Beyond High School to a World of Opportunity
View(s):Co-Founder and Coach,
Joys of Total Wealth, Sydney, Australia
Choosing a university, vocational college or training opportunity is a major decision. With a thoughtful, well-structured approach, it can be an exciting and empowering process. It is a significant investment of your time and money, so you would like to make sure you have done the needful before embarking on this new chapter.
Here are some steps to guide you:
1. Self-Reflection
This is the “looking within” step.
Identify Your Interests and Strengths: What do you enjoy? Which A Levels subjects are you good at? Think about what subjects or activities you enjoyed at school and/or were good at. This could guide you toward a course aligned with your passions and capabilities.
Consider Your Goals: What would you like to achieve? What are your values in life? Where do you see yourself in the future? You can think about careers you’re interested in and the qualifications they require.
Co-Founder and Coach,
Joys of Total Wealth, Sydney, Australia
Choosing a university, vocational college or training opportunity is a major decision. With a thoughtful, well-structured approach, it can be an exciting and empowering process. It is a significant investment of your time and money, so you would like to make sure you have done the needful before embarking on this new chapter.
Here are some steps to guide you:
1. Self-Reflection
This is the “looking within” step.
Identify Your Interests and Strengths: What do you enjoy? Which A Levels subjects are you good at? Think about what subjects or activities you enjoyed at school and/or were good at. This could guide you toward a course aligned with your passions and capabilities.
Consider Your Goals: What would you like to achieve? What are your values in life? Where do you see yourself in the future? You can think about careers you’re interested in and the qualifications they require.
2. Explore Your Options
Do your Research: Have a look into
the courses related to your interests. You can analyse the curriculum (subject offering each term), specialisations, and skills offered.
Learn About Universities: Factors like location, reputation, faculty expertise, teaching quality and outcomes, campus facilities, and student life play a role. You may list institutions that align with your priorities. You can check rankings for a bit of guidance on which universities specialise in your area of interest.
QS World University Rankings 2025: Top Global Universities | Top Universities
World University Rankings 2025 | Times Higher Education (THE)
You can also follow universities on LinkedIn to follow their areas of research, their teaching focus and ranking. University of Peradeniya and University of Colombo, for example, have very active LinkedIn pages.
Foreign Universities offer degrees in Sri Lanka through colleges like Royal Institute and Universal College Sri Lanka (UCL), and some have their own campuses in Sri Lanka like Edith Cowan and UTS.
For Vocational Colleges and Technical Colleges: there are specialised colleges – for example in Sri Lanka, you have Vocational Universities, such as the University of Vocational Technology (UNIVOTEC) in Dehiwala; in Australia you have the Technical and Further Education (TAFE) Institutes which offer vocational-based courses such as Accounting, Beauty and Horticulture. USA’s equivalent is Community Colleges and Vocational schools in UK these are called Polytechnics.
There are private colleges, which are private educational institutes like Nawaloka College of Higher Studies and NEXT Campus. They provide an alternative to Government-funded Technical Colleges. You can do research on course offerings and costs- more will be covered in the next section.
Apprenticeships are another avenue to consider. This combines on-the-job learning with formal study, often in a vocational or private college. This allows individuals to gain practical skills, and earn a qualification, while earning a salary. This is common for trades such as motor mechanics and carpenters.
Internships are similar to apprenticeships, but they are for professional services like accounting and legal. Participating organisations, such as the Big 4 Accounting and Consulting firms, will pay a small salary for part-time work. This can make transitioning into the workforce easier than moving straight from university to the workforce.
Overseas experience or a gap year is where a high school graduate or leaver takes some time off to travel and work. This can be a great way to switch off from study for a bit, and build life skills, like cross-cultural communication, independence and working in another country, which can be viewed upon favourably in one’s future career.
3.Consider Practicalities
- Budget and Financial Support: How much is the chosen option going to cost? Understand tuition fees, living costs, and scholarships that may be available.
- Admission Requirements: Ensure you meet the academic qualifications, entrance exam scores, pre-requisites, and other criteria.
- For Vocational Education, it is wise to consider the benefit of Government Funding for some courses. This is a key advantage of Government-funded Vocational Colleges. Also, after completion of the course, one is quite likely to land a job in the profession.
