University

[oxford_fan]

What I don't understand is people that go to uni to do Psychology, Sociology etc. and don't want to do jobs such as Psychologists etc.  Ok it may be favourable for social work etc. however those are things that you get training for on the job, not need a degree for!

I think if someone wanted to be a doctor/dentist etc. then thats completely different but if you're unsure on what you want to do in your life, rather than just choosing something for the sake of it, isn't it better to take a year out to think about it properly?  Uni may be great fun etc. but is it worth the thousands of pounds worth of debt if you are indecisive of a career?

many people choose a subject they enjoy studying or are good at but do not want to go into employment in that area because lots of employers look for the qualification (i.e. educated to degree level) and not the subject, they want to know what standard you can learn to.

agree that many people nowadays fall into uni without their heart in it though, i was guilty of that and dossed about all the time in my first two years but am know determined to knuckle down in my final year. i'm at the right place (uni), just doing a subject i don't really have any passion for but at the time of choosing i just went for what i was good at.

probably motivated by fear of failure, mind.

[Devon Red]

Sad thing is that having contacts is much more important to a lot of people than the education/skills they have. I have a respectable CV and have a fair amount of work experience in a fair few areas of work, however i've found it hard to get work this summer, unlike a lot of my mates who managed to get jobs through parents, friends etc regardless of their CV. You'll get a break at some point hopefully.

[fatbury]

I got a degree BA with Hons .. doesnt help at all .. spent a year getting a job when I left uni and ended up on bottom pay

Best thing to do is do maybe A Levels .. and then get a job .. maybe work experience is your chosen field when u do those A Levels

[oxford_fan]

Sad thing is that having contacts is much more important to a lot of people than the education/skills they have. I have a respectable CV and have a fair amount of work experience in a fair few areas of work, however i've found it hard to get work this summer, unlike a lot of my mates who managed to get jobs through parents, friends etc regardless of their CV. You'll get a break at some point hopefully.

thats true, contacts are vital

my thick mate who's dad owns a big building company has just done 2 placements which he'd never have got without the contacts, and all his dad had to do was ask once and it was all sorted. he basically got offered a job at the first placement, grant thornton the accountants, which is a shocker - i'd never employ him, not so sharp on the uptake and there must be loads of people better than him just not getting a look in because they can't clear the first hurdle.

[Devon Red]

It makes it even worse though when they are able to get the experience too so unknown future employees will think they're going to be very good too. It's a vicious circle and it's a sad part of life.

[Cookie]

It took me 3 years (one of which was work experience) to finally get a job in  the field I wanted to (related to my degree). I was forced into two years of temping simply to pay off debts and save enough to pay for the years voluntary work experience I needed.

In the end I wouldn't have got my job without a degree but the work experience was the thing which tipped the balance in my favour.

Now I've had a pay rise every year and the opportunity to complete vocational training relative to the industry paid for by my employer. Hopefully I will continue to progress even though i'm a few years behind what I planned.

A couple of my friends who didn't go to Uni or complete their degrees are on higher salaries but have not got into the industry of their choice.

[genf_stfc]

I did a PhD, which was brilliant and I'm happy in where I work now, only problem is even though I haven't been out of work since, there are very few jobs in my area that aren't on short term contracts - i think if i wanted to change now to something in industry with a bit more job security and better pay I'd have to drop right down to graduate trainee.

I'm pretty sure that there isn't much I couldn't do or learn very quickly - but convincing an employer that you can learn whatever skills you need quickly, without having the experience, is difficult.

[reeves4england]

Well I am going to go to uin next year whatever you miserable lot say!
Although you do all make good points.

I think that in some areas having a degree related to that job will show an interest in it and will perhaps convince them that you are the right sort of person for the job, even if you do have to start from the bottom.

Of course you will now all tell me I know nothing and I am wrong

[Ginginho]

You know nothing and you are also wrong

No fair play really.

I never went to college or uni. I hated the thought to be honest.
I got a job straight after leaving school and worked ever since.

[Dazzza]

Vocational qualifications are the way to go unless you jump into Uni and do a vocationally orientated subject like law that will eventually lead into an entry position in your chosen field.  Provided you pass that is.

I’m struggling to think of any of my mates from home or friends from Uni, aside from the solicitors, teachers and architect who have actually needed their degree in their chosen field since graduating.  It’s all about vocational qualifications nowadays especially in the technical and financial sectors

[Boeta]

What I don't understand is people that go to uni to do Psychology, Sociology etc. and don't want to do jobs such as Psychologists etc.

Because psychology provides the knowledge for anything from management to working on curing disease. sociology graduates will usually become economists

[pauld]

Dunno, I was always pretty sceptical about how much difference my (fairly good) degree would really make now that I'm 15 years out of college and in work, until I was looking for a new job last August/September and found a lot of places were stipulating at least a 2:1, some further differentiating by insisting it must be a science degree or even Oxbridge. With 15 years experience behind me, I'd have thought that would have counted for a lot more than my degree, but seems some employers still use it to sift CVs. Seems daft, but there you go - had it not been for my degree, there's a lot of places I wouldn't have even got a phone interview.

[hansgruber]

I think that's right - the degree's all about getting your foot through the door in the first place. Of course there's careers where a degree is pointless, so you have to be clear on what you want to do before you decide on university or a job.

The people that piss me off are the ones who do a Film Studies degree at Coventry Polytechnic and then expect employers to be impressed!

[reeves4england]

I think that's right - the degree's all about getting your foot through the door in the first place. Of course there's careers where a degree is pointless, so you have to be clear on what you want to do before you decide on university or a job.

The people that piss me off are the ones who do a Film Studies degree at Coventry Polytechnic and then expect employers to be impressed!

So true  

[hansgruber]

I'm doing some graduate interviewing in October which should be a giggle. The kids of today say some funny shit. They're all so confident too, until we ask stupid questions like "How many clocks are there in England?"