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The Graduate Discussion Thread

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Reply 40
Avatar for NiftyNails
NiftyNails
i feel exactly the same, i'm thinking about a masters but not sure so don't want to waste money on something i'm not 100% sure on, out of interest why did you drop out? if you don't mind me asking?

Original post by ArtGoblin
I graduated in sociology in 2012, started a Master's course and dropped out and I'm now working in retail part-time. I did decide to do a second degree in midwifery and save money this year but I had second thoughts about that so I'm currently applying for grad schemes/jobs. I still have no idea about what I actually want to do though - I always thought that as I got older the job I was supposed to do would just come to me and I could work towards that aim, but it never has. All of them look so unappealing to me - the only thing that is motivating me right now is moving out of my parents' house, which I can't do until I have a full-time job.
Original post by NiftyNails
i feel exactly the same, i'm thinking about a masters but not sure so don't want to waste money on something i'm not 100% sure on, out of interest why did you drop out? if you don't mind me asking?


I decided I wasn't going to do a Master's after I applied as I was really fed up of academic work but then I got an offer from Oxford and everyone was telling me that I should do it. It was conditional on the basis of me getting a First, which I did so I thought I might as well go for it. The course wasn't ideal for me - I think I would have been better on another similar course at a different university but I was swayed by the idea of having an Oxford degree. I didn't have any motivation to do the work, I got really far behind and I felt really unhappy there. If you are going to do a Master's make sure you you research the course content thoroughly so you know exactly what you will be doing and make sure you know why you're doing it and how it is going to help you get the job you want. It is tempting to do a Master's just to get away from the world of work for a bit longer and then end up in exactly the same position a year down the line but with an extra debt and even more over-qualified.
Reply 42
Avatar for stewardly
stewardly
4
Original post by ArtGoblin
I decided I wasn't going to do a Master's after I applied as I was really fed up of academic work but then I got an offer from Oxford and everyone was telling me that I should do it. It was conditional on the basis of me getting a First, which I did so I thought I might as well go for it. The course wasn't ideal for me - I think I would have been better on another similar course at a different university but I was swayed by the idea of having an Oxford degree. I didn't have any motivation to do the work, I got really far behind and I felt really unhappy there. If you are going to do a Master's make sure you you research the course content thoroughly so you know exactly what you will be doing and make sure you know why you're doing it and how it is going to help you get the job you want. It is tempting to do a Master's just to get away from the world of work for a bit longer and then end up in exactly the same position a year down the line but with an extra debt and even more over-qualified.


My take on Masters Degree
I see you are exactly thorn between working and having your Masters degree. I am tempted to give my opinion and what I think. Doing your masters right away might depend on the kind of Bachelors you did. Some Courses require basic experience in order to fit into further studies but on the contrary, if you already have the experience, what are you waiting for? Just grab the opportunity to educate your self further:
Reasons for saying that is generated into 2 :
Cost of education is increasing year after year and I am tempted to predict that Universities and colleges will start changing fees every semester though the traditional thing is yearly. For a finance student who understood value for money to the extreme, I will prefer that you do the studies now to escape the future rising cost. If it is due to the fact that you are scared of the extra cost, be mindful that you will surely pay in it the future so why not now?
Doing your masters does not over qualify you for the job it enhances your performance and appreciation of issues related to your area of study you are practicing what you did not learn.
Secondly and most Importantly, a time will come in your life that you cannot afford to stay in the class room and study. Either you might be busy with extra business issues or other social factors. Remember responsibilities grow with age. The efficiency of the mind might also be compromised. So at that point in your life, you might be tempted to forgo it. The implications are that if you have established your goals in life to have your Masters Degree, then you are failing in that regard.
Whatever be the case, this is what I think and whatever decision you must take should be dependent on the situation at hand which I am not privy to

All the Dear !!!!
Has any graduate here successfully managed to get a job and not move back in with the parents?
(edited 10 years ago)
Reply 44
Avatar for ST10
ST10
4
really interesting reading all of this. i graduated last year and no one i know seems to have graduated & got a dream grad job & moved out to be independent!
Original post by Dee Leigh
Has any graduate here successfully managed to get a job and not move back in with the parents?