- On the other hand, the key advantage of private colleges is that they specialise in specific vocations. They may offer more tailored courses to get you job-ready for the selected profession.
- A great benefit of Apprenticeships is that you earn while you learn – you do not have to go searching around for casual jobs to support your studies like university and other coursework. But at a young age, it may be difficult to balance both work and study.
- Although it is great for self-development, taking a gap year can be costly, especially if travelling overseas and limited income is being earnt. The cost needs to be considered. However, taking a year for self-discovery and self-development can be quite beneficial.
Co-Founder and Coach,
Joys of Total Wealth, Sydney, Australia
Choosing a university, vocational college or training opportunity is a major decision. With a thoughtful, well-structured approach, it can be an exciting and empowering process. It is a significant investment of your time and money, so you would like to make sure you have done the needful before embarking on this new chapter.
Here are some steps to guide you:
1. Self-Reflection
This is the “looking within” step.
Identify Your Interests and Strengths: What do you enjoy? Which A Levels subjects are you good at? Think about what subjects or activities you enjoyed at school and/or were good at. This could guide you toward a course aligned with your passions and capabilities.
Consider Your Goals: What would you like to achieve? What are your values in life? Where do you see yourself in the future? You can think about careers you’re interested in and the qualifications they require.
2. Explore Your Options
Do your Research: Have a look into
the courses related to your interests. You can analyse the curriculum (subject offering each term), specialisations, and skills offered.
Learn About Universities: Factors like location, reputation, faculty expertise, teaching quality and outcomes, campus facilities, and student life play a role. You may list institutions that align with your priorities. You can check rankings for a bit of guidance on which universities specialise in your area of interest.
QS World University Rankings 2025: Top Global Universities | Top Universities
World University Rankings 2025 | Times Higher Education (THE)
You can also follow universities on LinkedIn to follow their areas of research, their teaching focus and ranking. University of Peradeniya and University of Colombo, for example, have very active LinkedIn pages.
Foreign Universities offer degrees in Sri Lanka through colleges like Royal Institute and Universal College Sri Lanka (UCL), and some have their own campuses in Sri Lanka like Edith Cowan and UTS.
For Vocational Colleges and Technical Colleges: there are specialised colleges – for example in Sri Lanka, you have Vocational Universities, such as the University of Vocational Technology (UNIVOTEC) in Dehiwala; in Australia you have the Technical and Further Education (TAFE) Institutes which offer vocational-based courses such as Accounting, Beauty and Horticulture. USA’s equivalent is Community Colleges and Vocational schools in UK these are called Polytechnics.
There are private colleges, which are private educational institutes like Nawaloka College of Higher Studies and NEXT Campus. They provide an alternative to Government-funded Technical Colleges. You can do research on course offerings and costs- more will be covered in the next section.
Apprenticeships are another avenue to consider. This combines on-the-job learning with formal study, often in a vocational or private college. This allows individuals to gain practical skills, and earn a qualification, while earning a salary. This is common for trades such as motor mechanics and carpenters.
Internships are similar to apprenticeships, but they are for professional services like accounting and legal. Participating organisations, such as the Big 4 Accounting and Consulting firms, will pay a small salary for part-time work. This can make transitioning into the workforce easier than moving straight from university to the workforce.
Overseas experience or a gap year is where a high school graduate or leaver takes some time off to travel and work. This can be a great way to switch off from study for a bit, and build life skills, like cross-cultural communication, independence and working in another country, which can be viewed upon favourably in one’s future career.
3.Consider Practicalities
n Budget and Financial Support: How much is the chosen option going to cost? Understand tuition fees, living costs, and scholarships that may be available.
n Admission Requirements: Ensure you meet the academic qualifications, entrance exam scores, pre-requisites, and other criteria.
n For Vocational Education, it is wise to consider the benefit of Government Funding for some courses. This is a key advantage of Government-funded Vocational Colleges. Also, after completion of the course, one is quite likely to land a job in the profession.
n On the other hand, the key advantage of private colleges is that they specialise in specific vocations. They may offer more tailored courses to get you job-ready for the selected profession.
n A great benefit of Apprenticeships is that you earn while you learn – you do not have to go searching around for casual jobs to support your studies like university and other coursework. But at a young age, it may be difficult to balance both work and study.
n Although it is great for self-development, taking a gap year can be costly, especially if travelling overseas and limited income is being earnt. The cost needs to be considered. However, taking a year for self-discovery and self-development can be quite beneficial.
