should you still get a degree if you want to be

jago25_98

talksalot81 wrote:

That does depend, if you are good at it then it can put you in front of the crowd. Getting a first class honours with certificates for coming top of your class in brain surgery is rather likely to get you some attention, certainly moreso than what most people can otherwise achieve in that time.

True. But is academic ability the opporsite to practical ability?
In that case it's harder to know if you're actually going to be good at the job until you finish training. Some degrees have training with placements on the job like medical degrees, but I think that's very different to science degrees. I know that my Geology degree was very different to a Physio degree.

- so I'd say that it's our view of what a degree is that matters. To me I think of a degree as what I did but not all degrees are like that. Conclusion: it depends

TeaBoy_2

errr so what about my HND in Multimedia recently aquired from a 'new university'? i'll have employers fighting for me, right?

Dora_the_Explorer_5

missk_ensington wrote:

talksalot is right, employers ARE people who go home and chinwag with their husband/wife over who they interviewed that day and probably laugh at some of the applicants (we do in our office!) and no matter how PC you try to be you cannot help bias. Same with age, race, gender, how someone looks, their accent, whether they have kids.... you aren't allowed, ever, to officially say those are the reasons so they just say 'not suitable'. Same with degree's, I hate to say it, but when I'm interviewing and shortlisting I look at degree's and if its film studies, criminology or something equally as crap they don't get the job.

I'm far more impressed with someone who has a degree in history, english, politics, science, maths.... something that requires both talent and hard work.

Clearly your company has a somewhat bizarre and unprofessional recruitment system. As ye sow, so shall ye reap.

talksalot81

Dora_the_Explorer wrote:

Clearly your company has a somewhat bizarre and unprofessional recruitment system. As ye sow, so shall ye reap.

I think you are fast to judge.

English - strong written and aural skills
Mathematics - very strong analytical abilities and problem solving skills
Sciences - again very analytically skilled, problem solving, ability to adapt knowledge to other areas

These degrees show talents and abilities which any good employer should value. Many of the less 'core' degrees simply do not result in candidates with these sorts of transferable skills. It is in no way unprofessional to favour someone with a physics degree ahead of someone with a TV studies degree. In the absence of other information, you would be unwise to assume that the latter would be better equipped (or even equally equipped) for a job unrelated to the degree.

Just look at many of the really successful business people. Alot will have done an unrelated degree and you will discover that there are alot with science backgrounds. That is not just fluke, it is because of the skills taught.

missk_ensington

Don't mean to sound ignorant but that is the truth of the matter - we have 1 job available, 10 interview candidates and I've had one with a 1st in Politics from Leeds Uni and another with a 2:2 in Media studies from UCLAN. Not saying there is anything wrong with the latter, but I personally found the former to be more, dare I say it, educated for want of a better word.

She came across more knowedgable, confident, mature, with a balanced thought process and awareness of the world and and awareness of areas that were releveant to our company like public/private sectors. Perhaps this is just a co-incidence, I don't know.

I would much prefer someone who doesn't have a degree, but who has spent the last 3 years getting experience and gaining skills, and has great references, than someone fresh out of uni with a film studies degree and no skills relevant to the workplace.

lau_dicker

Hi, :wave: I'm new but I had to get involved!

I've just finished my 2nd year of a degree in Nutrition and Health Science, I don't know what everyone thinks about that subject ... any opinions?

When I heard the Health part of my degree, I thought, hmm not really very academic! But the more I've look into things, the more I've found out. In my degree, I have to know/have learned about the stuff you would assoicate with nutrition-y type things, biology, human physiology, nursing type things, diet plans, sports, cells, biochemistry, but in the middle of it all, I've also had to know about maths, chemistry, physics, psychology, statistics, computing.

I understand what everyone means about academic things, I need to be sat in a class room getting taught things for my course, there's a lot I can't learn by myself, whereas with English degrees, you have to do a lot by yourself ... in my opinion, even harder! I don't think of myself as either very clever or not so clever, I'm probably about average (on the border of 2:1/1st), but I know for a fact I couldn't pass a degree in English or Media or Art, or any of the degrees which are more creative.

I don't think these "less academic" (as some people say) degrees are wasted, I believe anyone who does this type of thing has a talent, sometimes the degree brings it out even more, or focuses the person more on what they want to do. My friend has just graduated from a degree in English and Drama, she doesn't particularly want to be an actress or a writer, she is going on to do a PGCE to be a teacher, one of the jobs that need more people all the time! She did it because she enjoys it. There's no point doing a degree that you dont enjoy, that's wasting. I started off doing Aerospace Engineering, but it wasn't me, so I changed.

You just need to enjoy what you do

talksalot81

lau_dicker wrote:

I don't think these "less academic" (as some people say) degrees are wasted, I believe anyone who does this type of thing has a talent, sometimes the degree brings it out even more, or focuses the person more on what they want to do. My friend has just graduated from a degree in English and Drama, she doesn't particularly want to be an actress or a writer, she is going on to do a PGCE to be a teacher, one of the jobs that need more people all the time! She did it because she enjoys it. There's no point doing a degree that you dont enjoy, that's wasting. I started off doing Aerospace Engineering, but it wasn't me, so I changed.

The thing is that many doing this type of degrees are no more talented at it than you or I. That is one reason why you see relatively low percentages with very high marks. The other thing is that many people dont do the degree because they enjoy it. They do it because it is easy to access and does not require any special talent to scrape through. They do not enjoy it any more or less than an 'academic degree'... however they can be confident they wont succeed with the latter.

I hate the 'enjoyment' arguement because it is used all the time by people who dont have any enjoyment in it whatsoever. They are doing a degree simply to say as such and so that they can have several years living it up as a student. That is not to say all are like this but you are kidding yourself if you think a very significant fraction does not deserve this description.