Is it worth going to uni?

Former Member

What with all the recent talk about the cost of univercity going up, and people having to pay 50 grand debt after they leave, if you take away all the "good times" you may get from it, and the lifetime friends, is it really worth it any more? or will employers just prefur you to spend the time you would spend in uni learning a given subject, DOING a given subject in practical.

if that makes sence?


thank you

Former Member

Depends what you want to do.

Former Member

It depends on what subject is it. There are some subjects where a degree is essential and others where practical experience is preferred.

Former Member

you can't take away all the good times in uni...they are half the reason for going to uni.

my course will be completely useless, but the connections and experiance i'm going to be able to get is priceless...

Former Member

twisted_trinity wrote: »

you can't take away all the good times in uni...they are half the reason for going to uni.

my course will be completely useless, but the connections and experiance i'm going to be able to get is priceless...

See, if you can get connections and experience that will make it worth while then go for it.

I'm graduating in July (WHOO) and there are no graduate jobs I qualify for. So I'm doing a postgrad! Wahey! And this postgrad won't get me a job either... Ah well! I love it, and that's why I'm doing it. That's why I did my first degree too. Don't go doing it for other reasons.

Former Member

Yes and no. I would say these days, if you really want to go to university you should do. If you were 50/50 about whether to go or whether to do some kind of work based training, 5 years ago you would have gone to uni (because its inexpensive thanks to loans, and you get a degree and make lots friends) but these days I am not sure if that is the most prudent course of action. That's not to say you can't do well at Uni or that it has got worse - there is just less demand for graduates these days and you may be better off getting a qualification and experience. One of my friends who graduated with a 1st in Maths and works as head of IT for an accounting firm, well they don't actually care about his degree - only the fact he has experience with PCs and an MCSE. Of course my friends who have gone to get graduate jobs would not have got them without a degree.

There are so many people at Uni who are just here because it seems like they didn't want to get a job or something, who still act like teenagers. Whilst there are lots of people I know who have started their own businesses with contacts they've made at the University and so on.

Former Member

Yup, what ShyBoy says is true. I'll be working full time while studying part time when I do my postgrad and I'll be seeking jobs in childcare. This has absolutely nothing to do with my degree in Philosophy and English Lit, but it's about the experience I got working with kids while at uni.

Former Member

This is one of those questions I think is best answered on a personal level. Like ShyBoy said, it's 'Yes and no.'

My dad's a PhD and mom would have a masters if she had finished her thesis. My boyfriend is finishing a masters in accounting and both my brothers have graduated from uni. Those are the people closest to me and all of them feel they've gained from their degrees. My older brother works in animation in Hollywood doing a job he'd have had a hard time snatching without his education (although not impossible, just very unlikely). My other brother works programming for a large MMORPG, a job he'd not have gotten without a degree. My boyfriend is also in a job he wouldn't have without a degree.

I personally went a slightly different route as I quit uni after 2 years to become an air traffic controller but now I'm back at uni doing distance learning and am working on finishing my uni degree while working as an ATC. To me a degree is like an insurance, I can always build on it later on. It won't go away.

I am aware that my background probably makes me biased towards uni but in my opinion I feel that university opens doors for people. There are people that do well without degrees and succeed, usually through hard work and some luck. I know a lot more that get stuck in dead end jobs though.

To me, getting education isn't just about supposedly learning something relevant (I think my degree is a bit rubbish actually), it's about opening yourself up to new knowledge, learning to back up your arguments, how to search for answers and learn there aren't always correct answers to be found, etc. I've also learnt a lot about myself while at it.

Most importantly, I think it matters that people do something they feel proud of. I'm not afraid to walk into a job interview and stand for who I am and what I've done in my lifetime so far. I definitely don't think uni is the only way to do that.

Former Member

Go because you want to and because you have a genuine interest in a subject that A-level study cannot satisfy.

Three things I would strongly advocate:

1) Don't go because you think it's the done thing

2) Don't go because you think you should have a degree - there are far too many people out there with media studies and hairdressing degrees from shit universities who have wasted 3 years on a meaningless piece of paper when those years could have been spent better on acquiring genuine skills and experience. Far too many people like this think that this degree will open doors - sadly the only one it will open is the one to the Job Centre or the McDonald's staff entrance.

3) Don't go with a view to what job you'll get when you leave. Go and learn because you want to, not because you see a pay cheque when you leave and how having a degree might enhance that.


The last one might be a bit at odds in the current climate but unlike so many people, I studied what I wanted because I genuinely loved it and had a talent for it. Now I work in an industry completely unrelated (and am remunerated for it quite handsomely I might add).

Do it for the enjoyment and because you have a passion for it. That's the bottom line.

Former Member

It's interesting to hear talk of the "current climate", and it's true that we are in a down-turn just now, but remember that if you are looking at just starting a course now, then (you would hope/expect) that by the time your course finishes we are well out of this slump. Even the worst predictions suggest recovery starting in 2010.

In other words, you can't really consider the job market right now as part of your reasoning.

Former Member

University does cost a lot of money, depending on what course and what Uni you go to and do. - At the end of the day to have a student debt to pay off is worth it if you're studying something you enjoy and will find benifical within your future (Job, Career etc.)

Mostly the main cause of the debt is people who loan money out so they can get their haircut, go clubbing etc. - I'm not saying that's ALWAYS the case, just is at times and blatantly, this raises the student debt.

It's up to you if you go to Uni or not, but just make sure that you are prepared to spend the money you have/earn wisely.

A tip that I've been doing is save money years ahead before Uni, my friends have opened accounts to save their money in just before they started High School, this being four years ago. - I'm too going to open one when I get myself sorted

xxx