No. Had no interest in University at the time and do not regret it at all. In some respects the abscence of a degree may be a hinderence – some jobs I have looked at recently, with large International bodies require a degree as a a minimum

“Munqe-chick – Member

I think people have a misconception of Uni and think you have to be intelligent…”

I’ve never thought that, in fact nowadays the vast majority of newer people in my work area are now graduates and a large amount appear to be thick as mince / lacking in common sense.

University of life. Does thet count.?

Camborne School of mines 1992-(barely 1993)

Nice course, lecturers were great. left as I couldn’t deal with the public schoolboy ‘rugga or die’ attitude. Plus, Cornwall is great in the summer, but days of endless rain and cold and relative isolation left me a bit worn down.

Greenwich Uni 1993-1996 – Applied Geochemistry. Great little place, lots a campuses all spread out a bit, so you don’t get that big campus feel, but it’s OK. I was largely based in Medway anyhow. As with a lot of small Uni’s little funding but lots of decent research going on and lots of pubs et al.

Newcastle Uni MSc Env. Biogeochem. What a great place. loads to do, decent riding, great staff. Lots of Rah’s, Oxbridge flunker posh boys, but they’re pretty harmless really. Found the ncl alternative scene rather cliquey though, which was odd as the locals tended to be really friendly.

UWS, PhD. The Uni is OK, again, small funding, good research, but you do get a sense of them scratching about a bit. Don’t live in Paisley. Move to Glasgow. Much better place to be. The sheer quantity of home students annoyed me a little though. To me, half the point of going to Uni is the breaking free from familiarity and forcing yourself to make new mates and meet a more diverse population than those kids you grew up with and were mates with in school.

🙂

I did History undergraduate at Reading – loved it, met loads of brilliant people, had an amazing time, got into loads of debt, and don’t remember going to many lectures.
MA in Medieval History at Kings College London, course was good but I was doing 3 days study and 4 days working a week so not much of a social life. I’m not sure I’d have liked studying in London as an undergrad – I liked the campus style at Reading.
Recently done an MA in Archaeology & Heritage from the University of Leicester distance learning and currently studying for a Postgrad diploma in Archives from the University of Dundee, also distance learning. I quite like the whole not having to go to lectures and learning at your own pace thing.
Despite these qualifications I am still possibly about to get made redundant so not sure in terms of job security etc they were worth it. But in terms of loving learning stuff and enjoying the subjects that you choose plus growing up a lot and meeting people, they definitely were. Good luck!

clubber – Member

Yes, went to Uni of Bristol to do Mech Eng which was enough to put me off ever doing it as a profession

Had a great time, spent lots of time doing sport (and that was where I really got into mtbing), met my wife, made some great friends and grew up a lot.

That said, I do often wonder whether I’d have actually been better off professionally just going straight into a job from school and working my way up. I reckon that I’d have moved up most companies reasonably quickly and after a few years in many jobs (eg the ones where you don’t need a specific degree to do it), what degree you did or didn’t do is irrelevant. As it was, I went to a school where everyone just expected to go to uni ( I’m pretty sure that everyone did ) and the same for my family so it wasn’t really something that I consdered at the time.

With the costs that are now applied in increasing amounts, I’d serious consider whether uni is right for many who otherwise it would have made sense to go.

I agree with Clubber (last paragraph). I didn’t go to Uni although I went to a good private school where pretty much everyone did. I was a lazy barsteward at school and scraped two A levels. Got a job while I decided what I wanted to do with my life (still deciding…), decided I liked earning money so never looked at going into further education.

It’s never held me back (though I’ve never had particularly high aspirations) and I earn more than a fair few friends / peers with good degrees (not suggesting at all that is the be all and end all).

I know if I had have gone I’d have spent x years p*ssed out of my brains and come out with no / a poor degree, hence no regrets.

When my kids get to Uni age, if they want to go I’ll certainly support them in doing so, but equally I will encourage then to look at getting into a decent company in a junior role as a school leaver with decent A levels, I’m fairly certain that with the way uni fees are going that may be the smart option.

I did (BSc at Bangor and PhD at Aberystwyth both in earth science field) and now work doing lecturing and research in a university geology department. Whilst there are many benefits, I think people need to think a bit more carefully about what university you choose and why (myself included with hindsight!) Think about what course you want to do and what you want to get out of it in the long run. You need to look at how the department you are interested is rated aswell as the university in general. The price of living varies hugely between places so if this is may need to be taken into consideration. I lived in cheap accomodation in Bangor, went out a fair bit but spend my weekends kayaking and climbing, working in the summer (full-time but with a 2/3 weeks Alps trip) and didn’t have too much debt. In comparison my sister was in Edinburgh and has a lot more of an expensive lifestyle, so despite working all through her studies she had a lot more dept afterwards.

