Tertiary and Continuing Is University Worth It?

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I currently lead a double life. Stepping down from my office job and slowly but surely becoming a field botanist.

In the admin world, a degree will get you an interview at the very least. Now in my other life, where I do contractual work with Melb Water, Parks Vic, DPI etc; we cringe when we get a uni student coming through. All book smarts and no actual hands on skills so we have to babysit them for a bit. The TAFE kids on the other hand tend to get the job done. What I'm trying to say is that it depends on the profession
 
juss said:
I will tell you what's more important than a degree, knowing people, and having social skills, and knowing how to work people.

People hire people they like, I've seen people get promoted based on the fact they were in tight with the powers that be. It might not be the most ethical, but it's the way the world works.
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Agree - most times a degree will get you into the selection process for a job (some employers use it as a criteria to cut down the number of applicants). After that, a lot of it comes down to your skills, experience and personality (how you operate and work with others).

When you get into an organisation/work place, you can definitely progress up the ladder on the basis of who you know (and how they regard you) rather than what you know.
 

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I've done a lot of uni & a lot of tafe...and I find tafe to be bloody excellent value for money...uni less so. If you think you're too smart for tafe then great...you'll be a bigger fish in a smaller pond...maybe you'll be the best one there and the first one hired.
 
Interesting thread, agree with a lot of points! I work with engineers as a tradie and we hate working with the fresh out of uni ones, they know nothing about the job but also don't want to listen to the tradies who have been working here for 20+ years as they think that’s beneath them.

Maybe you guys can help me out with where to start, I just made this thread
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/threa...in-going-to-university.1047638/#post-31562950
I find it funny reading the comments about starting your life at 25 ect as that's what Im planning to do. If I go through with it I’ll have to try to balance funds as I do have a mortgage but I will also get a reasonable payout from the company, I wouldn’t leave without one.
 
DrKrieger said:
Would definitely like to do further study, have a couple dip/adv dip level quals, these plus my work experience make me eligible for direct entry to Masters in <my industry> Management, but am not sure if it's better to go this route or just do a BBus, either way will have to be via distance.

Ah well, still have a couple years to decide :confused:
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Always do the Masters. It will give you a broad understanding of management principles you can leverage your specialist skill set on. If your industry has plenty of opportunities for work of that type it is a great combination.
 
FatChicksRejectMe said:
for me university has not been a good investment

I graduated with an accounting degree, but finished with average grades as i failed some units (reason being home sick,depression,losing motivation/hope etc). Almost two years since graduation and still cant find any accounting work. I cant get graduate jobs as my WAM is not 70% minimum. Cant get entry level accounting work such as accounts payable, book keeper etc as i dont have 2+ years experience, or some times i am told i am too over qualified.

Currently work in admin/data entry making 35k a year. Im over 30 so looks like my life wont improve and i will always be stuck in minimal wage. Probably wont ever get married LOL

I have myself to blame for this situation but in saying that i know people who graduated 5-7 years ago with 5 fails on their transcript but still managed to find jobs. I know many students with slightly better grades then me that still cant find accounting work. Talking to recruiters they tell me i am not the only graduate who cant find work, one company told me they have over 100 grads on their list looking for work.

So i guess the accounting industry is over saturated in Australia.

I often wonder if its worth it for me to go back to uni and do a graduate diploma in accounting and try to boost my grades to a 70% WAM, but i am not to sure if i can achieve that or if its financially stable for me. Plus after that i would need to study another 3 years for CA/CPA.

I guess thats life, there are winners, but more losers like me
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don't be so hard on yourself.

We all win and we certainly all lose. The secret is how you pick yourself up and how you carry on through tough times.

Try and enjoy yourself, smile, shake peoples hands, make others feel happy, make others comfortable and convince yourself you are lucky. Fingers crossed things turn around for you soon.
 
University is worth as much as you want it to be.

