I need help with uni/career

[TheEagle]

Hey AN

I have used Atarnotes for a few years now and it has helped me so so much, but unfortunately it's my final months of school and I am not quite sure on what to pick as my preferences for university. I genuinely do not know what to do after year 12 (in a few months time). I have always enjoyed and loved Maths since year 3. I am doing English, Methods, Spesh, Physics, Chemistry and have already completed further in year 11. I am aiming for a perfect ATAR and look forward to doing well in all my subjects except for chem (LOL I only chose it in case I become interested in medicine + my friends are in it). I notice a lot of high achievers doing commerce at Melbourne and Monash but I never knew the reason why. Due to my lack of info on a commerce degree, I am also considering it as an option of mine. I am mainly driven by money - pay me well and I'll do the job. Any help would be appreciated

[The Cat In The Hat]

I am mainly driven by money - pay me well and I'll do the job.

I've heard engineering is a fairly well-paying job, but I could be wrong. Also that seems close-ish to what you say is your strengths. But I don't know.

[Orb]

Happy to share my experiences, the best paying jobs out of uni are usually these ones (no med actually), I also want to caveat that money isn't everything, but if this is what you want...:

Quant trading:
Pros: Normal hours (~45-50 hours a week), incredible pay (150-200k+ in Aus), lunch catered, first class flights if another office wants you
Cons: You need to be very good at maths or programming, some 30-40% of grads get fired in their first year due to poor performance (so the environment is very high stress)

Investment banking:
Pros: Good pay (~$150k+ in your first year incl. bonus), free dinners and taxis back home, good career progression (+50k comp every year)
Cons: Haha well... working 9-1am everyday and working weekends every week (at least 1 of Sat/Sun, sometimes both), having no life outside of work and the Friday night clubbing/drinks with the crew (doesn't even happen anymore because COVID)

Tech:
Pros: Decent comp ($120-140k when you factor in stocks) and very nice perks (free lunch, amazing office, etc)
Cons: There are pretty much only software engineering roles in tech companies (other roles are 20% paycut) and you have to be very good at programming

Management Consulting:
Pros: Comp is alright ($100k+), very good progression (salary doubles every ~3 years) and incredibly good perks (business class flights, 5 star hotels, huge expense budgets)
Cons: Work life balance can be very bad at times (IB level bad, so you're essentially getting paid 70% of what they earn but doing the same hours at times)

There are other high paying roles, e.g. Mining Engineers, but I don't know enough about them to make an informed comment, hope this is valuable

As for degrees, you can get into any of these roles studying any degree (Tech needs a BSci probably, and IB prefers Commerce) but the others are pretty degree indifferent

[TheEagle]

I've heard engineering is a fairly well-paying job, but I could be wrong. Also that seems close-ish to what you say is your strengths. But I don't know.

Thank you for the advice. Engineering is so broad that I do not even know what to expect… I'll perhaps do some work experience during my gap year (if I take one)

[TheEagle]

Happy to share my experiences, the best paying jobs out of uni are usually these ones (no med actually), I also want to caveat that money isn't everything, but if this is what you want...:

Quant trading:
Pros: Normal hours (~45-50 hours a week), incredible pay (150-200k+ in Aus), lunch catered, first class flights if another office wants you
Cons: You need to be very good at maths or programming, some 30-40% of grads get fired in their first year due to poor performance (so the environment is very high stress)

Investment banking:
Pros: Good pay (~$150k+ in your first year incl. bonus), free dinners and taxis back home, good career progression (+50k comp every year)
Cons: Haha well... working 9-1am everyday and working weekends every week (at least 1 of Sat/Sun, sometimes both), having no life outside of work and the Friday night clubbing/drinks with the crew (doesn't even happen anymore because COVID)

Tech:
Pros: Decent comp ($120-140k when you factor in stocks) and very nice perks (free lunch, amazing office, etc)
Cons: There are pretty much only software engineering roles in tech companies (other roles are 20% paycut) and you have to be very good at programming

