Is uni 'worth it'

[Raddles]

Hi there
it can't be all bad at Uni - my eldest is in her first year - and some of the economics lecturers have been talking Rich Dad poor Dad to her - another was also quoting from the Richest Man in Babylon.
In her case - she didn't have a firm view of what she wanted to do and a general degree was not such a bad idea. She still works 2 jobs - and is taking the opportunity to widen her networks and have fun whilst hopefully learning along the way.
I am probably pro uni biaised having 3 degrees - but agree with the comments that you encourage kids to play to their strengths - and get them involved in what they are interested in.
thanks

 

[ianvestor]

agree with the comments that you encourage kids to play to their strengths - and get them involved in what they are interested in.
thanks

I certainly 'played' in uni I did a fair bit of learning too, just didn't get the fancy piece of paper at the end. The I.T. industry seems to be a bit more cash in hand than most though so it's never been an issue.

 

[quoll]

I applied for uni when I was 21 and got in and did a 3 year business degree. I was married and first baby in 2nd year and 2nd baby born at end of 3rd year. Ended up doing IT major but in the years since I found the accounting / statistics subjects have helped, the quick and dirty buisness law has been a good base to help with contract law. The IT skils helped we get an IT job but the industry certs hold more sway and assist more now than the degree does.

I would say it was worth it but in hindsight I could have got better skills doing TAFE courses.

Cheers
Graeme

 

[fatboy4]

The question is- is tertiary study preparing you for work or for life or both?

The toilet paper dispensers at Queensland Uni libraries often had "BA, please take one" inscribed on them. I took one.

Kids at school often complain about education as if it is purely "training".

"When am I ever gonna need this stuff!? Idonwannabeapoe!" (for those who do not speak 14 year old that was "I do not want to be a poet")

At the tertiary (read non-compulsory) level, one should make the same distinction- am I training for a job (profession) or is it education?

Most degrees are required to work in a field (wanna be a lawyer then I need my LLB) -then work out if that is what you really want to do and if the cost is worth it.

The benefits of education are ineffable.

 

[Aaron Sice]

uni isn;t all bad - i agree. you can't pick up a TAFE course for Medicine or Law.

but 6 years of architectural history does not prepare one for 1 year of half ar53d prac which is not likely to land you a job.

a bachelor of arts will land you a job in retail.

a bachelor of commerce will land you a job as a receptionist in a law firm.

look at the difference in curriculum between law and/or medicine and other degrees. the difference is more than "ineffable".

 

[boomtown]

Most degrees are required to work in a field (wanna be a lawyer then I need my LLB) -then work out if that is what you really want to do and if the cost is worth it.

The median salary of a partner in a top tier Australian law firm was about 950k last year. Those people probably think their uni education was worth it.

Not being Australian born I don't know what ineffable means though.

 

[sash]

Yep....and how many people actually get to this level....let alone the hours they need to work to get to this level! It is brutal....by the way there are probably only about 200 law partners in Australia who make that kind of money!

I much prefer to take a lazy man's way and simply invest in property and smell the roses along the way!!

Cheers
Sash

The median salary of a partner in a top tier Australian law firm was about 950k last year. Those people probably think their uni education was worth it.

Not being Australian born I don't know what ineffable means though.

 

[boomtown]

Theres more like a thousand of them but yes its a slippery pole.

 

[fatboy4]

See the ol' Arts Degree was worth something...

Don't worry- not many native born Aussies would know the definition either-

"incapable of being expressed in words"

Re the partners -indeed! Not bad coin at all. Maybe I should have finished my law degree.

 

[LynnH]

Interesting thread!

Hubby did a B.Sc. and a couple of post-grad courses - and has never used any of them. I studied for an accounting degree - and realised at the end of my second-last year that there was NO way that I ever wanted to work as an accountant, so have done a bunch of short courses over the years in things that interest me.

Our two eldest girls had decided what they wanted to do while they were in primary school - No 1 studied science and then medicine (only way you get into medicine in Qld) and is now working as a Paediatric Registrar (3rd yr trainee paediatrician) at one of the childrens' hospitals - and is on Cloud Nine. No 2 Daughter studied space & mechanical engineering and a B.A. (for the languages - Russian and Spanish) - only to find that there are very few aeronautical engineering jobs in Qld, so she's working as a Mech. engineer until she gets the 'time' (5 yrs) to be eligible for full professional registration - then she's off overseas to work, hopefully in one of the Space agencies (hence the languages). No 3 Daughter didn't really know what she wanted to do right up until she finished school - did a B.Sc. because she was sort-of interested, then found her niche in the 2nd year of her degree. She's now a microbiologist and virologist and is studying for her PhD - went to an international conference recently in Europe ... and came back with 2 job offers for when she finishes her study in late 2009/early 2010.

As others have said, it depends on the person concerned and their interests and abilities. There's no point in persevering with study just to 'tick the box' - if what you want to do is get out there and get a job or do a trade, then I'm all for it. I think it's great to see the government ads encouraging young people to look at doing a trade - but ultimately I think the decision should be made by the individual according to what s/he wants to do in life.