Co-Founder and Coach,
Joys of Total Wealth, Sydney, Australia
Choosing a university, vocational college or training opportunity is a major decision. With a thoughtful, well-structured approach, it can be an exciting and empowering process. It is a significant investment of your time and money, so you would like to make sure you have done the needful before embarking on this new chapter.
Here are some steps to guide you:
1. Self-Reflection
This is the “looking within” step.
Identify Your Interests and Strengths: What do you enjoy? Which A Levels subjects are you good at? Think about what subjects or activities you enjoyed at school and/or were good at. This could guide you toward a course aligned with your passions and capabilities.
Consider Your Goals: What would you like to achieve? What are your values in life? Where do you see yourself in the future? You can think about careers you’re interested in and the qualifications they require.
2. Explore Your Options
Do your Research: Have a look into
the courses related to your interests. You can analyse the curriculum (subject offering each term), specialisations, and skills offered.
Learn About Universities: Factors like location, reputation, faculty expertise, teaching quality and outcomes, campus facilities, and student life play a role. You may list institutions that align with your priorities. You can check rankings for a bit of guidance on which universities specialise in your area of interest.
QS World University Rankings 2025: Top Global Universities | Top Universities
World University Rankings 2025 | Times Higher Education (THE)
You can also follow universities on LinkedIn to follow their areas of research, their teaching focus and ranking. University of Peradeniya and University of Colombo, for example, have very active LinkedIn pages.
Foreign Universities offer degrees in Sri Lanka through colleges like Royal Institute and Universal College Sri Lanka (UCL), and some have their own campuses in Sri Lanka like Edith Cowan and UTS.
For Vocational Colleges and Technical Colleges: there are specialised colleges – for example in Sri Lanka, you have Vocational Universities, such as the University of Vocational Technology (UNIVOTEC) in Dehiwala; in Australia you have the Technical and Further Education (TAFE) Institutes which offer vocational-based courses such as Accounting, Beauty and Horticulture. USA’s equivalent is Community Colleges and Vocational schools in UK these are called Polytechnics.
There are private colleges, which are private educational institutes like Nawaloka College of Higher Studies and NEXT Campus. They provide an alternative to Government-funded Technical Colleges. You can do research on course offerings and costs- more will be covered in the next section.
Apprenticeships are another avenue to consider. This combines on-the-job learning with formal study, often in a vocational or private college. This allows individuals to gain practical skills, and earn a qualification, while earning a salary. This is common for trades such as motor mechanics and carpenters.
Internships are similar to apprenticeships, but they are for professional services like accounting and legal. Participating organisations, such as the Big 4 Accounting and Consulting firms, will pay a small salary for part-time work. This can make transitioning into the workforce easier than moving straight from university to the workforce.
Overseas experience or a gap year is where a high school graduate or leaver takes some time off to travel and work. This can be a great way to switch off from study for a bit, and build life skills, like cross-cultural communication, independence and working in another country, which can be viewed upon favourably in one’s future career.
3.Consider Practicalities
- Budget and Financial Support: How much is the chosen option going to cost? Understand tuition fees, living costs, and scholarships that may be available.
- Admission Requirements: Ensure you meet the academic qualifications, entrance exam scores, pre-requisites, and other criteria.
- For Vocational Education, it is wise to consider the benefit of Government Funding for some courses. This is a key advantage of Government-funded Vocational Colleges. Also, after completion of the course, one is quite likely to land a job in the profession.
- On the other hand, the key advantage of private colleges is that they specialise in specific vocations. They may offer more tailored courses to get you job-ready for the selected profession.
- A great benefit of Apprenticeships is that you earn while you learn – you do not have to go searching around for casual jobs to support your studies like university and other coursework. But at a young age, it may be difficult to balance both work and study.
