University or not?

chezza262

I had this kind of struggle when I finished my A levels but to be honest I knew if I went to uni straight away I would be doing it poorly because I didnt want to be there. There are so many graduates now that have gone to uni straight from school that for the top jobs you need to have something extra special. Doing some work experience in the field you would like to go into or even doing some voluntary work will give you a better idea of what you actually want to do if you do decide to go to uni.

Its always worth remembering that a degree is no guarantee of a job - I know of a Cambridge science graduate who works in a bar because he cant get a job in the field he wants and a lad who left school at 16 with no GCSE's above E grade is now enjoying a responsible high level job with the MOD!

Best of luck x

tr3mor

Take a year or two out, get a job, think about what you really want to do.

There's no point wasting three years of your life on something that you're not really interested in.

tourist22

Please help me some kind folks, have a 2 year old child, unemployed at the moment , husband work and i would like to continue studies in sept 07.....will need some financial help. kindly offer me so guidiance as i am now resident here only three years.. much thanks

Jay

pboae

I regret going to Uni, despite several 'years out' I ended up going the whole hog; degree, masters, phd. Yes I had some fun times, and for the most part I enjoyed my courses, but I still feel it was a huge waste of my time, effort and money.

I should've apprenticed for a trade, which is what I really wanted to do, but because I am good at academic stuff I was steered down that route (by my own decisions as much as pressure from other people).

I've no interest in working in my qualified field, or returning to research, but I'm over qualified for the work I would like to be doing.

I'm lucky that I've found an area that I am enjoying working in at the moment, but long term I don't know where I'll end up. But if I had stuck with the job I had when I was 16 I'd be earning several multiples of what I'm earning now.


EDIT: Tourist22: you would be better to start your own thread, you will get more advice that way.

reehsetin

i always thought - yeah of course ill go to uni, why wouldnt i
my best friend was debating whether to go and spent so many times debating with her that it would be for the best
boy how wrong was i, to be honest think its only worth going if your going to do well out of it, i was a smart !!! at GCSE and didnt try as much in a-level but still did well thought uni wouldnt be much different, it probably isnt i wouldnt say there is much more work required but i only picked the subject im doing due to a lack of wanting to do anything else, means i am really not interested or enjoying it, i simply hate being at uni
therefore my marks arent the greatest and im not going to finish with the best result, its to the extent that im thinking i would have been better off without a bad mark against my name but only the future will tell

ka7e

My son got a 1st class Honours degree in IT, last year. Every IT job he has applied for (even those supposedly aimed at graduates) has turned him down because of his lack of full-time work experience. He signed up with a local temping agency and they told him he would be lucky to earn £14k without experience.
He might as well have gone straight into an admin job from school or college and worked his way up.

Ianna

I went to University in 2002 based on the advice of everyone around me.
Everyone from my parents to my college to careers told me that the best
thing to do was a degree and then I'd be earning 18k when I left blah
blah blah. I went and did my best subject at A-level (English) because I
didn't know what I wanted to do and was repeatedly told that it was a
good all rounder.I hated University. I was bored of my course by the end of the first term, had nothing to do and was surrounded by middle class twits who only wanted to boast about who they'd screwed and what clothes they
wore. I realised too late that of course Universities are trying to sell a
product and so of course they spam literature about degree's being the
be all and end all.

I graduated 18 months ago and have been trying to get work for 2 years.
I've got absolutely nowhere because my degree's worthless unless I want
to do teaching, publishing or know someone to get into journalism. It's
nothing but a barrier to me getting work because an arts degree is seen
as a dossers course done by lazy posh kids who have a superiority
complex (and that stereotype is often true) My choices now are a)do a
job like teaching that I'd detest because my degree's worthless b)Spend
thousands that I just don't have doing a masters to translate my degree
to something useful meaning yet another 2 1/2 years in University c) try
to work myself up from the bottom praying that someone overlooks the 3
year gap on my CV and negative stereotype. I've lost count of the number
of graduates I've met in the same boat as me who deeply, deeply regret
doing the degree they did.

In short, don't randomly do a degree in the hope that everything will
work out. Look at what you want to do and how to get there. If you
decide to do a degree make sure that you get plenty of practical work
experience while you're there many companies will be happy to have you
tag along for a couple of weeks. A part time job can be crucial for work
references, money and provide crucial work experience. A few hours of
leg work can help you find a job that's relevant to what you want to do.

Learn direct have some good advice online or you can speak to an advisor over the phone. You can try Connexions website who even have an advisor online. Direct gov and DFES have info on their website.

You might also think about volunteering because it can provide fantastic experience, training and looks great on a CV - not to mention how incredibly rewarding it is. This website lets you search through fields of interest and area to pick and choose something you'd like to do. If you take a year, get a part time job and volunteer work in something you might like then find that you hate it then at least you know before you've committed yourself. You could also try The Princes Trust for activities in your area.

Ianna

A 2:1 from a redbrick and I STILL double post!

^!£$&

my pushy mom was trying to make me go to uni and so were my college tutors but I wasnt sure it was right for me or what course i should do So I took a year out cause !

I did a bit of travelling worked full time for a while and decided I wanted to go to uni and found a course that was right for me which I love and am just finishng my final year In

All I would say is take your time decide whats right for you Uni isnt going anywhere you can always apply in a few years

Also make sure you do pick a course that interests you and will do so for 3+ years dont do a course because someone else is telling you to !!

The Key is do what feels right for you!!!

si1503

betrobakes wrote: »

So, will I be limiting myself by not going on to higher education? Does anyone here regret not going to university, or going to university?

Unless you want to work for yourself then yes, you will be restricted without a degree IMO.

And no, I don't regret going to uni at all.