Cheers
LynnH

 

[boomtown]

ultimately I think the decision should be made by the individual according to what s/he wants to do in life.

Only when they are adults. Kids are naturally lazy and need to be pushed - hard. I certainly needed it and Im grateful that I got it. Otherwise I just would have watched TV.

 

[Max Carnage]

Hi there
it can't be all bad at Uni - my eldest is in her first year - and some of the economics lecturers have been talking Rich Dad poor Dad to her - another was also quoting from the Richest Man in Babylon.

Send her to a better university. Seriously. The extra dollars will be worth it.

 

[LynnH]

You have a good point, boomtown - some kids seem to need pushing more than others, I guess. Our kids were all pretty self-motivated as far as study and homework went ..... but maybe that's partly due to my semi-regular threats to "put a bl@@dy brick through the TV".

(Can't stand 'the box' - have only owned 2 in 33 years together - no plasma, no Foxtel - TV only ever gets turned on for the news and occasional bit of golf for hubby. Bet you're glad you didn't grow up in this household, boomtown! )

Cheers
LynnH

 

[wylie]

Only when they are adults. Kids are naturally lazy and need to be pushed - hard. I certainly needed it and Im grateful that I got it. Otherwise I just would have watched TV.

I believe it depends on the kid. We don't push them at all but the older two are doing very well at uni and grade 11 and still watch plenty of TV. The grade 11 boy wants to get good marks to get into the course he wants.

I am the lazy one, and probably need a good push .

 

[artemis]

i'm undergoing a 'career transformation' whatever that means!
i resigned from my position after spending many many years studying at uni.

i don't regret it uni at all. it has given me choices that i would not have otherwise had.

so when you see me working at david jones, please remember that i am a 'dr'

 

[Spectre]

My thinking on it is that most - not all but most - kids dont know what they want to do when they turn 18-ish and start to head into uni.

While uni might be a place to discover yourself, I also learned a lot with a 30 kilo backpack hanging off of me... and I tend to think that most kids dont know what they want to do until they hit about 24-25. And during that 18-24 window while they're 'figuring it out' they manage to rack up a nice hecs debt in the meantime.

When I went through, I had friends who did 3-4 degrees. I can remember thinking - what are they doing - they're like 10 years older than me - more a professional student. So it was (IMO) easier to stay in uni and be a professional student than get a job.

Dont know if the greeks had a minimum age requirement?

 

[travelbug]

Interesting points.

I have to agree that it depends what your goals are.

It seems the trend to stay until year 12 because kids don't know what they want to do , then they go to Uni because they don't know what to do.
If you have a specific career in mind I and you need a degree then go for it.

I was VERY lazy at school. I did well but not by studying. I tried many careers. I loved the restaurant business but it didn't fit after I had 2 kids so I went to UNI at 30 with a toddler and a pre-schooler. Now I'm a teacher and I love it.

I assumed my very bright son would go to UNI but at high school it became evident that this was not to be. He learned things very easily, but he hated school and wasn't interested. He memorized amazing things, unfortunately not things to get you a good UAI. I pushed him to do Year 12 so he has a better opportunity to go to UNI later, should he change his mind. If not, so be it.
He is loving life and is a changed person from the insecure unhappy boy he was 3 years ago.

A friends daughter went to UNI and did economics. Hated it, changed courses then dropped out. She did a typing course, got a job as a legal secretary and is on as much money as me.

Does anyone know how many on the top 100 young millionaires list have been to UNI? I don't think the percentages are very high.

The guy that started Attitude clothing dropped out of school. His teachers told him he would amount to nothing (I still can't believe teachers say those things). Unfortunately I know some do. They shouldn't be in that job.

While some people are just finishing a degree with massive debt their friends are on the way to financial security. But then again the UNI educated person may have a higher long term job.

There's not a yes/no answer. It's been interesting reading everyone's thoughts. It's funny though I feel guilty when other teachers ask me what my son is doing. They always skite about their kids degrees.

He'll have his day.

 

[Raddles]

Hi Max
the point I was trying to make is that the economics lecturers were not just theorists - they were also quite practical - and got my daughter interested which has to be more important on whether the Uni ranks in the top percentage of Uni's.
Incidentally QUT is quite a good Uni in my opinion
thanks

 

[Max Carnage]

Hi Max
the point I was trying to make is that the economics lecturers were not just theorists - they were also quite practical

And my point is that taking on $10k/yr in debt to be 'taught' such absolute pap is absurd! Lecture time is limited, and if your daughter is being fed this tripe when she could be learning real economics, I have very grave concerns both for her future and about the quality of lecturer QUT is employing!

Seriously!

 

[Raddles]

Hi there Max
just out of interest have you ever read the Richest Man in Babylon? If you haven't perhaps you should as it is all about economics
thanks