HOW TO AVOID A COMPLETELY ‘USELESS’ DEGREE

THE UK press reports labour shortages across nearly every industry yet graduates can’t find jobs. Something doesn’t add up. Are graduates setting their expectations too high or not trying hard enough?

Or basically getting degrees in ‘useless’ subjects? A degree in sports/media studies is no preparation for the world of work. Today’s world needs people with ‘useful’ skills; lucrative jobs abound in the engineering sector. The worst subject for employment prospects is ‘animal science’ because it’s not a proper subject: it’s just about being nice to cats and rabbits. If it were a proper subject it’d be called zoology or biology.

All these pointless degrees lead to, reportedly, £45k of debt so it’s hardly surprising there appears to be increasing interest in alternatives to university. Employers complain of a widespread shortage of skilled staff, and everyone has an apocryphal story of the high earning power of some skilled tradespeople.

There should be much more importance placed on practical skills development and less on constant examinations. Countries such as Germany invest much more in apprenticeships and workplace training and perform very well economically. The sooner the UK government realises that higher education has become a massive Ponzi scheme the better.

Nora Johnson’s critically acclaimed psychological crime thrillers (www.nora-johnson.net) all available online including audiobooks at Amazon etc. Profits to Cudeca cancer charity.

Nora Johnson’s opinions are her own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.