- Although it is great for self-development, taking a gap year can be costly, especially if travelling overseas and limited income is being earnt. The cost needs to be considered. However, taking a year for self-discovery and self-development can be quite beneficial.
4. Seek Advice and Evaluate
future pros pects
- You can speak with teachers, career counsellors, coaches, and professionals in the field. They can offer valuable insights into the courses you like, your strengths and how they align with the courses, and the industry.
- A good idea could be to connect with current students or alumni of the vocational colleges/universities you’re considering. Their experiences can provide a clearer picture of what to expect in your course and future career path, and an understanding of what college/university life is like.
- For those taking a year off, speaking with people that have done this may be beneficial, and ask them what they learnt from their experiences and if they would recommend a certain country to spend a gap year.
- Research the career opportunities and industry connections available through the course. Consider internships, work placement services, careers advisers on campus or partnerships with companies. Often employers will have roadshows on campus at university and vocational colleges to promote their opportunities for potential graduates.
- If you are considering apprenticeships, you can see which tradespeople- e.g. Mechanics or plumbers in your area would be willing to take on apprentices while the apprentice learns and studies.
5. Trust your instincts
- After doing your research, seeking advice from others, and analysing your options, go with what feels right for you. It’s your journey, and your joy matters.
- Taking the next steps and choosing a career path is a key life decision take must be taken seriously and must take careful planning, but it is important to enjoy the process of researching and fact-finding about the career path(s) and/or universities or colleges you are considering.Embracing Total Wealth is key in your journey to finding the right career path. Consider how your chosen career path will affect all parts.
Your Family Wealth: Will my chosen career path allow me to spend quality time with my family and friends
Your Physical Wealth: How will the chosen career path affect my body and physical fitness- for e.g. in some corporate jobs, high stress and sitting for long periods of time can have adverse effects on health
Your Spiritual Wealth: Does my chosen career path allow for my spiritual wealth to grow? Time for meditation, ability to switch off from work after a busy day etc.
Your Financial Wealth: Will my chosen career path provide me with sufficient income to cover cost of living and my desired lifestyle in the city/town/suburb that I live in.
So, consider your career path carefully whilst embracing and maintaining your Total Wealth. Remember, you work to live not the other way around. You must choose what is good for your precious life, not what pleases others. Be aware of peer and societal pressures, and consider your Total Wealth in the decision-making process.
- Shan P Yahanpath, MBA
Any enquiries,
please contact Shan (Author)
on +61 447 636 601 (WhatsApp)
n You can speak with teachers, career counsellors, coaches, and professionals in the field. They can offer valuable insights into the courses you like, your strengths and how they align with the courses, and the industry.
n A good idea could be to connect with current students or alumni of the vocational colleges/universities you’re considering. Their experiences can provide a clearer picture of what to expect in your course and future career path, and an understanding of what college/university life is like.
n For those taking a year off, speaking with people that have done this may be beneficial, and ask them what they learnt from their experiences and if they would recommend a certain country to spend a gap year.
n Research the career opportunities and industry connections available through the course. Consider internships, work placement services, careers advisers on campus or partnerships with companies. Often employers will have roadshows on campus at university and vocational colleges to promote their opportunities for potential graduates.
n If you are considering apprenticeships, you can see which tradespeople- e.g. Mechanics or plumbers in your area would be willing to take on apprentices while the apprentice learns and studies.
5. Trust your instincts
n After doing your research, seeking advice from others, and
analysing your options, go with what feels right for you. It’s your journey, and your joy matters.
n Taking the next steps and choosing a career path is a key life decision take must be taken seriously and must take careful planning, but it is important to enjoy the process of researching and fact-finding about the career path(s) and/or universities or colleges you are considering.
Embracing Total Wealth is key in your journey to finding the right career path. Consider how your chosen career path will affect all parts.
Your Family Wealth: Will my chosen career path allow me to spend quality time with my family and friends
Your Physical Wealth: How will the chosen career path affect my body and physical fitness- for e.g. in some corporate jobs, high stress and sitting for long periods of time can have adverse effects on health
Your Spiritual Wealth: Does my chosen career path allow for my spiritual wealth to grow? Time for meditation, ability to switch off from work after a busy day etc.