Some people go to get a degree to get a job, some people go to further their understanding, some people go to further their career advancement (i feel this is different to just getting a job). Depending on your field of study, studying at uni may not teach you as much as you might learn in a work place. I am doing a PhD because i love what i do, but also because I know that to keep doing it i need a high level of study.

I also think university is a great place to find out where you really want to go and what kind of person you are going to be. It gives you opportunities to experience such a variety of things and meet so many people, while allowing you independance and, hopefully, although some courses do not, teach you to work hard.
 
Good thread. I finished Uni last year and I honestly don't know if I'll ever use it. No HECS as it was my parents shout and paid upfront. There quite simply isn't enough jobs for all the people that graduate Uni. Back in the old days only the very brighest went to Uni and it was an esteemed thing now every Tom, Dick and Harry goes there. According to my lecturers and coordinatars etc etc most graduated don't get employed for 6 months + because there are just too many. A lot of these aren't even real jobs they are almost like internships where you would get paid peanuts if at all. When I am not even sure if I want to enter the industry in the long run, I'm not going to slug it out for less than minmum wage I reckon it would be in some cases. I do have a job now and although it's a very basic job anyone with half a brain can do, I get 22/23 an hour which suits me well enough right now in my life (I'm 21)

However in saying that I am happy I did get my degree as it may open up options for later in life
 
Stratton_Gun said:
Good thread. I finished Uni last year and I honestly don't know if I'll ever use it. No HECS as it was my parents shout and paid upfront. There quite simply isn't enough jobs for all the people that graduate Uni. Back in the old days only the very brighest went to Uni and it was an esteemed thing now every Tom, Dick and Harry goes there. According to my lecturers and coordinatars etc etc most graduated don't get employed for 6 months + because there are just too many. A lot of these aren't even real jobs they are almost like internships where you would get paid peanuts if at all. When I am not even sure if I want to enter the industry in the long run, I'm not going to slug it out for less than minmum wage I reckon it would be in some cases. I do have a job now and although it's a very basic job anyone with half a brain can do, I get 22/23 an hour which suits me well enough right now in my life (I'm 21)

However in saying that I am happy I did get my degree as it may open up options for later in life
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Sounds like you're a bit lazy & spoilt

Mummy & daddy paid for it, and because no one is throwing a job at you its all too hard?

not sure that has much to do with the degree or university in general
 
Sanders said:
Sounds like you're a bit lazy & spoilt

Mummy & daddy paid for it, and because no one is throwing a job at you its all too hard?

not sure that has much to do with the degree or university in general
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Is there value being critical on kids? Sure kids can be a bit all over the place, not value things as much as they should and don't dedicate themselves as hard as they should.

but they should focus on having fun and keep one eye on the future. Hopefully they can turn things around in their late twenties or thirties when they have a much better idea on what they want to do.
 

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Am heading back to uni to study this year. I will be doing certificate iv in information technology on a part time basis. As for saying is it worth it yes it's better than sitting on your backside all day and possibly trolling some poor person you detest.
 
I am doing a Bachelors of Arts (Pathway to Primary Teaching) course at UWS. I am 3 semesters away from graduating and then I have another 3 semesters for my Masters degree. I have however been told that finding work as a primary school teacher isn't that hard especially if you are male as primary school principles are always on the look out for male teachers as they are so much rarer.

I hope it is true as I will owe almost $50,000 by the end of my bachelors and who knows how much more once I have done my masters.
 
Roobs321 said:
I did a couple years of work before being a mature age student (who gets a lot out of the whole uni study thing). Plan to do further degrees down the track too, really enjoy it.
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Partridge said:
I could do it endlessly. There are so many fields I'd love to have greater knowledge of.
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You should both looks into MOOCs, if you haven't previously.

Find them:
https://www.coursera.org/ (run by a number of Unis worldwide)
https://www.edx.org/ (MIT, Harvard)
https://iversity.org/ (multiple)
https://www.openlearning.com/ (UNSW, Uni Canberra)
http://ocw.jhsph.edu/ (Johns Hopkins - focussing on public health and global health)

and at many other places :)
 
RUNVS said:
I am doing a Bachelors of Arts (Pathway to Primary Teaching) course at UWS. I am 3 semesters away from graduating and then I have another 3 semesters for my Masters degree. I have however been told that finding work as a primary school teacher isn't that hard especially if you are male as primary school principles are always on the look out for male teachers as they are so much rarer.

