How to guide Year 11 students through their subject choices

Midway through high school, grade 10 (year 11) students face a choice that will shape their next two years and have an impact on their university journey: their subject choice.

Whether students are choosing A levels, DP subjects in the IB programme or APs, the opportunity to dive into the next level of academic rigour offered by a school is an exciting – and daunting – one.

Having chosen AP subjects myself a long time ago, and currently helping my students choose their courses, I put together some reflections.

Early-stage preparation

Introduce key terminology 

Counsellors live and breathe concepts such as “minimum requirements” and “subject choice” but our grade 10 students and parents do not. Go over basic terminology with them so that you are speaking the same language. 

Terms I naturally use and I realised I had to explain are:

• minimum requirements, entry requirements, admission requirements
• required subjects, preferred subjects, recommended subjects
• advanced level, college-level classes 
• academic rigour, subject-specific readiness. 

Beyond the terminology, it is essential to go over why this demands a great deal of attention and reflection. Students’ subject choice will greatly affect their final two years of high school, and will open and close doors when they apply to university. 

Assess their performance so far

There is no better predictor of how a student will fare in advanced classes than their past performance. For instance, if a student wants to take physics while scoring four out of seven in their mathematics class, it’s a good time to check their motivation and reasoning, and call the breaks if necessary.

If you have time, chat with subject teachers, who will have a deep understanding of students’ potential in their subject. School policies may also dictate course choice based on previous performance, so keep that in mind, too.

Understand that every student is unique

Should I choose a harder course that may be better for my major or an easier course to get a higher grade? Should I choose a certain class at a higher or lower level? 

Students tend to ask questions about underlying important factors such as rigour, stress, capacity, ability, fit, university readiness and motivation. Probing at each aspect for a student can help establish the uniqueness of each case and enable you to support them in striking a balance between these factors. 

Students will bring anecdotes told by older students about classes and the way they’re taught. This is certainly useful information but do warn them that we don’t know the older student’s unique situation – everyone responds to classes differently. 

Collaborations and constraints

Collaborate with teaching colleagues

While we as counsellors can advise students on the university implications, we need to rely on the expertise of staff who know the actual classes – including the nitty-gritty details, such as exactly how Maths AI and Maths AA differ. 

Organise taster courses with subject teachers so that students can find out what it actually feels like to sit in class XYZ, instead of just hearing about it. 

Involve parents 

At our school, we conduct DP subject choice meetings with parents. Alternatively, a parent workshop or at least an email alerts them to the importance of this decision for their children’s future. 

Ensure that the parents’ voices are heard but that it’s ultimately the student’s decision. Lay out the timeline, and give students and parents time to decide and discuss this important choice together. 

Remember school policies and scheduling restrictions

In an ideal world, a student can take whatever subject they want. In reality, however, we are constrained by real-world restrictions and resource limitations. What are existing school policies? What teachers are available? What are scheduling constraints? Knowing this (or tag-teaming it with the DP coordinator) is crucial when you advise students.

Specific subjects and regional impact

Do (or don’t do) the maths

The most important class in this decision (which often catches students by surprise) is mathematics. It has a far reach to myriad subjects, from life sciences to business, psychology to physics, and even medicine and engineering. Often students are surprised when they hear that a university may not require a student to have taken computer science or business to pursue those majors but will require a certain level of aptitude in maths. The IB has a useful guide for this.

Location, location, location

The DP and I start off our subject choice meeting by asking students about the majors they want to study, and then about the country where they want to study. 

Depending on the country, our advice changes from “This subject will likely be nice to have” (for countries, such as the US or South Korea, that don’t posit strict subject requirements) to “If you don’t take this subject, you cannot apply to the course you want” (for countries with more stringent requirements, such as the UK and Hong Kong). Show students the university website with required subjects and scores and teach them how to navigate it.

Advanced advising 

‘I don’t know what I want to study’

Perhaps it’s unfair that we make 15- and 16-year-olds decide what they want to be for the rest of their life. So it’s natural that we often see cases where they want to study two completely different subjects (medicine and law) or simply cannot make up their mind. 

Other than suggesting countries, such as the US, that are blissfully flexible with their majors and requirements, think about combinations that would allow students to apply to as many majors and countries as possible. Aptitude in mathematics and English as well as traditional sciences (biology, chemistry, physics, rather than design and technology or computer science) can set them up to apply to a broader range of universities and majors when they do have a clearer idea in a year or two. 

Provide links, data and anecdotes 

Be prepared with tools that help make a case, whatever it may be. First, a collection of university website links to admissions requirements is helpful – locate these before the meeting, because these websites can be confusing to navigate. 

Examples of helpful data include grade boundaries and statistical bulletins, which show the requisite marks to earn a certain score and the proportion of students who end up earning that score, respectively. This can clarify discussions along the lines of “But I heard that class was really hard...” 

We humans love stories, so anecdotes can work wonders. These can range from encouraging stories of how certain classes aided students in their applications to horror stories about how a student failed to apply to a major because they didn’t take a certain class. Use these according to the situation and purpose given.

Paint pictures and point out unconsidered paths 

This may be the student’s first time thinking in concrete terms about their life at university. Help them by showing the different majors that a certain course choice would allow. 

This is also an excellent time to show students (and parents) trajectories they have not yet considered, or to present a more nuanced picture of what it means to study a certain subject in university. For instance, when a student wants to study design, I show how this looks different in different universities (for example, using the case study of Hong Kong: HKU – BASc design; HKUST – Integrative systems and design; PolyU – design) and how their requirements can differ widely (requiring a portfolio – or not; requiring design tech or a specific mathematics course – or not). 

Following up 

Delineate consequences

Go over the consequences of subject combinations, especially if a student is set on a non-traditional combination that could limit university applications later. 

Put the points of discussion down in writing, so that you have evidence of all the lines of reasoning and how the conclusion was reached. If necessary, follow up and send links and resources that students should consider during their decision-making process, copying in appropriate stakeholders such as the parent, DP coordinator and subject teacher. 

Encourage and empower 

Despite all the weightiness and possible stress of this process, it can also be an incredibly exciting and encouraging opportunity for students. This is precisely the time to build student agency through choice. 

So motivate them and ensure that they’re making the choice they truly want – and that they’re as informed and affirmed as they should be – at this important time in their lives.