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Is uni worth it?

MasterOfReality

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MasterOfReality & Stocky...while HECS is "interest free", it is indexed so it gains interest without calling it "interest".

Its basically indexed to cpi, so it goes up like everything else goes up. The time value of money. Wages, cost of living etc etc. Its quite low as well, lower than any real interest rate. Indexing it to cpi sort of negates any increases in the amount you have to pay back.
 

stumps5L

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Mate i think it comes down to how old you are, if you are a teenager or early twenties i would stick with the degree (as many have said it is alot easier to get a job with a degree and u can ususally demand more money over people who dont have one) i am 21 and have a degree in Marketing and Sports Administration since leaving uni i have worked in a major AFL team and now a large radio station. Couldnt be happier but there was many times during uni where i was going is it even worth finishing.
 

Reaper

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I see uni as a means to an end. As a result I never went :) (wasn't ever accepted to go is beside the point).

You need to consider the end game. What job do you want? Then, does this job require the university qualification (or will something else suffice?). If the answer is yes - ie you can get it with a uni qual or other means, then do some analysis on which is the better option for you. If the Uni degree is the only entry then you need to consider if the job is worth the investment you are making now.

Staying at uni
* ~$6,000 in the bank
* $12,000 hex debt
* 2 years part time experience in tech support
* Advanced Diploma of Computer Science
* Bachelor of Computing

Working full time
* ~$20,000 in the bank
* no debt
* 2 years full time experience working in tech support
* Advanced Diploma of Computer science

I know it is tempting but what you have done in the above quote is only considered 1/2 the equation. What is likely to happen in the 10(?) years after your degree? You need to consider your likely income, expenditure, investment of surplus income that each scenario will generate over it's alternative.

Reaper
 

levymetal

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stocky: I don't know if I can do IBL or not, I think I heard that if you get exemptions off your course then you can no longer do it. I'll have to check on that though. I'm at uni Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays

Reaper: I don't know if the jobs that I want really require a degree, but as other people have said I'll be competing with people who have degrees, so most of the time it looks like they'll go for the person when a degree, rather than the one without.

It's interesting to read that some employers are just looking for that piece of paper. I guess it's just expected these days to have a degree, but it does make sense when so many people have them these days.

So the smart option would be to stay at uni, which is what I think I might do. I was just interested to see what everyone though about it. It's true, going to uni won't harm my future life even though I'll be poorer in the next couple of years. Hopefully it'll pick up a lot after that :)
 

1991_Vn2nV

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It really depends on the person. I see a lot of people really struggling at uni and you know that even if they get their degree, they're not going to get anywhere in their field.

If you don't enjoy what you do and you're not good at it, then it won't be worth it.

Why not just work full time hours if you're that financially concerned. I work 38 hours a week and im full time at uni and whilst its hard, you do what you have to do to get by.

Uni in no way prevents you from working full time hours. You can do classes externally, or at night, or take a job that gives you full time hours in afternoons or at night as you are currently doing.
 

black as

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Why Should I Go To University?

some jobs require a university degree or qualification in a particular area of study, others just need work experience. Here are a few facts that may help you decide about university:

University graduates get good jobs

* People with higher education qualifications are less likely to be unemployed, and also have higher incomes than those without such qualifications (Australian Bureau of Statistics).
* CQUniversity consistently rates higher than the national average for graduate employment, 85% compared to the national average of 79.9% (Graduate Careers Council of Australia 2004).

University graduates get paid more

* The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports that full-time workers with higher education qualifications earn nearly 50% more than workers without a degree.
* CQUniversity graduates were ranked higher than the national average, with an overall median salary of $40 000 (Graduate Careers Council of Australia 2004).

Of course there are no guarantees of a job after university but it definitely gives you a head start toward a professional career that is really rewarding.:whistling
 

Bax

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I know it sounds crazy but go to whirlpool forums and have a look around. A lot of people are having this same discussion, as there seems to be an ongoing topic that talks about people with degrees and people with experience.

In the long run, uni will pay off, it sucks now - of course it sucks now. But it will definitely get better once you have those peices of paper and can demand more money. If you're only doing tech support now, you're definitely not pushing your abilities.

And please don't talk about CQU, people may like it, but I know countless others that have been there and have absolutely despised it. I guess the stats speak for themselves though.
 

stocky

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stocky: I don't know if I can do IBL or not, I think I heard that if you get exemptions off your course then you can no longer do it. I'll have to check on that though. I'm at uni Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays

i have exemptions as i switched courses, but still managed to do it. im not sure on your tafe situation though. would be worth finding out though
 

Full Spectrum

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I'd go with it's up to the individual on where in life they want to go. IF you want a computer job just assembling pc's don't bother with the years of uni. If you want to be the head guy and make something big do it.

If your going to empty bins or drive a truck don't waste your time and money. That's why it's up to the individual on their plans.
 

VN_Luke

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Hey dude, here's a more 'industry specific' story.

I started uni straight after school, transferring between random courses and subjects and all that kinda stuff. :) - mostly because i wanted to go drinking and meet girlies.

then I got sick of traveling every day, and got yelled at too much by the folks for not doing anything useful, so I transferred and did a Adv. Diploma of comp science at tafe a few minutes away from home.

If you've done the same course ... then good on you - this was the best education on software engineering and the reality of the job (i.e. it's not all about normalizing DB tables... rather, you have to know how to hold meetings, how to win a shitfight, or compromise with someone about the best way to solve a problem, work with n00b clients blah blah blah ... etc)

Anyway, after I finished up, I went with my folks recommendation and went back to uni. -> (doing bach. of computing? or comp science? or something along those lines).

I spent 6 months drinking instead of going to class again (doh!) and didn't really do any work.

I did want to prove a point, though - so I stayed till my first set of exams, and absolutely ACED them all - in fact, I think I passed every single subject solely based on my exam results :) lol.

So after I proved the point that i wasn't "too stupid" for uni, I decided to go make some moolah, cause I was down and sad since I had no Torana anymore. :( - and I was a few grand in debt with hecs, and all my mates were 2nd-3rd year apprentices pulling in money that I could only dream about :p

Anyway, like 4-5 years, 3-4 jobs and a couple of tax brackets later, I'm about to step into a "Senior PHP Analyst/Developer" position for a decent company.

I guess I look at it this way;

I haven't needed a degree to get to pretty much the 'top' of the 'on the tools' development pyramid. However - this is the end of the line, really. Unless I step into my own business full-time, or want to go into management (CIO, project manager etc) there's not too much more cash to be made here, Robbo.

These kinds of positions are generally the ones that do actually require a uni degree. - Although there will be some without this requirement, chances are that to end up working management for a big company with mega bucks, you will need a degree.

So now I've come to a point in my life where I am investigating doing a degree part-time after hours. Not sure exactly what yet - something more specific to a management position, though :). This would open a lot of doors down the track for me when I decide I want to move on from being "on the tools".

I guess..... I can't say uni is good/bad or worth it/not, however, I can say that it depends on the timeframe that you're looking at, what you want to be doing, and how keen you are to 'progress', or whether you're just happy at the same cash/job for long time.

I looked at the next 5 years or so when I decided to quit uni - and I believe I've made the correct choice looking at that time frame.

As I step into my new position and consider doing an online degree etc - I'm a lot more mature, and am probably looking at the next 10-15 years :)....and if I'm alive after that still, I will re-evaluate my situation and see where to go from there...

Would it be an idea for you to start working full time in web development, and do a tech/management/business degree at the same time? - do the degree slowly online - it might take 6-7 years, but that's when you will actually need it! - and it solves the XOR scenario with degree and experience/cash.
 
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