Also, courses with some sort of placement (or which help you find e.g. a summer job in the right field) aid hugely in getting a job related to your course (if you want) afterwards.

I also agree with those comments above that it doesn’t necessarily help so much in the future with employment. I get a bit annoyed at how many parents push their children into going into a university education to get a “better” job. In many areas it doesn’t help. Also, and this is not directly aimed at you, but for those people who are not sure, you won’t lose anything by applying a year later (whether you do a “typical” gap year or do some “proper” work).

Yes because without a degree in Engineering, I’d be slightly less AWESOME.

I came from a time and place in the world where people like me didn’t go to university except to work in the service industry – which I did at Birmingham Uni 1983. Looks like those days are back again.

Doing a BA at the OU currently.

I went to uni a couple of times to have sex with girls who lived on campus.
I enjoyed it.

I went to keele and did German and European studies. Its easy to say in hindsight but I wish I’d never been because what I wish I did now requires no degree and the time could have been much better spent with zero expectations laid on afterwards. As it is, I work in IT because IT grad schemes were 10 a penny 10 years ago. I hate and have zero ambition and zero prospects. Think carefully what you want from uni in every respect. You don’t have to go to get pissed with your mates and play sport, although that’s on plate for you if its what you want. But if you’re not going to walk away with any career aspirations from it I’d say don’t bother.

I did mech Eng in nottingham but if I had my time again, I’d not bother with university. It’s not helped career wise and was nothing special socially.

lots of mechanical engineers on here..

I went to the university of life after graduating from the school of hard knocks.. I have no material wealth to show for it

Sheffield 2004-2008

MEng Chemical Engineering and Chemistry 2.2

If I did it again………

I’d do some studying rather than filling my time with extra curicular stuff (thats OK to put on a CV, not just beer and girls).

I’d ask employers what degree/courses they recomended, rather than listening to the university (I would not do Chemistry again, a language would have been 100x more usefull).

I’d take a couple fo gap years, one to do a year in industry related to what I wanted to do (I did soemthing that required the same degree, but not the same job), and one for traveling. It would be much more fun (if more expensive) to go back now and do it all again with a bit more life experience.

Physics at Birmingham 92-96
Just about made it through..

Just completed my Masters course a few weeks ago. Aberystwyth 2005-2010. Did a four year bachelors including a placement year then a one year masters, both in robots and AI. Career wise the placement year has been invaluable, it’s really plugged a hole that my course(s) left. I did a job working largely with SQL server and in both of my courses I did no databases at all. I’ve worked hard and played hard, met some amazing people had a good time. I’d do it again for sure!

yes
Strathclyde 77-80. Computer Science (* a very lucky chance hapening, after the dreadful Accounts and Applied Physics sessions I was attending I lucked upon some blokes in jeans and Ts …)
I was a twatt and wasted the experience but luckily I was a natural at computing and got a degree.

Nowdays I’m a bit mixed on the value of a degree, esp if you can get your foot on the ladder without it, partly due to the cost and partly due to the horrible reality that if something is really common it’s not that valuable (sorry). I’d maybe consider doing a course that led to the sort of career that relies on my physical presence, and/or aligns with likely future growth areas, or if a dgree was essential for my chosen career.
Make use of all the sports facilities, clubs and social opportunities. You have all your life to get pissed and stoned – I didn’t start field hockey till I was a veteran (> 35)
My first job was conditional on having a degree certificate, I’ve never needed it since.

I think people have a misconception of Uni and think you have to be intelligent

that made me smile 😀

just graduated from st andrews, had a brilliant time and met some amazing friends. Without my degree i’d not be about to move to the alps to work for a company involved in providing advertising and environmental consultancy for the adventure travel industry. University isn’t for everyone, but it can provide some incredible experiences and opportunities.

Durham (Grey). Politics.

Slacked off, so only got a 2.1. But I did meet Mrs (now Dr) North there, and we’ve been together for 14 years now.

I am of the firm view that undergraduate degrees, as they are not inherently that hard, are there to be enjoyed for what they are. Unless you have a burning ambition to do for a job what you study (engineering, law, medicine, etc.) then study what interests you.

Oh, and do remember that university staff aren’t there for your benefit; you’re there to pay for the infrastructure so they can do their primary job: research.

