Top earners after immediately graduating

[Master]

Computer science £43895
Materials technology £41,000
Business studies £40314
Nursing £37625
Chemical engineering £36219
Philosphy £35,980

Bottom earners
Drama £11963
Music £12,467
Drama, dance and cinematics £12685
Art and Design £13,125
Communications and Media £13,625
Sports science £13,632
English £13,900

[Mark TKO]

thank for this

[Fenster]

Never been invited to a party. Fact.

[Andre]

Never been invited to a party. Fact.

Dear Fenster.
We cordially invite you to attend the following Christmas gathering and party held at Fston RSL this coming 25/12/2014,we would love to have your attendance at this gathering and look forward to your reply: Sincerely Andre and family.
RSVP 20/11/2014.

[Gandalf]

People should study useful things that will help them get a stable job and especially at todays costs. It just isn't worth going to university unless you have a set plan. My experience is that teachers don't tell you this and say it's all about the learning. When affordable maybe, but it's now an obvious plan to enslave unaware young people who just want to follow their friends. I would argue that more should stop going to university entirely and learn useful skills like plumbing. I also think young people are unfairly being forced to compete with unchecked immigration and it is reducing the playing field for everyone. Wages not increasing for over a decade is pretty serious social engineering and from a Chancellor who isn't qualified to do his job. There are serious problems.

I'm guilty too, I have a degree in History and Politics I have never used. Now if I had learned to talk to toffs and touch up kids, then maybe I would have had a chance, but as things stand, I studied out of interest in the subject and not as a path to corruption of the highest levels.

[Beanz]

Miles you could teach at a UK university and make good money. Apparently you also already make a decent living teaching at a Uni in South Korea. And yet you want everyone else to be a plumber? I agree there should be more apprenticeships but going to university is hardly the one way ticket to misery you make it out to be.

[Gandalf]

I'm not so sure. I had a friend come back to the UK and all he could find was part time work college work with no set hours, but that gave him a chance to look for more work and he was straight back out the country to the Middle East.

When you are young and have only ever studied for the sake of studying, I think it is the duty of the teacher to tell students some home truths about the world. Studying for the sake of studying until your 20's is a risk and increasingly so and it should be explained. Doing that though goes against the principle of making every smart young person as indebted as possible. Teachers don't want to encourage permanent debt, but it is the likely consequence and they know that.

I just don't think it is right and especially in a system that expects property to rise 10% a year whilst wages perpetually diminish as compared with inflation. Unemployment figures are a lie and people are clearly having a hard time. I think young people are being handed a very shoddy deal. Just tell them the truth and that to compete an English degree isn't really going to let you do anything. You will most likely end up in Asda or a pub. Better to learn a trade or something useful.

[Gandalf]

Miles you could teach at a UK university and make good money. Apparently you also already make a decent living teaching at a Uni in South Korea. And yet you want everyone else to be a plumber? I agree there should be more apprenticeships but going to university is hardly the one way ticket to misery you make it out to be.

No, I don't think it is a reasonable expectation that every graduate leave their country though. It is a big sacrifice and can be a burden. They should be able to stay with their family in a system that protects their interests and not feel forced out. The system isn't protecting them, it is instead assaulting them with predatory lending and abusive economics. If I was a teenager today I might well still go to university based on naivety, but the older me on a younger shoulders would say 'I need some practical skills. There are no jobs for history majors'. There weren't then, there are less now.

University is useful, but you need useful subjects. Nursing for instance should be invested in and is here, it is neglected in the UK. There are too many humanities subjects that are not very useful at providing jobs to pay the bills. Engineering, nursing, medicine, architecture. These are useful practical skills. Plumbing and electrical work is very useful. That's all I'm saying.

[Beanz]

Many of my friends are graduates teaching and working at Universities, just as you could teach here. Stop making everything into a drama.

[Gandalf]

Was my friend living out a drama? I'm sure it was all fantasy how he had an MA with University experience and yet was on a part time contract at a college. He should write a play about it. It's not that easy to walk into a job and command a high salary. Many University jobs are declining in conditions and they don't demand permanent faculty. They expect you to adhere to their system and if you play ball they might throw a biscuit your way. For many lecturers, they are on part time conditions and it's not the easiest job the best of times. He went to the Middle East and does very well now.

This isn't about me or him though and what I want or can do is not related to the difficulties many graduates face. They deserve better and they do not deserve to be bank slaves with degrees that don't really help them get ahead. English literature is good for little more than becoming an English teacher or a writer, but the former are treated harshly and the latter is like trying to win the lottery. The other option is Asda. What is one to do with anthropology? Time travel?

It is negative, but these are trying times for many. If things were better I would say as much. I just don't see the point in sugar coating things for young people. They deserve better.

[Mark TKO]

I just seen the figure for nursing in that list - 37625 ??

Now that sounds utter bollockx

[Beanz]

With an anthropology degree you become an anthropologist. It's what my little brother does. Spinning stuff to pretend all graduates must either work in Asda or leave to work abroad is spin. You are a spin doctor. Congratulations.

[Gandalf]

With an anthropology degree you become an anthropologist. It's what my little brother does. Spinning stuff to pretend all graduates must either work in Asda or leave to work abroad is spin. You are a spin doctor. Congratulations.

So he works for a university? Are we to offer jobs at university to everyone who graduates? In that sense then yes, everyone should study anthropology. I shall apply tomorrow too. Everybody study English, anthropology and political science and get straight into the tertiary sector. Piece of cake, plenty of great high paying jobs everywhere! Graduates have a harder time competing today, what is so difficult about that to understand? I don't understand this exchange, just like in the other thread it almost feels like sparring for the sake of it.

The economy there is in VERY bad shape, what is there that doesn't compute? Even here the job market is suffering because it is over saturated with people who cannot make it in Britain or America. There is a glut of graduates out here (only graduates can work here) and they wouldn't be here driving down wages if there were plenty of jobs for them back home. It's a messed up failed system and the altruistic pursuit of knowledge is not enough to cancel out minimal job opportunities and a serious debt noose. There are many all over the place and Britain isn't an easy place to survive for graduates or anyone.

[Beanz]

No its not easy but most graduates do not work in supermarkets. It's a forum miles, we are supposed to discuss and verbally spar.If your constitution is so delicate that you cannot tolerate anything but sophorific platitudes than maybe you should start your own fan club.

[Gandalf]

No its not easy but most graduates do not work in supermarkets. It's a forum miles, we are supposed to discuss and verbally spar.If your constitution is so delicate that you cannot tolerate anything but sophorific platitudes than maybe you should start your own fan club.

Well, of course, but most don't sail into even average wage jobs either. Most jobs are around 15,000 pounds a year. It's just the reality of today.