Yes :smile:
Reply 46
Avatar for stewardly
stewardly
4
Original post by Dee Leigh
Has any graduate here successfully managed to get a job and not move back in with the parents?


Yes I also made it and i think my approach is still relevant till today.
Reply 47
Avatar for stewardly
stewardly
4
there is a trap of remaining glued to our dream grad job and this trap is real. This keep a lot more graduates away from independence for a long time. graduates should take opportunities that arise irrespective of what they are related to. sometimes, opportunities disregard, would rather lead to our dream jobs eventually. it is possible to do proper networking to secure your dream job while you get your self engaged with jobs that are "irrelevant to our goals"
After all, it is not bad to sway from the right path a little just to sacrifice for the ultimate
Original post by Potally_Tissed
Yes :smile:


How did you manage to do this? :smile:
Original post by stewardly
Yes I also made it and i think my approach is still relevant till today.


What was your approach? :smile:
Original post by Dee Leigh
How did you manage to do this? :smile:


By having a good chunk of relevant experience in the field I went to, which is a pretty in-demand area of software development.
Original post by Potally_Tissed
By having a good chunk of relevant experience in the field I went to, which is a pretty in-demand area of software development.


Ok.

How did you manage financially?
Original post by Dee Leigh
Ok.

How did you manage financially?


At which point?
Original post by Potally_Tissed
At which point?


Well how did you manage to find somewhere to live, and how did you afford it? Did you live with friends or did you live in your own flat?
Original post by Dee Leigh
Well how did you manage to find somewhere to live, and how did you afford it? Did you live with friends or did you live in your own flat?


Was lucky enough to stay with friends for a month while I looked for somewhere permanent (used spareroom mostly), ended up renting a room in a nice new build, two bedroom and two bathroom flat in east London with a guy I didn't know previously but get on very well with.

Thankfully I earn enough to afford it, though the initial deposit came out of savings.



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Reply 55
Avatar for stewardly
stewardly
4
Original post by Dee Leigh
What was your approach? :smile:


During studies, I was visiting China for language courses and as well as internships. So I managed to save pretty much even before I completed. I got acquainted with some Chinese compatriots and we export stuff to Africa. That really helped me and I now have a pretty good exposure and combination of jobs.
Reply 56
Avatar for xDave-
xDave-
19
Wow... I came to this section of the forum searching for motivation, and instead I find this! I suppose I'll offer my sob story too then.

I (will soon) have an English Language degree, which opens a total of zero doors for me. I have no idea what I want to do - I picked English randomly - but I wish I'd have picked a degree that gives me a skill. I had no idea about careers back then though; I picked English because it wouldn't limit me to one job. Sadly, no one told me how moronic that was. I'm now at a point where every grad scheme is blanking me, even though I'm getting a first. I'm putting that down to the lack of work experience at the moment, but I don't think they'll suddenly say yes in a year's time once I've worked at McDonalds. I'm so frustrated by the past; I was sent to an awful school and was mucked around so much. I hoped I could right that by getting a first in my degree, but tonnes of grad schemes still ask for my UCAS points, so I'm stuck with it. I dunno what I'm even saying with this anymore, just venting now :frown:
Original post by xDave-
Wow... I came to this section of the forum searching for motivation, and instead I find this! I suppose I'll offer my sob story too then.

