The situation for UK students As we head into July, thousands of students prepare for their exams that they hope will enable them to attend the university of their choice. Is it really worth it? From my personal experience, only one of my friends has entered a job that required a degree, a year after he graduated. All of my other graduate friends either have a job that didnt require university education or went onto postgraduate education in order to obtain a career they really wanted. With an increasing number of students gaining degrees, the graduate job market is becoming ever more competitive, and getting that first job is becoming harder and harder(especially if you live outside the oh-so-revered capital city). With university students already leaving with an average of 10,000 in debt, and with this set to rise with the lovely Tony Blairs plans for tuition fees, the question arises ever more persistently: are degrees really worth the paper on which they're written?
At sixteen At sixteen, you are hardly worrying about what you will be doing when youre thirty. Rather you are more likely worrying about whether the bouncer will accept your fake I.D. or considering whether Bob Marley or Kurt Cobain is cooler (how patronising am I?), but if you can put aside a moment or two to decide what you seriously want to do with your life when youre an adult (I know, I know, youre already a fully-grown individual with a mind of your own already!) then you really are setting yourself up for success. You dont even have to decide on a vocation just an area of interest, such as the media or social care. It cannot be understated how important this is. This way, you wont make a mistake in choosing what to do as your further study courses.
You may even decide not to do further study instead deciding to go straight into a job or apprenticeship. Just think youve decided what to do with yourself, saved yourself three years of debt and have been able to go out for slap-up meals whilst your scabby student friends have eaten cold beans out of a tin!
At eighteen Even at eighteen this decision is not too late, but now really is the deadline for your decision. If you really, really, cannot decide, then take a year off and use the year wisely. You can choose to do a variety of things: go travelling; do voluntary work; get a job for a year or get some valuable work experience in a field in which you are interested. The main idea of this year is to decide on a course of action. You can try out career possibilitites by getting work experience placements and seeing if it is for you. If not, theres no need to worry just get back to the drawing board. The year out, if used wisely, will also make you stand out from the rest of your competition in the jobs market. Many students make the mistake of going to university and thinking that in the three or four years studying they will have decided on a career. But if then they decide on a career that has nothing to do with their studies, they might feel university has been a waste of time and money.
Now is also the time to decide what course you want to study (obviously). If you know what you want to do, you can take a more vocational-based course such as Computer Science or Geography. Arts-based courses (e.g., English) are great to take if you know how youre going to use them, but not many companies specifically ask for English degrees. You may have to apply to companies that accept all degrees, meaning more competition for places.
At University Whilst at university, use your time wisely. It is tempting to watch Diagnosis Murder whenever you get the chance, but your spare time at university is just as valuable as your study time. Even getting a crappy job means more evidence-based skills to put on your C.V. Working in a bar means keeping your cool when its busy (calm under pressure) whilst working in a music store means you develop good customer-care skills. For the same reason get involved with clubs or societies. Even playing in the university footie team counts for something (A good team player). If you can do without money for a few months, now is the time to get some contacts in your chosen field. Set yourself up some work experience. I could go on and on all day about how valuable this is, and still underestimate its importance. In a 2002 report *73% of students felt that work experience helped in their careers (Prospects). The jobs market is fierce and hopefully this experience will mean you glide into a job you really want whilst your lazy Diagnosis Murder-watching friends struggle to even get administration work. Not that theyre bitter
Final advice to go or not to go, that is the question. So, a word of warning: as stated before, the cost of university is rising, as is the competition for jobs. When you leave university, expect to fill in endless application forms. Writing your name/work experience/qualifications over and over and over.and over again can be a demoralising task (and should be viewed as a full-time job in itself). However, do not give up. As I stated before, it took the Geography student a year to get his first good job and the same time-scale is true for graduates in general. Also bear in mind that you shouldnt expect a grand salary upon leaving university.
The Facts The NatWest Student Money Matters 2003 survey found the average starting salary for graduates to be around 12,659, hardly a figure that commands rejoicing (especially if youve got a debt to match it). Also revealing, the top three vocations that 2002 graduates entered were clerical work (14.3%), commercial, industrial and public sector managers (11.7%) and bar, catering and sales assistant work (9.1%) (taken from Prospects.ac.uk the official graduate careers website). Also bear in mind that there is still some prejudice towards newer universities. A 2002 report** found that major blue-chip employers continue to target students and graduates from prestigious universities with just over a quarter of the 104 employers surveyedfeeling that new universities turn our lower quality graduates. Obviously this is complete snobbery, but something else to take into account.
You dont need a degree to be doing the job of your dreams. One friend of mine couldnt turn on a computer at college. He then took a gap year before university and did nothing much. After two years studying Media he dropped out. However, now he works as a web assistant for the BBC, mainly because he got himself some work experience there and was really enthusiastic in the interview! It shows, though, to be focused will save you a lot of time and stress, it is never too late to sort yourself out. Remember, you dont have to have a degree to be making a mint. Just find out how much plumbers make a year and you may want to change your mind about that Sociology degree!
However, the experience of university in itself is unique and many students find it worthwhile in itself. Also, a degree is a must for some professions.
Anyway, to sum up: If you decide to go to university, here are the key points to keep in mind
Try to know as early as possible what you would like to do as a career. Get some experience and get involved. Never give up!
*Graduate Experience 2002 report for the Department of Trade and Industry.
** Graduates in the Eyes of the Employers 2002 report.
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