Is it normal to question if my degree is even worth it?

[natty7]

I’m halfway through my degree and lately I’ve been wondering if this is really worth it. I chose this field because it seemed practical, and everyone around me said it was a “good choice,” but now I feel… unsure.

I enjoy some parts of it, but other parts feel completely pointless, and I can’t stop thinking about whether I’ll actually use this in real life. Some classmates seem so confident about their path and I just feel lost.

What’s the degree?

Depends on the degree. And what you think is ‘useful’.

there are degrees that are more focussed to careers (eg law, business and finance) and if you’re thinking of ‘useful’ in terms of ability to obtain a high paying career, then if you’re doing East Asian studies with a focus on imperial history - then you will have doubts.

However, if you this the ‘use’ of degrees is to form knowledge populations wi the a wide range of skills across multiple disciplines- you’ll not be so worried.

Are you looking for depth of knowledge or for a monetary return on your fees?

Milk uni for all you can while there. Get your computer driving license. Attend the free language lab lessons. Co- run a society so you can talk about in on your cv. Use the careers advisors for job hunting help and prep. Go see a free counsellor for therapy if you’re down. Get your moneys worth!

I studied accountancy (and am now an accountant..) but I'm not sure I have actually used much of what I studied on a day to day basis.

Same can be said for my professional accountancy exams

It depends what you want out of it and what you are studying. Uni is an experience as well as a job seeking exercise. So not just about what happens after. Good halfway transition for people from school to life. But in monetary terms alone it really depends what degree you get and what you do after. A good degree from a well regarded university can get you into a graduate scheme (all be it these are increasingly competitive). Or for certain careers you need them. But unless you want to do this a degree may not necessarily pay off. There's too many graduates and too many unis.

You can presumably decide to look for a job related to your preferred subject areas. Sometimes having broader knowledge can help with grasping the bigger picture of a role. How much choice do you get for optional modules?

When i went to uni it was the expectation. I did Fine Art. Totally pointless career wise. I then did a masters in my now career and have enjoyed this job for over 15 years and at the time I couldnt have qualified without it. but im still paying off my student loan and if I had my time again I wouldn't have wasted time building up debt with my first pointless degree. Nowadays there are other routes into my career but at the time there wasn't.

Weigh up the uni debt vs what you want to achieve from it. Student loans are horrific and it costs even more now than it did for me. Its never ending even in a good salary.

If i was half way I would keep going. I dont use my degree topic but having a degree did allow me to work in the sector I wanted and I went on to take a masters I was more interested in. Are you able to select different modules. Might be worth chatting to your tutors about it.

IMO you absolutely should question whether the degree you're studying will be useful for getting you a job, because a lot of them aren't. I studied an interesting subject first time around and it was utterly useless for getting a job. Fortunately, the prestigious uni I went to and the work experience I had helped me to get started in a completely unrelated area (one that I ultimately decided was not for me), but that was back in the late 90s, when getting a job as a grad was easy. Now the jobs market is extremely tough and competitive and a lot of students are leaving uni with high levels of debt, so I think it's essential that they question whether that degree is worth it. When you are paying a lot of money for something you have every right to question whether it's good value for money.

"Life is what you make it" and so is the university experience. Squeeze every bit of value and fun out of it that you can.

I think a lot of degrees aren’t worth it really (excluding vocational ones). I
studied economics and went into accountancy, but now you can do the same career path straight from school as an apprentice. I worked during uni and had a temp job between uni and getting my grad job which tbh was more useful in getting my grad job than my degree. Uni for me also gave me some life experience and allowed me to move away from my small rural city, so it was worth it in some ways.

Depends on the degree, debt and your earning potential.

It depends what your degree is. Many degrees are really only a stepping stone to the next thing. It also depends on the institution you are studying at.

if you are doing something specialised like medicine or law but have no intention of doing that for a job afterwards there is still value in it and of course you will not use what you learn.

If you are doing something like chemistry or English lit then, unless you go into academia or teaching, you are unlikely to use what you learn but there is still value in the degree.

it is not unusual to find some of the stuff you study to be boring or pointless and as long as you enjoy some parts of it then it’s fine.

@ThisOchreHedgehog There are apprenticeships but often they are much more competitive to get than a degree is. Most younger accountants still have degrees. Many degrees can lead to this career and there’s not much evidence that school leavers are muscling out degree holders.