AIBU to feel that some parents just want their children at Uni even if its a BS degree

[DistinguishedSocialCommentator]

Hello
I come from a background/culture where education is seen as very important and going to a university is a must (My parents came to England in 1962)

Yes, more and more jobs are seeking degrees and often even when not necessary. There are many professions where you must have a degree to join the course training

However, what I and my family call BS degrees, to name but a few

Arts
Studio Fine arts
Arth History
Business studies
Exercise Science
Fashion

I cant see what jobs they will get as there must be other routes, less intensive and extensive to get the job they want

When I've talked about mickey-mouse degrees at parties etc and not be aware that some parents children or they may have studied them, they start to defend the indefensible.
The biggest bS degree is 'Politics' - WTH!! Sadly, we know a few people whose children have done that and ended up running the family shop/business - total waste of a degree

There are other degrees just as crappy - they should be banned IMO

AIBU to think these degrees are a waste of time and often do not aid the person into a job in that field?

You value careers not education.

Fellow careers adviser here - working with 14-25's it's amazing what people believe to be true!

Hey @ghostyslovesheets 👋🏻👋🏻

Isn't it just?!
It can be very frustrating!

There are some amazing apprenticeships out there but it can take longer to achieve a level 5 qualification that way - apprenticeship wages for 16-18 year olds are low and don't rise quickly for many - student working part time earn as well often quite well, moving from level 3 to 4+ can be difficult as there are not as many opportunities. As an apprentice you are also choosing a specific career area while a degree opens up more job directions.

It's about deciding what suits you

My eldest 2 decided for themselves to go to uni - my youngest is not that keen and wont be forced into it - but education isn't really a waste.

What is this OP? In summary

• your knowledge of the degrees that you’ve targeted are practically zero and you aren’t listening to knowledgeable posters who are kindly enlightening you
• you know the price but not the value - you don’t value education or learning very much
• it’s ORTHODONTIST 😂

As an apprentice you are also choosing a specific career area while a degree opens up more job directions.

Such an important point.

Wow. I never post but your post made me so angry. Education is about bettering and broadening horizons. Sounds like your horizons need broadening quickly.

Arts graduate £75k a year

American Studies degree here which I assume would fall into your categories of BS. I'm an exec director of HR earning 6 figures. Degrees aren't everything and I think the breadth of apprenticeships is a positive thing, but you come a cross like a judgemental arse.

I have one of the degrees you list (from the world’s leading institute). Without wishing to be terribly vulgar, I suspect my PAYE bill is higher than your salary (& that’s before taking into account earnings from the company I also own). I enjoyed the degree, & my career.
Your ignorance lets down your education.

Going to university for no purpose to do a course you're not interested in, just because your parents say you should go to university can certainly be pretty pointless. But the OP, and the posters who agree with her, seem to be assuming that almost any degree outside of their pathetically narrow 'useful' category has been chosen at random with no forethought just for the sake of getting a degree.

OP, do you honestly not understand that a lot of people choose degrees based on what they are good at and enjoy, not just what will make them the most money? And also that many, many people end up doing jobs that are not related to their degree courses (even if they were the 'right' kind of degree courses that you approve of)?

School teaches you facts, degrees teach you how to think. You learn how to analyse information, think critically, form informed opinions, weigh up evidence and come to your own conclusions. University courses aren’t always about the practical application of knowledge. It’s not the same as learning a trade.

That was our policy as well. I reiterate that of our three kids, all in their 30's now, 2 left school at 16 with gcse's and the other wanted to go to uni to become a dentist. The 2 that did not go to uni are now both in the top 5% earners, both started at the bottom of the ladder and they rarely stayed in one job for more than a few months. Employers saw the potential and several years ago helped pay for degrees in computer science, I think it was BSC or something like that - companies paid most of the fees and an allowance towards books etc - this took our 2 kids to the next level to over 100k per annum, this was a few years ago and now both earn as I said before ie top - wont say how much but a lot more than the 100k. The other kid, now aiming to be a orthodontist but paid a lot less than the 2 that did not go to uni

Is this some sort of stealth brag about how intelligent your STEM degree family are? What an arrogant attitude.

Yes

And there aren’t enough apprenticeships for those that want them. Sometimes the degree is a simpler route.

Well said yes a lot of push for all to go to uni money making scam

Who said education was a "waste"??

Who said education was a "waste"??

Erm you!
You clearly feel that a certain type of education is a waste.

Your orthodontist story just doesn't stack up.

Has anyone pointed out to OP already that the university you go to makes way more difference to job prospects than the course you do?

I went to a top uni (not Oxbridge) and at age 31, out of my top five uni friends one is on 300k in banking, another on 200k in finance, three on around 100k in accounting/law.

We all did degree courses totally unrelated to the fields we went into - nearly all did arts courses - but we got ahead because we went to an elite uni.

The university is way more important for employability than the course.

Many thanks. Several posts like yours and we were like that. My OH has a BA. They were considering becoming a teacher but decided not to.

We decided early on our children were not going to uni to enjoy themselves or possibly worse case scenrio end up hooked on drugs - see my previous post if you wish re our three kids now I their 30's, two left school at 16, now earing top wages for some years and the other a dentist and seeking orthdental quals.

We know too many people where the parents wanted them to go to uni and in their view any degree was a status symbol. Some went off the rails spolit by parents some got good jobs as they chose a medical route and some ended up somether else and decent pay

IMO, if you live in, near London and can daily travel to it - you don't need a degree and can easily kick off at the bottom, work hard and soon your employer will see the potential and help you to a top job/salary

The thing I disagreed with our two kids that did not go to uni was them moving jobs every few months initially - they proved me wrong as everytime they moved it was a better job and more pay. When they in their early 20's they flw business class to the companies HQ's around the world and stayed in classy hotels and one even did Switzerland a few times, both have done usa/dubia/japan/hongkong/swede/germany/france/nethedlands, etc via work - now they are married and don't want to do that so only go away about twice a year for a couple of weeks

If you want to work and have an interest in a line of work, almost anyone can do it if livivng in London or a place where there are plenty of jobs

I know a few people who have done some of the degrees that you have mentioned and they have forged successful careers, granted some have had to top up with a masters but that can happen no matter what you study

There are some rubbish degrees out there but I think the ones you mentioned wouldn’t be considered rubbish ….although I have never heard of exercise science

If you want to work and have an interest in a line of work, almost anyone can do it if livivng in London or a place where there are plenty of jobs

Honestly can't roll my eyes enough at this.

And if you don't live in or near London? Then what?

So clueless about how the job and labour market works 🙄

A very valid post.

I think there are two universities in Leicester, one better than the other. so I have been advised by a nephew who is now a qualified medical consult at a very young age - passed tests every time and now going FT private

Yes, it also depends on the uni you go to, I accept that but there are rubbish degrees that lack job ops etc

We all have different view of rubbish degrees. As I just posted in response to another FM - it also depends on which uni you attend as some are more interested in making money than educating imo.

You sound a little bit ignorant also 87% of voters don’t agree with you and the majority are usually right

I could guess what heritage you come from from your comments though so I’m not surprised about your mentality

Erm you did - by banging on about BS degrees and only valuing education that is directly job related - odd that you responded to that post but none of my others