Second Year Uni wobble

[SilverGlitterBaubles]

DD is home from uni for the Christmas holidays. She has seemed happy with her course and enjoys uni life until now. She has been meeting up with old schoolmates while back home, most of whom have not been to university, didn't really do very well at A Level so went straight to working in various jobs. Two of her friends have recently started in roles where apparently they beat off graduates to a starting salary of £30k a year and are telling DD that uni is a waste of money and she should just get a job. While happy for her friends it has caused DD to have a major wobble about it all. I can see why, she is a skint student with mounting debt they are living at home, earning money, saving, going on holidays and living a nice life. I am trying to get DD to see the longer term benefits of education and that it will be worth it in the end. Has anyone else any experience of this? How did you encourage them to keep going? TIA

they are living at home, earning money, saving, going on holidays and living a nice life.

Yes - at someone else's expense. It's not like her friends are out carving their own place in the world, they seem to have an unrealistic quantity of disposable income. (I do appreciate it's very hard for people to move out at 18 nowadays).

There's no right answer to this. Does DD know what she wants to do when she leaves uni? Is it a career that needs a degree? If she doesn't know (I didn't), she is at least keeping her career options open, as there are plenty of careers that require a degree. But it has been an eye-opener for me as well, with a DS also in his first year at uni. This first year frankly feels like a waste of money - not enough teaching hours, and the work is certainly not challenging. I would far rather he could have fast tracked into year 2.

Ultimately it's DD's decision, but I would encourage her not to be swayed purely by the thought of money sooner. If she decides later on she wants a job that needs a degree she will have all the hassle of returning to uni as a mature student.

Wildcard option - could she apply to defer year 2, so she could have a year of working after finishing year 1? (I don't know if this is even a thing, although I can't see why it wouldn't be).

Does she have a career in mind?

My DD could be doing what she is doing now without her degree and without a loan balance, but some things would be very different

• she would probably be at home and working not in a different town, with her partner she met at Uni, and buying a house together
• she might not be so independent in terms of budgeting, food prep and other adulting stuff,
• she might not be so confident at knowing she can move anywhere and make a go of it rather than feel she has to stay local,
• she wouldn't have the number of friends she has scattered around the country, and
• she wouldn't have the level of formal education she had in terms of formal report writing and the special technical skills she learned during her degree.

Neither is right or wrong. Different people make different choices.

@tribpot I agree, first year for DD was the same little contact then compounded by strikes which just made things worse as their was no contact or continuity.

@Ohmylovejune DD does not know what exactly she wants to do after university. I have tried to explain that in my workplace even though those with a degree may start from the same position as a non degree holder with some experience the degree holders invariably have an advantage in terms of confidence, presentation skills, adaptability, research skills and generally move up the ladder far quicker.

The whole they beat graduates bit, were they graduate schemes/jobs or open to everyone? Did these apparent graduates have any work experience? How do they know they beat graduates? What degrees did these graduates have? All the questions I would be asking Dd if her mates said the same thing.

Dd's mate has said uni is a waste of time and money after dropping an A level and not doing so great in the other 2. He earns £14k a year as he is 20. Dd is in her final year of uni and has a graduate job lined up which pays over £30k, she needs the degree for her field of work.

Your Dd has to look long term. At this point in her second year she should be looking at paid summer internships for summer 2024 as that is a foot in the door for companies she may want to work at in future. Dd had one paying I think £24k pa. This is how they vet applicants for future graduate jobs too.

There are also soft skills from doing a degree too. Your Dd is almost half way through, I would encourage her to stick with it and get the degree, stop focusing on what her friends are doing now. Get her to speak to whoever is over careers at her uni, they might be able to steer her toward something.

@SilverGlitterBaubles The employers are paying a lot for 19 year olds! Way more than most apprenticeships would pay and even many grad schemes so these roles might well have bonus or commission payments. These are not normal salaries for 19 year olds. Plus if dd doesn’t know what the wants to do, would she go for one of these jobs? What are the prospects like?

Your DD does need to get work experience. A degree and work experience is a great combination. Don’t ever assume just a degree is good enough. If teaching has not been great I can see why it’s disappointing but uni isn’t school. Dc have to do far more for themselves. I would try and talk to her about what she needs to do about maximizing her earnings post degree. Also start looking at careers and work for the summer.

@TizerorFizz I agree, I was pretty sceptical about the the idea that 19 year olds with basic qualifications would be able to get such a salary but apparently it is true. I do think it is pretty unusual though I can see why it would cause DD to question whether she is doing the right thing.

So what work are they doing @SilverGlitterBaubles ? Could dd get this work? That’s really the issue isn’t it. What prospects have they got and would dd have better prospects with a degree? Presumably she knows a uni loan isn’t a bank loan? Therefore paying it back is more of a tax? Is she intending to come home to work to minimise living costs? I can see where she’s coming from but would she have got one of these jobs? Are these young people being trained for anything?