I (will soon) have an English Language degree, which opens a total of zero doors for me. I have no idea what I want to do - I picked English randomly - but I wish I'd have picked a degree that gives me a skill. I had no idea about careers back then though; I picked English because it wouldn't limit me to one job. Sadly, no one told me how moronic that was. I'm now at a point where every grad scheme is blanking me, even though I'm getting a first. I'm putting that down to the lack of work experience at the moment, but I don't think they'll suddenly say yes in a year's time once I've worked at McDonalds. I'm so frustrated by the past; I was sent to an awful school and was mucked around so much. I hoped I could right that by getting a first in my degree, but tonnes of grad schemes still ask for my UCAS points, so I'm stuck with it. I dunno what I'm even saying with this anymore, just venting now :frown:

Thought about working in media/marketing? Normally requirements aren't as stringent and it's still a decent career.
Original post by xDave-
I (will soon) have an English Language degree, which opens a total of zero doors for me. I have no idea what I want to do - I picked English randomly - but I wish I'd have picked a degree that gives me a skill.


You sound a bit like me. I've recently graduated with a Philosophy degree (I was also aiming for a first but I got pretty depressed in final year.. ended up with a 2:1 which I'm proud of).

Your degree doesn't open 'zero doors'. It definitely does open doors, you've just got to figure out which ones, and you've got to figure out how you can sell your degree to an employer as an opener for that particular door.

I'm currently working as a programmer. I may well have got this job without my degree (I did some computer science elective courses at university and have done some in spare time before), but the way I've been selling it is that I did things like formal logic, formal grammar and formal semantics (a bit like computational linguistics) in my philosophy degree, and got good grades in them, which shows that I can think logically and analytically very well. I think my boss warmed to that a bit because he's a programmer and his degree, funnily enough, is in English.

Original post by xDave-
I'm putting that down to the lack of work experience at the moment, but I don't think they'll suddenly say yes in a year's time once I've worked at McDonalds.


You'd be surprised. When I was 18 getting a job was difficult because I had no experience. Got a job in the Co-Op, worked at an event, then worked at Starbucks, then in a factory. With each job, getting the next was easier. ANY kind of experience is valuable to an employer, seriously. That can't be stressed enough. Particularly if you have a good attitude about it, e.g. 'when I worked here I learned X and Y and it taught me the value of Z in accomplishing Q'. Rather than 'yeah I just took it because I had nothing else to do, to be honest it was **** and I hated it'. Not saying you would have that attitude, just saying that experience + a good attitude are really valuable to employers.
Anyway, if anyone feels like hearing my case, here goes.

I was always very good at maths/science at school. I was in the top maths set since age 7, and at GCSE I got A* in maths, A* in physics and A* in chemistry (all my GCSEs were A or A*).

I was originally down to do Maths, Physics, Chemistry and Biology at A-Level. That's what I should have done. I thought I would study Medicine, or Physics, or possibly Engineering at university.

But around 16 was a tough time for our family. My parents couldn't really stand each other any more - they eventually got divorced. I had no self confidence and I hated myself. So I decided I needed to become 'cool'; that that was the only way people wouldn't hate me as a 'nerd' or whatever. So I changed my A-Levels to English, History, Religious Studies and Music AS (I hadn't even done History or Religious Studies at GCSE).

When it came to applying to university I thought 'well I have to go to uni, that's what my parents have always wanted/expected of me'. I didn't really know what to do - I thought about English but I don't read a huge amount. I figured Philosophy was the best thing I could do, since it had all the discussion/essay-writing that I enjoyed about humanities subjects plus the logic/analytical stuff that I missed from maths and science.

I took some Computer Science electives when I got to university and studied lots of logic within Philosophy. Now I have my Philosophy degree from KCL. And I don't know what to do.

I currently work as a programmer and I think, maybe I could stick to programming. It's something you don't necessarily need a degree for, if you learn and gain experience by yourself. But programming is... a little depressing. Sitting in front of a computer all day. I don't know, I think my 'don't be a nerd' complex is kicking in.

I'm looking at the Medicine 4 year GEP (graduate entry programme), I'm looking at Engineering BScs and Physics BScs. All of these cost money (Medicine gets a lot of NHS funding, but it's an incredibly competitive course). But I don't really know how else I'm going to get a career in STEM, which I think is what I always wanted. In fact it is; I just never had the balls to say it.

If you've made it this far then I take my hat off to you. And I ask you a question: wat do?

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