Your Financial Wealth: Will my chosen career path provide me with sufficient income to cover cost of living and my desired lifestyle in the city/town/suburb that I live in.
So, consider your career path carefully whilst embracing and maintaining your Total Wealth. Remember, you work to live not the other way around. You must choose what is good for your precious life, not what pleases others. Be aware of peer and societal pressures, and consider your Total Wealth in the decision-making process.
- Shan P Yahanpath, MBA
Any enquiries,
please contact Shan (Author)
on +61 447 636 601 (WhatsApp)
n You can speak with teachers, career counsellors, coaches, and professionals in the field. They can offer valuable insights into the courses you like, your strengths and how they align with the courses, and the industry.
n A good idea could be to connect with current students or alumni of the vocational colleges/universities you’re considering. Their experiences can provide a clearer picture of what to expect in your course and future career path, and an understanding of what college/university life is like.
n For those taking a year off, speaking with people that have done this may be beneficial, and ask them what they learnt from their experiences and if they would recommend a certain country to spend a gap year.
n Research the career opportunities and industry connections available through the course. Consider internships, work placement services, careers advisers on campus or partnerships with companies. Often employers will have roadshows on campus at university and vocational colleges to promote their opportunities for potential graduates.
n If you are considering apprenticeships, you can see which tradespeople- e.g. Mechanics or plumbers in your area would be willing to take on apprentices while the apprentice learns and studies.
5. Trust your instincts
n After doing your research, seeking advice from others, and
analysing your options, go with what feels right for you. It’s your journey, and your joy matters.
n Taking the next steps and choosing a career path is a key life decision take must be taken seriously and must take careful planning, but it is important to enjoy the process of researching and fact-finding about the career path(s) and/or universities or colleges you are considering.
Embracing Total Wealth is key in your journey to finding the right career path. Consider how your chosen career path will affect all parts.
Your Family Wealth: Will my chosen career path allow me to spend quality time with my family and friends
Your Physical Wealth: How will the chosen career path affect my body and physical fitness- for e.g. in some corporate jobs, high stress and sitting for long periods of time can have adverse effects on health
Your Spiritual Wealth: Does my chosen career path allow for my spiritual wealth to grow? Time for meditation, ability to switch off from work after a busy day etc.
Your Financial Wealth: Will my chosen career path provide me with sufficient income to cover cost of living and my desired lifestyle in the city/town/suburb that I live in.
So, consider your career path carefully whilst embracing and maintaining your Total Wealth. Remember, you work to live not the other way around. You must choose what is good for your precious life, not what pleases others. Be aware of peer and societal pressures, and consider your Total Wealth in the decision-making process.
- Shan P Yahanpath, MBA
Any enquiries,
please contact Shan (Author)
on +61 447 636 601 (WhatsApp)
Do your Research: Have a look into
the courses related to your interests. You can analyse the curriculum (subject offering each term), specialisations, and skills offered.
Learn About Universities: Factors like location, reputation, faculty expertise, teaching quality and outcomes, campus facilities, and student life play a role. You may list institutions that align with your priorities. You can check rankings for a bit of guidance on which universities specialise in your area of interest.
QS World University Rankings 2025: Top Global Universities | Top Universities
World University Rankings 2025 | Times Higher Education (THE)
You can also follow universities on LinkedIn to follow their areas of research, their teaching focus and ranking. University of Peradeniya and University of Colombo, for example, have very active LinkedIn pages.
Foreign Universities offer degrees in Sri Lanka through colleges like Royal Institute and Universal College Sri Lanka (UCL), and some have their own campuses in Sri Lanka like Edith Cowan and UTS.
For Vocational Colleges and Technical Colleges: there are specialised colleges – for example in Sri Lanka, you have Vocational Universities, such as the University of Vocational Technology (UNIVOTEC) in Dehiwala; in Australia you have the Technical and Further Education (TAFE) Institutes which offer vocational-based courses such as Accounting, Beauty and Horticulture. USA’s equivalent is Community Colleges and Vocational schools in UK these are called Polytechnics.
