When he first came to power, Tony Blair proudly announced that his party’s big focus was “Education, Education, Education�. A commendable enough focus and certainly not an area we would think of associating with frustration and high personal debt. But over the years, as more and more colleges have gained the status of a university, and student loans have become effortlessly available to all, schools have encouraged a lot more young people to go for higher education without really spelling out the cost.
There’s no question that we require a more highly educated society, but is everyone actually getting the most appropriate advice? In reality; it’s not a tricky sell to promote to an eighteen year old to leave home and live with a bunch of friends, not concern themselves about finding a job for three or four years and get discounted beer at the university bar. A bit of a basic interpretation maybe – inevitably there’s a bit of studying to be done, and a degree of juggling to make ends meet, then the rewards will be worth it in years to come. But is that really so? For many families, the real cost of university education continues for a long time after graduation, both in financial and social terms.
Student Loans (the best method of borrowing for university undergraduates), tuition fees, accommodation and the cost of life in general over the course duration can set you back well over thirty grand – with no guarantee of a job. It’s ironic that intellectual adolescents too often find themselves back home and unemployed. Not only do parents still have to support them financially, but time on their hands adult children in the house again can definitely make things awkward!
A university education can be a rewarding time for young people, and is the only way for many of our professions. But we ought to know that in some areas, there are other, often better alternatives. As far as IT is concerned, employers are desperate for commercially qualified IT professionals. Only having a university degree means students frequently have to supplement their IT training skills to be ready for work and fare in the job market with Microsoft, CompTIA or Cisco professionals. The disappointing fact is they could have saved themselves three years and not had a five figure debt if they’d studied with a global online computer training provider. Perhaps the beer in the college bar isn’t such a great idea after all – surely the family coffers would be a lot less used up, and life would be lot more comfortable for all.
(C) Scott Edwards - www.learninglolly.com. Scott Edwards has been involved in the IT and Training Industry for 30 years.
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