Management Consulting:
Pros: Comp is alright ($100k+), very good progression (salary doubles every ~3 years) and incredibly good perks (business class flights, 5 star hotels, huge expense budgets)
Cons: Work life balance can be very bad at times (IB level bad, so you're essentially getting paid 70% of what they earn but doing the same hours at times)

There are other high paying roles, e.g. Mining Engineers, but I don't know enough about them to make an informed comment, hope this is valuable

As for degrees, you can get into any of these roles studying any degree (Tech needs a BSci probably, and IB prefers Commerce) but the others are pretty degree indifferent

Oh wow. Thank you so much for the amazing breakdown! This is too good - should be pinned somewhere in the forums?

Quant trading has really caught my eye as well as management consulting. My dad is emphasising that I should consider a course that has a heap of jobs so I don't end up jobless which is why he is encouraging me to do Med… but I don't find interest in it despite it paying fairly well.

I'll do some research on all those fields you gave me, they all seem so interesting and fun.

Thank you once again for the excellent suggestions

[sotirod11]

Happy to share my experiences, the best paying jobs out of uni are usually these ones (no med actually), I also want to caveat that money isn't everything, but if this is what you want...:

Quant trading:
Pros: Normal hours (~45-50 hours a week), incredible pay (150-200k+ in Aus), lunch catered, first class flights if another office wants you
Cons: You need to be very good at maths or programming, some 30-40% of grads get fired in their first year due to poor performance (so the environment is very high stress)

Investment banking:
Pros: Good pay (~$150k+ in your first year incl. bonus), free dinners and taxis back home, good career progression (+50k comp every year)
Cons: Haha well... working 9-1am everyday and working weekends every week (at least 1 of Sat/Sun, sometimes both), having no life outside of work and the Friday night clubbing/drinks with the crew (doesn't even happen anymore because COVID)

Tech:
Pros: Decent comp ($120-140k when you factor in stocks) and very nice perks (free lunch, amazing office, etc)
Cons: There are pretty much only software engineering roles in tech companies (other roles are 20% paycut) and you have to be very good at programming

Management Consulting:
Pros: Comp is alright ($100k+), very good progression (salary doubles every ~3 years) and incredibly good perks (business class flights, 5 star hotels, huge expense budgets)
Cons: Work life balance can be very bad at times (IB level bad, so you're essentially getting paid 70% of what they earn but doing the same hours at times)

There are other high paying roles, e.g. Mining Engineers, but I don't know enough about them to make an informed comment, hope this is valuable

As for degrees, you can get into any of these roles studying any degree (Tech needs a BSci probably, and IB prefers Commerce) but the others are pretty degree indifferent

IB is a great career, but it's also competitive as FUCK. If I'm not wrong, I believe places will cull you if you get below a 75-80 WAM. The hours, like you've mentioned, are complete shit. It's a matter of whether you are able to sacrifice sleep and social life and still function, because an exorbitant amount of your time will be spent in the office.

The pay is good, but at what cost?

pay me well and I'll do the job. Any help would be appreciated

Fair enough, it's a legit reason. If you're kick-ass at maths (which I'm sure you are considering what you wrote), keep actuarial science (a type of commerce major) in mind. Good pay, decent workload.

[JerryMouse2019]

Hi there,

Have you ever thought about joining the cyber security industry?

It is a rapidly developing industry and some jobs pay $900-$1000 per day.

Doing a double degree in computer science and maths would set you up for success in this industry very well.

Check these links out:

https://www.institutedata.com/blog/is-cyber-security-in-demand-in-australia/#:~:text=Australia%20is%20currently%20short%20of,in%20the%20sector%20by%202026.&text=Because%20of%20the%20unique%20skills,higher%20salaries%20to%20these%20professionals.

https://careerswithstem.com.au/cybersecurity-careers-need-you/

Kind Regards
JerryMouse2019