Degrees not worth much? Watched a programme the other day about the dumbing down of degrees. Have a read and see what you think. While the government continues to encourage more and more people to stay on in higher education, "30 Minutes" reporter Sam Kiley asks whether students are shelling out on degrees that aren't worth the paper they are written on. Students are piling up large debts on the promise of future riches: today the average student leaves university £10,300 in hock. Soon, with the introduction of higher fees, they’ll be graduating at least £15,000 in the red. But many employers think the degrees they’re getting are not worth the paper they’re written on. And the latest research shows that there simply won’t be enough graduate jobs to go around and that as many as a third of students may not be able to pay of their debts until well into their 30s. Bob Brecher, a reader in philosophy from Brighton University, is among the few academics prepared to admit in public what most are saying in private. Colleges have made their courses easier in order to hang on to students who aren’t capable of surviving a traditional course. “What’s on offer is sub-O’Level,” he says. The rot has spread into world-class colleges competing for students in a market place dominated by league tables. Sir Richard Sykes, Rector of Imperial College, warns that there is a “tendency, even here, to give more firsts simply because it pushes you up the league table”. 70% of employers believe that degrees have declined as a measure of ability over the past ten years, and now only a minority believe that having a degree gives a potential employee an edge. In fact there are only about 72,000 jobs a year needing graduates to do them, and Britain is already producing some 400,000 graduates a year. Ed Rice has a BSC and an MSC in maritime science. Today he’s at Chichester College learning carpentry. “Carpentry is opening more doors than university,” he says. He’s already working restoring a neighbour’s house. “It is quite simply a big con. The government and the universities have got their numbers badly wrong. Many, many, graduates will never earn enough to pay off their loans – and that is a disaster for them and one for the universities themselves,” says professor Brown.
On a personal note. I warned my girlfriend of this sort of reaction from employers when she graduated 3 years ago. She thought she deserved a well paid job and that she would easily get one, whether or not her degree had anything to do with the job applied for. I love to tell my lass 'I told you so', so I did. She only got her first well paid job this week and even that isn't spectacular. These days you must prove yourself in the workplace through hard work, not pieces of paper. I'm actually at Uni now. Not for the piece of paper, but to learn the skills I struggled with when I started work after leaving school.
Tezza, You may want to read this thread http://www.promisealways.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=25377
The only thing that the average student can come up with as a reason to defend higher education is the people they meet, the fun they have and the booze they consume on tick for 3 years solid.... its very rare you hear anyone say "oh and the education i gained was incredible - it will stand me in good stead for the rest of my life" ...
good lord cant be bothered reading all this like!! but anyways degrees betta be worth a bit cos just got ma dissertation n ma last essay back n looks like i got a 2:1 woohoooo!!! wud av prefered a first like, but wud av had to sacrifice ma social life 4 it n i werent reeli gonna do that like!! xxx
Our company isn't taking on any graduates because it takes too much time to properly train them and the standard isn't there that there looking for. Just an observation
what batfink said... an also i don't mind that much if my degree isn't worth loads, cos i had a great time getting it
what liam said - also its what you do to get a job after your degree thats the main thing i reckon - so many of my mates are just dossing around then complain they can't get a decent job and claim their degree is worthless... if they got off their arses and tried to sell themselves they might stand a better chance people think that its their absoloute god given right to get a good job post degree as if one should just drop in their laps... things are going to change as sandwich courses become more popular i think.. graduate with experience vs. non-graduate with experience... i know which i'd rather take on... to be fair the carpenter/plumber thing is just a short term gimmick, in the long run a degree might not be worth the paper it is written on, but when everyone applying for a job has got one and you haven't what chance do you stand?
Well done And on the topic of the thread....I start uni in October, I'm going to Durham Uni to do BA Geography. Whatever I come out with in the end, I hope it helps me! After reading the other thread the other week, I really re-thought going to Uni, but decided not to throw away the chance to meet new people, drink far too much, have shit loads of holidays, etc etc for a few years and instead work full time. Yeah, so my degree may not be worth much, and OK I'll be in stupid amounts of debt, but tbh I think now I'm going more for the experience than the education
do a vocational degree and you'll be fine, otherwise expect a nice fat debt and a struggle to land a job when you finish.
