Tips to remember while choosing electives

The universities in UAE offer a diverse number of courses. More than often it becomes difficult to choose the course that kick starts your dream career. Some of the courses offered have a certain number of electives to choose. Electives are course/subjects that are optional. However, the number of credits assigned for each elective, when combined, needs to satisfy the minimum number of credits for the completion of the course. The required credits for each course vary according to the university and course chosen. There are three different categories of electives you need to complete your degree: free electives, area of study electives and general education electives. ‘Core Electives’ or area of study are mandatory for the students to take when applying for a course These are the compulsory courses required for the students to pass the exams. The optional electives can be chosen according to the career requirements/interests of the student. A certain number of optional electives will be free and part of the course fee, however, additional electives might have separate fee structures. You can mix electives to be ‘Major’ and ‘Minor’. ‘Major’ elective would be your primary focus of study while ‘Minor’ electives add to your education by providing you enough knowledge to further your career. There will be ‘General Education Electives’ which has a list of options from which you can choose certain courses while some of them are mandatory to complete the course. The GED in Dubai includes languages, Information Technology and Communication (ICT) and Mathematics in some cases.

If you are a transfer student from another university, then there might be certain additional and minus electives accordingly.

The course outline will provide you information as to the number of credits each elective provides. Understand the difference in the type of electives so that you do not end up taking the same course twice. One of the main things to note is to take the electives necessary to your course completion and then proceed with the free electives. Not every free elective can fulfil your area of study, therefore choose the related subjects first. Create a degree plan that ensures that you have all the required classes for course completion and then move on to free electives. In case of free electives, choose a class that interests you and can add to your strengths. For example, consider taking a public speaking course along with your Entrepreneurship degree. Developing your speaking skills is an added bonus in the world of business. Free electives are courses that typically fall outside of your and area of study, and not required for academic completion of your degree. Any credits that are not required for your degree program but offered in the course study, will apply as free electives. However, in the process of choosing core electives, you might fall short of credits required for completion of degree. Therefore, check your overall credits to see if you need to take free electives to compensate for the same. Choose your area of study subjects according to your career demands. If you proceed with a communication subject then your resulting career options can include, journalism, pr and so on. However, if you are looking forward to specializing in a particular field, choose the specific subjects that adds value to your focus. If you are keen on marketing, then make sure to take courses that is industry specific and important for the career path. Therefore, it is important to consult a career advisor or the University career department. The university career advisor can help you decide the which electives to choose to get maximum out of your degree. More importantly, you do not end up losing out on the certification required for your career path.