There are private colleges, which are private educational institutes like Nawaloka College of Higher Studies and NEXT Campus. They provide an alternative to Government-funded Technical Colleges. You can do research on course offerings and costs- more will be covered in the next section.
Apprenticeships are another avenue to consider. This combines on-the-job learning with formal study, often in a vocational or private college. This allows individuals to gain practical skills, and earn a qualification, while earning a salary. This is common for trades such as motor mechanics and carpenters.
Internships are similar to apprenticeships, but they are for professional services like accounting and legal. Participating organisations, such as the Big 4 Accounting and Consulting firms, will pay a small salary for part-time work. This can make transitioning into the workforce easier than moving straight from university to the workforce.
Overseas experience or a gap year is where a high school graduate or leaver takes some time off to travel and work. This can be a great way to switch off from study for a bit, and build life skills, like cross-cultural communication, independence and working in another country, which can be viewed upon favourably in one’s future career.
3.Consider Practicalities
n Budget and Financial Support: How much is the chosen option going to cost? Understand tuition fees, living costs, and scholarships that may be available.
n Admission Requirements: Ensure you meet the academic qualifications, entrance exam scores, pre-requisites, and other criteria.
n For Vocational Education, it is wise to consider the benefit of Government Funding for some courses. This is a key advantage of Government-funded Vocational Colleges. Also, after completion of the course, one is quite likely to land a job in the profession.
n On the other hand, the key advantage of private colleges is that they specialise in specific vocations. They may offer more tailored courses to get you job-ready for the selected profession.
n A great benefit of Apprenticeships is that you earn while you learn – you do not have to go searching around for casual jobs to support your studies like university and other coursework. But at a young age, it may be difficult to balance both work and study.
n Although it is great for self-development, taking a gap year can be costly, especially if travelling overseas and limited income is being earnt. The cost needs to be considered. However, taking a year for self-discovery and self-development can be quite beneficial.
4. Seek Advice and Evaluate
future pros pects
n You can speak with teachers, career counsellors, coaches, and professionals in the field. They can offer valuable insights into the courses you like, your strengths and how they align with the courses, and the industry.
n A good idea could be to connect with current students or alumni of the vocational colleges/universities you’re considering. Their experiences can provide a clearer picture of what to expect in your course and future career path, and an understanding of what college/university life is like.
n For those taking a year off, speaking with people that have done this may be beneficial, and ask them what they learnt from their experiences and if they would recommend a certain country to spend a gap year.
n Research the career opportunities and industry connections available through the course. Consider internships, work placement services, careers advisers on campus or partnerships with companies. Often employers will have roadshows on campus at university and vocational colleges to promote their opportunities for potential graduates.
n If you are considering apprenticeships, you can see which tradespeople- e.g. Mechanics or plumbers in your area would be willing to take on apprentices while the apprentice learns and studies.
5. Trust your instincts
n After doing your research, seeking advice from others, and
analysing your options, go with what feels right for you. It’s your journey, and your joy matters.
n Taking the next steps and choosing a career path is a key life decision take must be taken seriously and must take careful planning, but it is important to enjoy the process of researching and fact-finding about the career path(s) and/or universities or colleges you are considering.
Embracing Total Wealth is key in your journey to finding the right career path. Consider how your chosen career path will affect all parts.
Your Family Wealth: Will my chosen career path allow me to spend quality time with my family and friends
Your Physical Wealth: How will the chosen career path affect my body and physical fitness- for e.g. in some corporate jobs, high stress and sitting for long periods of time can have adverse effects on health
Your Spiritual Wealth: Does my chosen career path allow for my spiritual wealth to grow? Time for meditation, ability to switch off from work after a busy day etc.
Your Financial Wealth: Will my chosen career path provide me with sufficient income to cover cost of living and my desired lifestyle in the city/town/suburb that I live in.
So, consider your career path carefully whilst embracing and maintaining your Total Wealth. Remember, you work to live not the other way around. You must choose what is good for your precious life, not what pleases others. Be aware of peer and societal pressures, and consider your Total Wealth in the decision-making process.
- Shan P Yahanpath, MBA
Any enquiries,
please contact Shan (Author)
on +61 447 636 601 (WhatsApp)
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