Quote Originally Posted by superheavyrhun View Post
Quote Originally Posted by miles View Post

I just think the university system is too vast and on the whole quite meaningless. Sociology, political science, media studies....in fact I believe whole swathes of academia to be largely pointless. A lot of the social sciences, though interesting, will get you nowhere in the real world. I went to university largely because my teachers were telling me that is what I needed for a good future and I never even used my degree for anything. It was only later on pursuing my MA which I paid for out of my own money that I studied something for any actual purpose. Youngsters really are being manipulated into a system that really doesn't pay back in any meaningful way.

It is oftentimes a waste and it is far more expensive than back in my day. University on the whole doesn't give people skills that they need in a workplace environment unless it is a specific course with an obvious career trajectory in mind. I believe that it is one of the great cons. People should pay back what they borrow, but if you are from a poor family, you do need to pay back that overdraft on graduating and those loans will be there on your back and the size of these loans is becoming quite ridiculous.
I agree with some of your points, and disagree on others. There are a lot of courses out there that may not be practical for those who are just looking for a route to make money and a career, but I think the experience of University is very valuable, and even though I no longer make much use of what I learnt on the courses, I wouldn't change it, as the people I met from different races, regions and nations completely changed my world view.

I think the size of the loan is deceptive, because unless people actually get to a point where they are earning a good wage, they will never actually pay it back, and it still gets written off when people reach the age of 40.
My main gripe with university is the first year. The courses count towards nothing, so in effect it is a practice year and that is a year of your life. It was also the year I was most driven as afterwards I was working too much to study. What's the point in a practice year when it is all so expensive? That bugs me, university needn't be as long as it is. It is designed to bleed money out of you. 3 or 4 years on political science when that should be your full time thing? Medical school, sure you need to put the years in. But sociology and a practice year? It's a joke really.