Which Degrees are pretty 'pointless'?

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Just starting to look at courses with DS. So many choices. BUT I am sure there are some which are not particularly going to lead to much. Employers - what do you look for on a CV and what would you avoid?
And any other 'views' are welcome.
DS not even sure if he wants to go to UNI so we are having a good look into stuff.

I've always wondered about the general antagonism amongst mumsnetters towards selective schools yet everyone is desperate to get their child into the most selective university.

Don't write off degrees taught at FE colleges. I have one, and although the teaching quality was patchy (and you need to do your research on this front), it suited those looking for a vocational degree with plenty of theoretical study, and is tailored to the industry through working with companies and finding out what they require from their staff. It included a business studies module that was very useful.

I also have a 2:1 from a RG uni, which got me my first job and enabled me to move up in my previous career. It probably also helped me get my current job at the top organisation in my industry, though they would have seen the vocational degree as more relevant.

If I was doing my A-levels now, I would seriously consider whether it was worth going to uni if I wasn't absolutely sure of what I wanted to do. Back then when degrees were free I had the luxury of being able to do something I enjoyed, though I still came out some £12k in debt, mainly because I helped keep the local nightclubs running

A gap year, or a year working, is a very very good idea. 17-18 is too young to be choosing something so important (imvho).

I have a degree in English literature and a PGCE in English with Drama. Wish I'd done Medicine or law tbh.

I've always wondered about the general antagonism amongst mumsnetters towards selective schools yet everyone is desperate to get their child into the most selective university.

(my DD is at a GS so I'm not against selectives) But I think that the main objection, to selective schools is that its too black and white a choice at too early an age. This is a very valid reason which doesn't apply in the same way to university.

I think it's very much dependent on what you wish to do in the future. I have a degree that will get me the career that I want, even if it's not at the best uni. Now, I have heard many comments in the past about English degrees being uneccessary, but I think they could be useful for example a journalist etc. I have seen a degree course called "cruiseliner" or something. Useless for most people, but if you want to spend your life working on a cruise then gopher it :) It depends what you do with the degree chosen, whether it is worth it or not.

according to some comments on this thread my degree (graduating next month) would be 'pointless' as it's: not in a traditional subject; not from a russel group university; first two years were undertaken at a regional college

yet it has enabled me to start and maintain my own business albeit as a part time concern at the moment but lots of people use and value it and it has backing from national organisations.

MN really isn't a great judge of how the real world works imo.

Seems to be something against southampton solent uni on here - I went there and whilst the quality of teaching certainly was not up to scratch, I achieved a useful degree and we did have tons of work to do to get good grades. Going to my graduation ceremony in a few months!

I have also gone to Uni of Essex where it was much better quality of teaching, but the same amount of work required. At a small private uni abroad, I quit after 4 months because the teaching was so rubbish. Have also done courses at Kingston Uni, and about to start one at Oxford Uni, so I can surely say I have had my fair share of university experiences :P

I still think it depends on your ability to learn independently, as some unis will hold your hand through it, and some will not. Work hard and get where you want, is what you need to tell your kiddo.

TOSN I thought from sixth form open evenings that Thames Valley had replaced de Montfort as the institution to be uttered only through curled lips....

People like to ostentatiously sneer a lot at a place called London Metropolitan these days, but I don't actually know whether that's based on any evidence.

that's true thebigjessie - I went for interviews and stuff at London Met, but my gut feeling was really bad for that uni so decided against it. No idea why though, but they haven't got a great rep when it comes to foreign students (which I am).

For those who think that a RG university degree is the be-all-and-end-all and an ex-poly degree is 'useless', can I point out that the current VC of University of Nottingham got his degree from Leicester Poly. It seems to have set him in pretty good stead, I'd say.

My firm recruits a substantial number of graduates. We do not discriminate on degree subjects at all - not at all. We do discriminate on the following three grounds

1. Choice of university. We do not recruit from former polys. We only really recruit from RG universities.

1. Degree class. We make conditional offers based on final degree grades. We only make offers to people expecting a 1st or a 2:1. If applicants do not achieve their predicted results, it's a toss up. We'd probably reject most of the time.

1. A level results - we generally do not recruit people with poor A levels. They just would not get through the initial (computer) screening. We would look for AAB or better. We could probably live with ABB. Nothing worse than that.

So you can do Anglo Saxon Norse and Celtic - a more useless degree cannot be imagined. But providing you went to a good university and had a history of good results - you'd be fine.

what sort of industry do you work for wul?
banking?

wuldric's criteria hold for law, definitely commercial law

am I the only one who finds it worrying that you can do any degree and work in law? Surely you would want someone who actually are qualified to do those jobs, or is it some sort of generic office rat job that comes under "law". I suppose I think of solicitors/lawyers, surely you can't do that without relevant education? O.o

You do the law conversion course after your degree - it takes a year and you learn the core areas of law. But if you're a specialist you will learn most of what you need to know when you're a trainee, not on the conversion course

They do law qualifications after the other degree.
Maybe it would be good if more lawyers did first degrees in sciences - seems like you'd need to to understand a lot of evidence properly nowadays, not to mention statistics.

London Met has the largest science laboratory in Europe, apparently. It's a 'super-laboratory'. I've been in it, it was awesome! They are also the best Uni in the country for Dietetics. But they're one of the worst-ranked unis in the league tables, so go figure.

I think the firm would curl up and die of apoplexy if someone from Southampton Solent were to be employed there. Or London Met, whatever that is (a police force???). Unless of course the employees in question worked as PAs, Receptionists, in Facilities or as Doormen. Like nightclubs, we do have Doormen. And like all nightclubs, the Doormen are big and black. Frankly, it is just about the only chance of someone black being employed in our gaff.

Try looking on Unistats. It's a government run website with stats on employment rates, salaries, course satsifaction, etc. etc.

But basically the answer is it's the uni and the course which matters. For employability the highest scoring courses are medicine and medical related (e.g psychology), law, education, biological sciences, maths, and engineering. Bringing up the next tier are subjects like languages, history, architecture and business/management.

It's also worth checking out the university facilities carefully, particularly the accommodation. This can vary a lot and different styles of university suit different people. If your DS is going to have a miserable time, then it probably isn't worth the money....

having studied medicine and law.. I can safely say I wish I had studied a general BA or BSc at undergrad at a top uni, for me languages as I loved it and had natural aptitude, done really well, and then done a graduate conversion course. I advise anyone considering a career in law to choose this route.

MC, Wuldric?

The thing is, a university can be very good for a particular subject, and if you were to go into that field then it would probably be recognised. But if you are just applying to a generic 'big company', want to be a lawyer or a management consultant or a banker, then they look at the 'name' of the uni and your degree class.

By default, this means that only certain degree subjects will be acceptable, as RG unis don't tend to do stuff like 'Hospitality Management'. However, my old uni, which is RG, does do things like Drama and Communication Studies. In this case, employers would probably prefer a traditional subject like History or Classics.

Law firms do like science degrees, can be v useful for intellectual property work and the like. But most lawyers are arts/humanities graduates.

Please do not tell me that there is a degree in a subject called Hospitality Management. Any institutions offering such a degree should be instantly barred from granting degrees.

I am shocked. Truly shocked.

The Universities of Surrey and Bournemouth offer it, according to Google. International Hospitality Management BSc. It is a science, apparently.