given the Darts of General Maths Award. Well, I've got joint doubts. Yeah, nice, nice. Congratulations. Thank you. So I just, you know, emailed my maths teacher and I kind of just thanked her and then she said, oh yeah, so if you want to like pursue teaching, I have plenty of resources and
00:09:32
Speaker
you know just reach out when you need help and I was like wow this is this is a sign yes yes no literally it's all coming to place that's so good so yeah so I was like you know this is my solid MB yes that's so good so I guess what made you choose secondary students and wanting to pursue secondary teaching over primary school or preschool yeah um
00:09:57
Speaker
When I was little, I always looked up to my teachers. So there was more primary teaching, but I knew that I didn't want to be a primary school teacher. And then I went to high school and then, you know, all my teachers were great. Like I loved every single one of them. And plus I did some tutoring of, well, again, not tutoring, I was just helping out the girls.
00:10:19
Speaker
Yeah, it just made me feel good in that I'm helping people. Yeah, that's so good. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's such a nice feeling when you're like, just, I don't know, giving to other people when it's just, I don't even know how to explain it. You know, you just give to other people when it just feels so nice. Yeah. So do you have any plans to pursue?
00:10:38
Speaker
something similar to teaching like this year like the tutor for students or anything like that or are you gonna jump into university? I will be doing a double degree so a Bachelor of Secondary Teaching with a Bachelor of Science so alongside I will be teaching at a Vietnamese ethnic school on Saturdays so I will just be looking after like the little kids like the young little kids
00:11:08
Speaker
Yeah, so you know just to get some classroom experience. Yeah, nice. I'm also doing some tutoring so I currently have six students.
Teaching Aspirations and Cultural Experience
00:11:19
Speaker
Wow, that's awesome. Yeah, I'm just working as an academic tutor and I'm hoping to get an SSO role. Yeah, and just did you want to explain kind of... To the listeners who didn't know what SSO is.
00:11:38
Speaker
is, I think it's a student support officer. Yeah, yeah. I didn't even know what it stood for. So that's awesome. Yeah, I think that's like a few. I think it stands for a few things. But yeah, that's what that's my understanding. Yeah, nice. And is it sort of like a support helper for students with disabilities or just struggle with class?
00:12:01
Speaker
I guess a little bit of both, or like whoever needs assistance, like just like another tutor, I guess. But I need to do more research in the role. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. So sort of just like an extra pair of hands, an extra support network for the students? Yeah, I think, yeah, probably. Yeah. I'm quite worried because of COVID right now. Everything is so crazy, and it's like, I can't let me back in, et cetera.
00:12:28
Speaker
Yeah, you know, yes, that's fair back into the schools. Yeah. Yeah. So what's really piqued your interest in particularly focusing on secondary school and focusing on the secondary students who are about to graduate? Well, I think, well, I just graduated high school, so that's still fresh. It will be easy for me to
00:12:53
Speaker
talk to secondary kids if they're like primary children like i don't know how to talk to little kids so like my yeah my personality i love talking about like you know um sometimes when i'm just in the car and i you know going to the beach i would literally explain
00:13:12
Speaker
things about ocean acidification. Little kids don't understand that. It's kind of hard to explain it to them if they don't understand the concept in the first place. If I become a chem teacher and I talk about ocean acidification to my students, they would understand what I'm talking about. So yeah, I think I'm a nerd. Everyone has their inner nerd, trust me. I think that is really fair what you're saying because
00:13:38
Speaker
you are focusing more on the advanced knowledge. So the primary school teachers will instill that, you know, fundamental, that basic knowledge about the ocean and, you know, how the ocean works. And then you're kind of jumping in and going, okay, here's the chemistry behind it. So it's great that you figured out your niche in the area that you really want to hone in on for the students. That's nice. Awesome.
