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To have a successful career it is important to plan your career; and that begins with making the RIGHT stream choice after 10th. This stream or subjects combination becomes the foundation for one’s career as it determines eligibility for the future courses and one’s performance is judged on the scores that one gets in these subjects. After one has made the decision it is difficult to reverse it, as one will have to repeat class 11 and 12 with a new stream.  So, this decision stays for one’s life and thus it becomes an important decision. I think a 15-16 year old is not much aware of the repercussions and thus cannot make this important decision.

This, however, does not mean that parents or teachers can force their opinion down the student’s throat. Though well equipped with information about various career options after each stream, what the parents and teachers are not sure of is the aptitude of the child. Just because a particular stream or career option is popular does not mean that every child will be able to succeed in it. Success or failure in a career depends largely on the person’s aptitude and personality. Other factors like hard work and determination and passion etc only support the aptitude and personality.

This is precisely why the role of a career counsellor is important when it comes to deciding the stream after class 10th. The career counsellor will be able to understand the aptitude and personality combination of a child with the help of psychometric tests such as aptitude test and personality test; and thereby, correlate it with the market reality. This leads to taking the right decision regarding the stream in class 10th.

How stream is usually chosen in class 11 – 

Let us see how this stream choice typically made. 

1. In some schools the school asks the students to give their preference and stream is allotted on the basis of past academic performance. 

2. Many   students choose science as it offers the most variety of courses and one always has the option of shifting to other courses after 12th if the need arises. 

3. Many a time’s parents suggest the stream to the students. 

4. Many students also opt for streams of their choice and if they have good marks (that means they are within the school cut off range) the schools allow them to make their stream choice. 

5. The not so good scorers are often left with no option but to take up the stream allotted to them by the school (and we often find them struggling to pass).

This is definitely not the best way to choose streams and subjects after 10th. 

1. Past performance is not always the predictor of future performance. 

2. There is no dearth of courses and career options after any stream.

3. This is true that after science one can make a switch to commerce or arts courses and not always the other way round., but if one has to make career in one particular field it makes sense to study the related subjects right from the beginning.

4. How well I do in one subject is determined by many factors (like study habits and teachers etc) and one of the biggest factors is aptitude. Different subjects require different aptitude combination to learn.

So the best way to choose a stream after 10th is to take an aptitude test. One can also take help of a career counselor who can guide about the most suitable subjects as per the aptitude combination and will also help in picking the right subjects and planning for future courses.