What with the hike in university fees coming in next year, i was wondering what people thought of whether it is worth it when the 'average' student will be saddled with a debt of around £50k at the end.
i went as a 27 year old so i could get a better paid job and immediately earned 50% more in my first job after completion. with my eldest coming up to the uni stage in a couple of years im wondering whether it is still worth it. im still paying fees back 10 years later (£150 pm), but hers will be 3x what mine were.
is it / was it worth it for you??
Comments
I'm going to university this month (24yo) but will be staying in London and working full time unsociable hours.
I was unemployed about 18 months ago and went through the recruitment process to be a team leader at Sainsburys (around 13k a year).
I took all these competency tests etc, got through to the final interview and was told that I needed a degree for this level of job despite having good GCSE grades.
I then asked the Beth Ditto wannabe who was interviewing me if her degree had helped her in her career at Sainsbury. She said it had helped no end as being a team leader is just impossible without the skills taught to you in a degree. I then asked her what she studied. "Drama and Stage Management" she replied.
In my opinion that bit of paper is always a worthy investment for a number of reasons. Most importantly is that recruitment is done by people with degrees who immediately sift out the lesser people
Two months later, I left for a better job paying 4k more.
8 years on, and I'm making more money than the grads who are 3 and 4 years older than me and am lined up for a management job in the next few years.
Fact is, a degree is just to get your foot in the door (unless you want to do something specific ie doctor). I was very lucky in that someone took a punt on me and then, with a lot of hard work, I have slowly managed to shape my career how I want it to go.
I absolutely would not go if I had my time again. I was quite immature when i went at 19 in that i treated it as a 3 year p1ss up and as a result came out with a desmond mickey mouse degree and £20k of debt of which over half is still owed at a reasonably high interest rate.
Never had any intention of going to university and worked after college for year before making the mistake of going the first year they brought in tuition fees. Cheers Tony. Caused me all sorts of financial problems in the subsequent years and ive never had a job that required a degree let alone one in the subjects i did.
The career im in now is totally unrelated and i wish id done it at 18 instead of going to university like my colleague who will be 21 and qualified without a penny of debt in a few months whilst ill be in my early 30s still saddled with debt for another decade.
I think if you are going to do a subject like law or medicine then its worth going but if you are just going for the sake of it and dont really apply yourself its worth thinking twice.
Feel sorry for the kids who now would apply themselves and be sensible at uni because i think the tuition fees they are bringing in will cause real problems to anyone who doesnt earn footballers money. Know you dont pay it off till you earn good money but good money becomes not so good money when you have a £50k+ debt.
Would rather have carried on working and not gone and wish id had my head more screwed on at 19.
As for uni, don't bother. Unless you're becoming a doctor or lawyer etc you'll be in debt and without a job when you come out. I went from part time to full time at Sainsburys on my gap year 6 years ago before I started uni and decided to not go to uni and carry on working at Sainsburys. No debt, good career prospects and possibly more money than some post graduates start on.
If you don't work hard and/or are not really that academic and/or only just scraped into an average University then you are wasting your time.
As elitist as it sounds there a number of occupations and careers that are for the 'high flyers'. If you are one of those then the degree will make all the difference, if you are not then it will make no difference at all.
The truth is that when 5% of each year group went to University it was the top 5%. They were always going to go on to secure the top professions because they were the 'best' and the top jobs are always going to be offered to this group. Now that 40% of each year group go there is clearly not going to be enough top jobs for them all.
Sure, every once in a while someone that didn't do well at school goes on to outperform graduates, and with so many going now it is more common. However, it is very rare that a 16 year old school leaver will outperform an Oxbridge graduate of the same age.
My daughter will be going in 2012 and we will be paying international fees as we are not currently UK based. These will be around GBP 14k per year. I am fortunate to have that kind of money stashed away but I still think a university education is worth every penny at a decent university and with a proper degree qualification.
University is not for everyone, but is a great experience. I have learnt so much away from my degree that I can apply to future jobs (even non science related jobs). You also have to take into account it will be very difficult for an 18 year old to get a job in the current climate, especially ones with prospects for career development.
In my view you need to ask yourself why you are going. In other words be motivated.
That motivation can take various forms the desire to gain a vocational qualification, pursuing an interest in a given subject, a desire to reach the highest level academically you can and more.
Money is a big consideration but ultimately what is money for? It's to sustain life and improve the quality of life. If the motivation is strong enough then money becomes a secondary consideration. You will make sacrifices in other areas to manage.
The important thing is not to reach middle or old age and be plagued with thoughts of "what if?"
At my place I've just taken on a lad who will work 4 days a week with us then attend London South Bank Uni 1 day a week
After 4 years he'll hopefully get a first class degree, have zero debt, a full time job as a Building Services engineer and a decent wage.
Most importantly they learn all the theory of the coursework and 4 years of practical experience working with us.
With fees as they are it's a real no brainer imo
The
couple of people I knew from uni who lived at home didn't enjoy it anywhere
near as much as those who of use who had moved away, a big part of the uni
experience is being away from home! Almost all the friends I met lived in halls
with me, a fantastic 3 years that I'd recommend to anyone, especially as rent
is a tiny cost compared to fee's, if you're going to take the plunge and do it,
do it properly!!
Most of the people that I know who are struggling to get jobs have
two-bob worthless degrees, like media studies and drama, going to uni
costs a lot of money, so atleast make sure the degree you're trying to
obtain is worth the paper it's written on.
Personally uni is now becoming the same as A levels. Unless your going to study a proper subject dont bother. Better off doing an apprentership or getting in a large company young as i did and work your way up. Uni degrees dont really help in the banking world other than get you through the front door. Even the graduates we take on dont have any of the banking exams we have taken and they effectivley have to spend the first few years taking them!
Above all else as has been mentioned choose your course carefully and from which university understand what doors it may open for you. A good maths degree for example demonstrates the versatility of your mind a thinking. But a piece of paper with a first class honours pass may still be of no use if you do not have the personal qualities to make a difference to an organisation
I totally agree with the year in Industry comment. Not only does it give you an idea of what the job is about, it gives you the added edge when applying for post graduate courses or jobs
I would strongly advice going. I chose not to and regret it now. I have been trying to take a step up in my career and it is proving to be exceptionally difficult. A growing number of employers won't even consider people without a degree even with the 8 years experience in the field i already have.
My advice. Go but consider very cafefully what to study. Coming out of Uni 50k down with a degree in fine art may not be the wisest of moves.