OVERACHIEVED IN MY LC AND NOW I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MY LIFE??!1

idk4y

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119773069#Comment_119773069

Yeah, it’s weird but I haven’t given it much thought. I know people who take to maths/physics very well but struggle with chemistry, I know people who loved geometry but hated financial maths and probability. Our brains all work in different ways and I don’t see why that’s strange.

idk4y

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119753635#Comment_119753635

this was really in depth and insightful thanks!

amacca

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119773100#Comment_119773100

It's not a criticism really

I never liked stats but I can do them, I often wonder whats the split between can't and don't want to because I dislike it with people (not that theres anything wrong with doing what you prefer...but I always hear people tack on phrases like "oh Im not good at that" when they are clearly as proficient as the next lad that thinks hes great....I think a lot of people (myself included) are a lot more capable than we think and are sometimes quick to dismiss something or downplay abilities based on preference which may or may not be limiting options.

Anyway like I meant to convey make of it what you will...it may not be relevant or applicable in your case and its definitely nothing more than a thought that sprang to mind as I read through the opening post.

If you are convinced it's between CS and Pharmacy who am I to argue.

gameoverdude

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119773074#Comment_119773074

I don't want to put you off at all, but actuarial maths is tough. You obviously have an aptitude for the subject, so go for it!

Actuary is a high stress job by the way. Loads of dosh, but very high stress.

josip

I was in a similar position over 30 years ago. I liked the sciences (physics and chem) and was good enough at maths although I struggled with 2nd order differentiation. My CAO choices at the time were Pharmacy (1), Industrial Biochemistry (Limerick?), Biotechnology (DCU?). A few weeks before CAO deadline I added Comp Sci (Trinity) on a bit of a whim. I'd done a little bit of basic programming during 6th year so I wasn't a total noob. Unlike you I didn't get enough points for Pharmacy, but did get enough for Comp Sci so ended up doing a 'Sciency' degree but without test tubes and stuff.

This was 30 years ago so I appreciate things have changed and Comp Sci will differ from college to college. I was friends with 5 or 6 of the Pharmacy students all through, so I had some insight into their course also. Comp Sci had a few whizz kids at the time, some off the wall intelligent people, a lot of normal students (like me :) and some people totally lost who didn't know how they ended up in there. Our course had a lot of (unnecessary) hardware and maths content. The hardware was fine, but I struggled at the maths. Cramming and short term memory that had served me well in secondary school came up short in uni for maths. Managed all the other parts fine and been working since then in IT. A Comp Sci degree will encompass more than being able to code in a couple of languages, and you probably won't know for sure if it's for you until you've done a couple of years of it. But if it's not for you, you're likely to find this out much sooner. The opportunities are endless and although it's an unlicensed profession, your ability is your security. Especially if you have teamworking/interpersonal skills. Course gender ratio at the time was 4:1 Male:Female

The pharmacists always seemed to have a heavier workload in college and although they never pulled all nighters like we used to, they did spend a lot more time throughout the year studying revising and just being very mature about learning their coursework. Perhaps the 2:1 Female:Male ratio was the reason for that more mature serious approach to college. My friends did say it was very competitive. Some went on to be dispensing pharmacists where they described themselves as glorified drugs police and said it was generally very boring but you had to be constantly alert in case of a mis prescription from a GP that would have very serious consequences. Others went for big pharma and were pretty soon out of hands-on and oversaw trials and handled regulation. They also didn't seem particularly enthused. The ones who enjoyed it most went travelling to Oz for a few years where they were able to locum for good money and came back to do Meth clinics for very good money and lots of excitement. But that's not a career path for everyone.

Might be totally different now and all the above is anecdotal. Whatever choice you make, push on with it and don't look back.

sheesh

go down to your local pharmacy and ask them can you stand in there for a few days they will be more than happy to as they might want you to do locums after you graduate. btw when you get older you could get away with doing 2 days a week locums to get yourself by.

pharmacy can be meaningful if you like helping people.

for IT if you get a good degree in Computer science you could just go into the financial sector and stay in there for as long as you want. Someone I know did that

you know you could do a programming course online like right now and see if you have any aptitude for programming. there are other sides to CS like security databases any of which you could look at right now.

Again see if you can get time in an IT company. you are taking a year out to see about what you want to do start finding out about it.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119773074#Comment_119773074

From your original post you seem to have received mostly H1's in your Leaving Cert. I would say you have the brains for it. You are also clearly a hard worker, which is a requirement for the profession. Actuarial Science also has a decent amount of computer programming, so in the future if you decided that a career as an Actuary wasn't for you, you could divert into a Computer Programming type role.

If it was me personally I would forget Pharmacy. My cousin is one and he had to spend years doing locum work before he got a permanent position. That involved driving to different counties, long commutes. The job itself also gets quite boring quite quickly (according to him)

BrianBoru00

Pharmacy.

Enjoy your five years in college.

Get a job.

______

Your college course will mould you to some degree but the mechanics behind both really aren't that different in that both your choices will be focused on finding a solution to a problem .

I know that five years sounds like a long time and it is - it's about 30% of the life you ve lived so far. But enjoy the experience , study hard but play hard,- join society's , make new friends and you ll get far more than a piece of paper at the end of it.

But you've no idea what your circumstances will be at 30/40/50.a

having that degree is a great base and it sounds as though you enjoy the topic

You may decide then that you'd like to do computer science after all - there are plenty of one year masters programmes you can complete to change careers.

You may decide you thought the lecturers had a great work life balance and move into academia.

I know people who ve made even bigger jumps ...actors to IT, geography teachers to engineers, solicitors to musicians , plumber to teache.

Some of the jobs available to you In ten years time haven't been created yet.

So take advice that i didn't - pick your undergraduate degree based on the course and the topics you enjoy studying -

There's always opportunities to change path and nothing is forever

yourdeadwright

Do whatever makes you the most money, even if it takes up all your time in your 20s & 30's , then take the foot off the pedal in your 40s i

I wasted my youth on fun & free time ,Now that im older with a wife & kids im having to work hard & missing out on some of the most important things in life

Make money when your young & able to do mad hours,