I hope it is true as I will owe almost $50,000 by the end of my bachelors and who knows how much more once I have done my masters.
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Good luck! A very noble profession - keep at it and you'll get there before you know it :)
 
I think it might be a good idea for you to at least try doing a short course and if you like it review it once your short course ends and try the next level.
With something like masters you don't want to make it look like you have bitten off too much that you can't chew if you know what I mean.
Start with something like certificate ii in the industry you like.
 
Personally I'm hoping so, believe I've decided to study in a bit of a newer field which I'm really hoping is going to open up more... I had a few cracks at uni before settling, first time deferred, second time tried to take a leave of absence first semester due to stress, finances, personal issues and had it get declined without being told. Took a few years break, worked full time in retail, eventually went * this and looked into going back to study, went via TAFE to get more pre-req's and "ease" back into it. Now in 2nd semester of my degree, still stressing but it's at least a field I want to eventually work in, actually from what I gather my class is the first ones to actually be offered / complete this degree structure and major at my university which is kind of nice as the lecturers etc. aren't burnt out yet :p

Looking into volunteering or doing an unpaid internship in my next summer break, thought about doing study abroad but I'm really unsure if I can justify 10k.
 
this appeared in The West Australian towards the end of last year

HD Surveyors in demand

AU
CONNIE CLARKE
BY Connie Clarke
WC 424 words
PD 1 February 2014
SN The West Australian
SC TWAU
ED First
PG 24
LA English
CY (c) 2014, West Australian Newspapers Limited

LP


Forget psychology, architecture and the visual and performing arts — university students who want to guarantee themselves a job after completing their degree should consider surveying.

Nine out of 10 graduate surveyors are working full-time across the country, making it Australia’s most underrated degree, according to a new survey by social demographer McCrindle Research.

TD


Psychology graduates were the least likely to find full-time work in their field reports the nationwide study of 512 respondents.

Only 63 per cent were employed with a median starting salary of $47,500 — well below the average professional starting salary of $50,000 and slightly above the $42,000 earned by factory workers.

Just half of all visual and performing arts graduates are working in their fields, starting out at $38,000, while 70 per cent of graduate architects had found full-time work but were only earning on average $32,500. Rounding out the most overrated degrees were the social sciences, with 60 per cent employed at a salary of $45,000.

With a quarter of Australians aged 17 to 24 not in full-time work or study, the research highlighted the need for members of Generation Z — those born after 1995 — to consider their options carefully as they embarked on their university careers, social researcher Mark McCrindle said.

“Population growth is creating the need for more homes than ever and the redevelopment of many existing urban centres,” he said. “This planning and construction boom is creating great opportunities for graduates.

“Surveying, urban planning, and engineering are rated in the top four courses based on a combination of employment, earnings and analysis.”

Mr McCrindle said eight out of 10 urban and regional planners, rehabilitation specialists and electrical engineers were working full-time in their field.

Surveying recruitment specialists are predicting a boom year for graduates with building approvals at levels not seen since 2010, leading to an urgent demand for surveying staff.

“It’s a highly diverse and technical role for degree-qualified professionals offering opportunities into a multitude of fields including project management, commercial management and consultancy as well as being internationally recognised,” Michael Page Australia director Nic Chambers said.

“It can certainly be a lucrative career option from a financial perspective.

“Surveyors of one sort or another are typically present within a high proportion of organisations ranging from large blue- chip global firms to small sub-contractors.”

“It’s anticipated that as hiring activity within the mining industry increases, so will demand for mine surveyors given historical shortages.”
 
most of the stuff you learn at uni is deemed useless at work.

but you wont get the job without the degree so its really a necessity unless you get into a good trade or know a few shortcuts
 
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