25 year old with 2:2 considering coming back into education - advice?

(edited 9 years ago)

I think you have a hang-up about getting a 2:2 which is probably not shared by others. You are getting on well in your current industry. Degrees do not measure intelligence.

You already have a first degree so it is most unlikely that you'll be able to get a loan for a second. That makes a further first degree incredibly expensive and very unlikely to pay off... though you could think about doing it bit-by-bit via the OU.

My suggestion would be to think about the transferrable skills you are developing in your current sector, then figure out how you could move across to your new sector (which sector are you considering?)

Finally since you have posted in postgraduate I assume you may be considering an MA. An MA would not be suitable for your circumstances. They cannot be used to 'fix' disappointing first degrees, they do not generally enhance employability (certainly not to be worth the money), and if you want to completely change subject they'd be difficult for you to get into.

I'm sure there's a good plan for you which will land you in the 'right' sector... I doubt it lies in more education, at this stage. You need more confidence and you need to stop imagining you are defined by your degree (which, remember, you PASSED)

Good luck

Reply 2

Azarimanka

Above poster is right:

You got a 2.2 which is unfortunate, but an MA won't fix that.

You seem to be doing well in your current job, why not stay there and carry on working up?

Reply 3

gbuchanan

We all change with maturity - some more, or quicker than others!

I note that you are considering both psychology and criminology. Both, in a way, investigate how people work, and form an understanding of their motivation. If understanding people is a key thing, then other areas may include (say) social work or, say, politics and policy making? Teasing out what is the thing that motivates you is an important first step to finding a plan ahead.

What I think might then help is to take the skills and knowledge that you do have - e.g. from the hospitality industry, or your degree (or both!) to identify the areas that both tickle your underlying interest and where you've got some existing experience that you can leverage as well.

It's not at all rare for mature students to return to university for just the reasons you cite, and when they combine exploiting where they are now with a clear goal they want to achieve, they often succeed well.

I appreciate that I may be about to suggest something that might not in fact be of interest to you, but let me demonstrate one possibility through a topic I do understand. Another option might be human-computer interaction, which is primarily psychology, but has some relationship to computers. The sort of skills you need in that area are both an ability to understand other people's goals and thinking, and an ability to work communicate that understanding to developers and designers. I suspect your technical knowledge and, I guess, your people skills from being in the hospitality industry, might be clear benefits to you if you graduated in that topic. (similar principles, I hope you can see, can be applied to all the other examples too..)

If you want some feedback, arrange a chat with an admissions tutor or two for potential courses, and also go and have a chat with a few relevant people who could employ you after the degrees you are considering. That will, I think, help you get feedback on your potential, and assess what options are going to be best for you.

I've been an admissions tutor for a while now for MSc programmes, and if you contact me offline or here, with an idea of possible areas of interest and your geographical constraints, I may be able to suggest a few more specific things - e.g. psychology is quite a complex area, and it may be that you need a more cognitive department (like, say, UCL) or somewhere that has a stronger focus on theraputic practice (often in a clinical school) - that might help you focus your options on something that gives you a clear benefit for your future as well as an opportunity to prove yourself.

In any case, all the very best!

George

Reply 4

3nTr0pY

The above sounds like good advice.

I am certainly not well positioned to advise you, but I would say that if your current job is not what you want to do, now is absolutely the right time to make a change. However, because you're older, any qualifications you do get should be focused more towards specific jobs, and building your CV in an appropriate direction.

There are definitely many opportunities to get jobs, even with a 2:2, if you carve out a suitable niche that is in demand and throw everything into achieving it. Granted, doing that can be frightening, but better fear than living your life with regret.

Just my two pennies, anyway...

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 5

returnmigrant

I dont agree with the 'Masters wont fix a dodgy first degree' scenario thats been painted by other posters. Yes, that would be my reaction to someone straight out of Uni who was just wanting to avoid getting a real job but clearly this doesnt apply to you. You are older, wiser and want to now do something sensible with your life rather than just piddling about in a bar.

Although a 2.2 is usually less than required for postgrad ('usually '2.1 or above'), it isnt impossible to get a place with this, so as suggested above, email a few relevant Depts and see what their individual policy is.

Funding will probably be a bigger issue -hugely competitive and therefore those with 'better' degrees tend to win through. But, again, not impossible with a 2.2 - just a bit more difficult. Again, email Depts and ask what other students in your position used for funding - there may be Departmental funding or relevant Trust/Charity ££ available.

Also, look at www.jobs.ac.uk (scroll down to the Studentships' section on the first page) - between now and May/June is the *peak* time for funding being advertised, so keep checking back.

Final suggestion - look at the Open University. The 2.2 wont matter at all to them, and you could do a taught Masters while still working (therefore funding not an issue). OU holds *big* credibility with conventional Unis and employers - it certainly wont be seen as second rate etc. See http://www3.open.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/index.htm

(edited 11 years ago)