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What is the point of going to university and studying for a degree...?

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Original post by CEKTOP
Not only law. Consulting, investment banking, medicine (due to the fact that it's hard to get into med school), leading think tanks and even some big 4 and FCMG positions are likely to be out of reach for graduates with a degree from a non-target university.


Not only the top unis offer medicine though but yes it is limited in a different way. Hadn't heard of think tanks though, I want to work for one and I 'only' go to 'UEA'.
Reply 41
Original post by jelly1000
Not only the top unis offer medicine though but yes it is limited in a different way. Hadn't heard of think tanks though, I want to work for one and I 'only' go to 'UEA'.


Think tanks (like policy exchange) recruit almost exclusively from Oxbridge :frown:
Original post by CEKTOP
Think tanks (like policy exchange) recruit almost exclusively from Oxbridge :frown:


Hmm, you say that but just a look on the website shows me the people doing research (what I'd like to do) have degrees from other places- a college in the US that I've never heard of (St Marys Indiana) and then a MA at UCL, BA from Bristol and MA from Leicester, and a BA from Birmingham.
Reply 43
Original post by passionate27
when there are no graduate jobs at the end of three years study?


There is, unemployment rates of recent graduates is lower today than the early 90s
What a difference a couple of decades makes. When I did my first degree (early 90s) only a small handful attended a university (around 16%) and it was seem as a passport to a successful life (and career). Much has changed since then, many more go, and the job prospects have changed. My thinking on this is still the same, and it is what I now pass on to my children.

I still think that the main reasons to go to university is to explore a subject that you love in depth, to develop as a person and do some growing up. To me it isn't just about training for a career, it is about developing a capacity to live. There are many ways to train for a career, most are cheaper and quicker than a degree e.g. if you are set upon becoming an accountant then going straight into professional exams is a good choice for some. If you want to develop as a person and an academic than take a degree first. I don't think that you should choose your subject based on employability, but on what you love. I do think that the real problem is that many people use university as an expensive way of growing up (only) and also that some people go to university would just aren't capable of benefiting from the experience at this stage in their life (doesn't mean that they couldn't go later). University used to be for the top achievers, this isn't the case now, and I believe that this is the problem. I have done some lecturing at a college that awards degrees that from a RG university. I found it hard to believe that this material (2nd year degree) was of such a poor standard - it reminded me of lower sixth A level work.

If we want to change degrees, specifically the academic standards and participation rates, then we shouldn't be surprised that some people emerge at a disadvantage into the job market. To change this would be very hard as we'd have to go back and change school qualifications e.g. I was talking to a neighbour's 15 year old son and he told me that in GCSE English they watch more Shakespeare than they read.

I know that some institutions have some subjects that are of a high standards, and others that are not so respected. The problem is that it is hard to know which ones. Also the grade inflation and dumbing down at GCSE and A level has made it very hard to distinguish with these qualifications.

Good luck to anyone hitting the graduate job market these days.
Original post by passionate27
What is the point of going to university and studying for a degree when there are no graduate jobs at the end of three years study?

What do you have to say about this?


For certain jobs you need a degree, for example doctors, teachers.
Reply 46
Not every1 goes to uni to open door to particular careers.... A lot of people who go to uni have no clue of what they want to do when they finish, they just study the subject they are passionate about....
Original post by AreebWithaHat
lol OP is doing an apprenticeship at a HE college.


Your attitude sums things up nicely, very naive.

Going to Uni and getting a degree is not the be all and end all.

FYI I didn't go to Uni after A-Levels, I did an apprenticeship (which incorporated a BTEC, shame on me...). I now earn much more than the people I was in 6th form with, have much more relevant experience in my field, and am generally more employable my peers who went off to Uni.
Loving the reverse snobbery here.
I finished uni in June and started a decent, well-paid graduate job in July :smug:

There are jobs out there, you just need to have the right attitude, persistence, know where to look and put the right amount of effort in :grin:
Original post by unruly1986
Your attitude sums things up nicely, very naive.

Going to Uni and getting a degree is not the be all and end all.

FYI I didn't go to Uni after A-Levels, I did an apprenticeship (which incorporated a BTEC, shame on me...). I now earn much more than the people I was in 6th form with, have much more relevant experience in my field, and am generally more employable my peers who went off to Uni.


I can see where you are coming from and would agree apprenticeships are a good path into a decent job. However I do think people who go to university (depending on the degree and uni) have a higher chance of getting a well payed job. For example if you went out of A levels and wanted to do software engineering and was lucky enough to get an apprenticeship odds are they'd start on a much lower wage than someone who just came out of uni and has a degree in computer science.

I think it really depends on the job or subject as to whether a degree is more or less beneficial than an apprenticeship.
I always thought that people studied at University for two main reasons:

i) They possessed the capability and work ethic to benefit from study at this level;
ii) They were sufficiently interested in a subject to study it for a prolonged period and in depth.

Yes it is true that, on average, a graduate earns more during their lifetime. Economics has lots of theories about why this occurs e.g. signalling with asymmetry of information. I still believe that this should be an incidental, rather than the point of university. This is probably why you get people with the back-story of, "I didn't go to study at university and have done very well...." Going to university isn't a prerequisite to doing well in the work place.

I think that people are being spun a line when 'universities' sell the line about how employable their graduates are. This is true in some cases because they only accept very bright, hard-working, high achievers. Surprisingly they go onto do well at university and in the work place. Some universities are offering very expensive vocational training. You could save yourself 9,000 pound per year (and earn a salary) and obtain better training on the job. Potential students need to make the choice with more information and with a realistic view of why they are going.
Because I like my subject?
Original post by lifelonged
I always thought that people studied at University for two main reasons:

i) They possessed the capability and work ethic to benefit from study at this level;
ii) They were sufficiently interested in a subject to study it for a prolonged period and in depth.

Yes it is true that, on average, a graduate earns more during their lifetime. Economics has lots of theories about why this occurs e.g. signalling with asymmetry of information. I still believe that this should be an incidental, rather than the point of university. This is probably why you get people with the back-story of, "I didn't go to study at university and have done very well...." Going to university isn't a prerequisite to doing well in the work place.

I think that people are being spun a line when 'universities' sell the line about how employable their graduates are. This is true in some cases because they only accept very bright, hard-working, high achievers. Surprisingly they go onto do well at university and in the work place. Some universities are offering very expensive vocational training. You could save yourself 9,000 pound per year (and earn a salary) and obtain better training on the job. Potential students need to make the choice with more information and with a realistic view of why they are going.


Sadly there are some people who do a degree because they don't know what else to do with their life or they aren't well informed about other options.
Reply 54
For a few countries, an university degree is a requirement for visa purposes.

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