Should your son or daughter choose a more “employable” degree, or study the subject they’re genuinely interested in?

Someone at a parents' evening probably told your daughter to “keep her options open”.

Translation: choose something more employable than Spanish.

But here's what that advice can miss: The safest degree isn't necessarily the one with the safest-looking career at the end. It may be the one a student is genuinely interested in studying for three or four years.

For 2026 entry, applications to Engineering and Technology from UK 18-year-olds rose by 13%, while Mathematical Sciences rose by 6%. The attraction is obvious: these subjects are increasingly seen as secure choices.

Languages are moving in the other direction. Nick Hillman, Chief Executive of the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI), described the fall in demand for languages as “catastrophic.” His conclusion wasn't that linguists are in trouble. Quite the opposite: he argued that a strong linguist can be ambitious about where they apply because universities are not inundated with applicants.

I studied Modern Languages. It didn't feel like the safe choice at the time, but it was something I genuinely wanted to study, and it took me into Switzerland, France, Portugal and Italy. I am also convinced that it improved my ability to quickly relate to people from different backgrounds which has served me extremely well in my client-facing roles. Almost 20 years on, and I still thank myself for making that choice.

There is also a good reason not to treat genuine interest as a soft consideration. A 2023 study of 2,662 first-year higher-education students in Germany found that greater subject interest was associated with a lower likelihood of dropping out. A recent UK study of post-16 course choice found that each one-point increase in interest in course content was associated with a 37% increase in the odds of completing the course.

The student doesn't just have to want the career at the end of the degree. They have to want to spend three or four years studying the subject itself. I've seen this with a student who was determined to study Law at Oxford because he thought it would, in his words, “guarantee” him a job. Within months, he was miserable. He had chosen the career without really considering the academic reality of the degree, including the fact that his first year at Oxford involved compulsory Roman Law courses. He transferred to Royal Holloway to study Law, and thrived there.

And the reverse can be true. A subject that looks less obviously “employable” can give a student the motivation to work hard, develop expertise and pursue opportunities — while shaping how they think in ways that can be valuable in careers they may not have imagined when choosing their A levels.

My university friends who studied modern languages have gone on to careers in the civil service, finance, management, hospitality and beyond. The degree didn't prescribe a career. It gave us cultural understanding, the ability to think critically, communicate clearly, solve problems and see things from a different perspective— skills we could take in very different directions, and to different countries.

Of course, that doesn't mean students should ignore employment prospects and simply “follow their passion”. It means the decision needs more than one measure.

I'd also encourage students to look beyond the course title and actually read the first-year module list. What will they spend their time thinking about, reading, writing and actually doing? Can they imagine wanting to do that week after week?

The best choice may not be the subject with the most obvious career at the end. It may be the subject they are motivated to work hard at, see through and succeed in.