00:13:59
Speaker
Alrighty guys, so we have not quite finished the episode just yet We've got a couple of announcements and final comments to make so stay tuned until the very end Lisa has not finished talking yet But we hope you are really enjoying this episode so far I know I am taking up so many new tips and tricks and I have found that Lisa has such a passion and love for teaching and she's discovered that this backup option of hers is actually working so well in her favor, so
00:14:23
Speaker
amazing job to her and I hope that you guys if you are considering your backup option or are choosing your backup option you're able to take a little bit of inspiration from Lisa and just kind of see where she's taken it and how the decision-making process went about for her anyway guys let's jump right back into the episode just wanted to take a quick break and let you guys know that if you aren't already following our Instagram page definitely go check that out you can find it at
00:14:46
Speaker
All Things Education 21. And please, it'd be amazing if you could spread the word about this podcast. We would love you guys to spread the word about it to your friends, your colleagues, your family, anyone that you could think of. Spread the word about this because this is definitely something that everyone needs to be educated about. All right, let's jump right back into the episode. Lisa, did you have any final comments or anything like that for those considering their backup career or undertaking it currently?
00:15:11
Speaker
um well i guess with like the year 12s when you're listening to this podcast right now like i think it's quite it's still a bit early for you to like choose your career yeah like for example i still don't know if i'll be sticking with this career like forever
Advice for Students on Flexibility and Career Paths
00:15:31
Speaker
yeah yeah so um like even if your first preference doesn't work out maybe your second preference doesn't work out either but you just gotta you know
00:15:40
Speaker
give it some time and just don't stress over it because life is quite unexpected. Everything's just running to your face.
00:16:11
Speaker
Whatever you can do and you've got months to decide before you really have to definitely choose a course. So that is amazing. Wow. Okay. So thank you so much, Lisa, for joining us today. We really appreciate, you know, the tips and tricks and the advice that you've shared, you know, opening up your story.
00:16:30
Speaker
Thank you for having me. Oh, you're most welcome. No, any time. Yeah, it was so much fun. Thank you so much for coming on a second time. Really appreciate it. But yeah, I think just you shared some amazing knowledge and just kind of you've talked about your own personal story. So thank you so much for opening up about that.
00:16:49
Speaker
and I'm sure that all the people listening to this right now are able just to really see that taking a backup option and choosing that backup pathway can definitely still lead you to the career you want and if it doesn't then you know there are so many other ways you can you know get into
00:17:04
Speaker
your preferred career so thank you so much and definitely stay in touch.
Episode Summary: Passion and Planning
00:17:10
Speaker
Alrighty guys, well that is actually all from us today at All Things Education and if you liked this episode be sure to let us know. I think the main takeaway tip for me was definitely you need to listen to yourself, your own heart and really find out where your passion lies in the career you want to be choosing and of course you can talk to others about the career you should be doing
00:17:33
Speaker
Um, such as your career counselor and people that can kind of guide you along that pathway to identify your interests and your hobbies. But when it all comes down to it, I think what Lisa was really trying to get at is that you need to listen to yourself and choose something that's going to make you happy and something that you're going to be passionate about and will really enjoy. Of course you do need to take into account the things like salary and
00:17:57
Speaker
workload and if you want to be balancing a family life or other hobbies but really just focusing on what career you want to be doing and choosing it only because you enjoy it and you enjoy learning and helping people or whatever aspects you enjoy about the career you've chosen. So don't forget to subscribe to this podcast on your favorite podcasting platform and just remember guys that the advice given on this channel and on our socials is general information only.
00:18:25
Speaker
And if you ever have any specific personal health or wellbeing or educational issues, definitely just reach out to a professional like your GP.
00:18:35
Speaker
school counselor or just a trusted person in your life before making any final decisions. Please do not take this episode as specific personal advice but hopefully now you have a little bit more information about the topic that we've talked about today and how plans don't always work out and how backup plans can you know really be helpful and we might have to use them sometimes.
00:18:56
Speaker
Alrighty, so thank you so much for listening to the All Things Education podcast. I am your host, Mary Coleman. For more tips and tricks, definitely go check out our Instagram page at allthingseducation21. If you have any inquiries, you can send us a DM through our Instagram, or you can email us at allthingseducation21 at gmail.com. Alrighty, guys, we shall see you in the next episode. Don't forget to stay educated and have an amazing day.