Undergrad at an Ex Poly, MSc in a completely different subject at Nottingham Uni more recently.

Couldn’t have done the job I did immediately following graduation without my undergrad degree, it was a technical degree and a technical job.

Could do the job I’m doing now without either degree, but the MSc will certainly grease the wheels when it comes to promotions / applying for other jobs.

I think that now you have to be move careful than ever in choosing whether or not to go to uni, and which uni to go to. If you’re chasing a grad job at the end of it, you really need to have solid A-levels and a good degree from a good uni, or go a step further and do a Masters to prove that you have a brain.

I mention this as I’ve known a few people turn down redbricks to go to places like Keele or NTU because it’s where their mates / bird is going, and that’s no way to decide on how to spend tens of thousands of pounds. The fact is that lots of employers just don’t bother with ex-poly career fairs or grads.

Sheffield University – BSc Special Honors Mathematics. I had a great time drunk loads, then drunk loads more and did a bit of studying. If I had my time again I would probably have used my time more constructively. I really liked Sheffield, nice city, University a civic one but also had a nice campus feel. Generally, sheffield people were very student friendly. Good mix of people from all backgrounds.

Lancaster University – MSc Operational Research. Nice enough place to spend a year, but glad to move on at the end. Perhaps now I have discovered MTBing I would feel differently. Living on campus was pretty isolating, but they had good sports facilities and I was able to play Squash, my sport at the time, 1-2 times a day.

Loughborough University – PhD Management Sciences. Well at least it was near the M1 and I could drive by now. At the time, and it probably still does, had one of highest proportions of public school educated students, most undergraduate were either arrogant jocks, or arrogant business students or a combination of both. Had a very different feel to both Sheffield and Lancaster – perhaps it was the lack of cultural diversity – all the undergraduates seemed to have the same or very similar outlook on life, and one somewhat different from my own.

I would echo what OMITN says, study something you really enjoy and want to study, better a good degree backed up extra curricular interests, than struggling for 3-4 years on something that doesn’t really interest you and then come out with a lower class degree etc.

Did my degree in Wrecsam but was living in Chester at the time so no change to normal life. Uni served a purpose to give me a qualification and Chester is/was quite a buzzing city. As I had lived and worked there I had a good circle of non uni friends and didn’t participate in campus activities…

No, went to a polytechnic straight from school. Is my degree (geography / geology / ecology) of use in my current job – yes and no. I learnt more relevent and useful stuff at a night class (nature conservation) and on a training for work scheme (marketing for non business graduates). Also degree course has not taught me as many useful things as life for the job I do.

Dont feel you have to buy into going straight to uni because thats the way its done.

Edinburgh College of Art 82-86, Post Grad ECA 86-87. Great experience back then. Full grant and no tuition fees.

I’ve been self employed as an artist/painter ever since. I doubt if my degree made any difference, though I graduated with a First. Being self motivated and critical is more valuable.

Knowing some of the staff that teach there now and the dreadful work students feel they need to produce to be recognised, I wouldn’t do it again now.

Yes. I spent a lot of time drinking and fornicating. It was marvellous.

Studied a little as well.

my daughter is currently at salford uni….she likes !

I always intended to find work with a local forestry or arb’ contractor and work up from there, but after a chat with a guy I was working with at the time in my summer job, realised that Uni’ was more than a qualification.

So I spent 2001-2005 riding bikes, climbing and power kiteing around Aberystwyth and mid-Wales whilst enrolled on HND and BSc Countryside Management. HND was my first choice as it would be simple enough to not intrude on leisure time. Ended up doing the BSc top-up to avoid leaving for a while.
Not entirely necessary for where I am now, experience and getting involved count for a lot. Bangor would have been better for Forestry, but I just preferred Aberystwyth for riding areas and beaches.

Had a great time. Met like-minded people, people I would have never met and got to ride bikes all week long.

Southampton Uni – Law, or if I’m honest Tae Kwon Do with Law as I was in the british squad and trained pretty much solidly with the odd break for lectures 🙂

Was great, don’t keep in touch with a single person though. Decided I was destined for greater things than sitting behind a desk and reading alot of books (plus didn’t want to risk the cost of the LPC). Somehow I ended up in IT. Sometimes wonder what it would be like if I stuck at it…(doubtful I would be earning that much more per hour)

Also if I had my time again I would have gone to Cardiff uni…

Currently at Loughborough, Agree on above point about alot of arrogant jocks.

Another engineer here, although Uni was useful for me not for the degree but because it made me a fully functioning (well, mostly) person.

Without it I’d still probably be crawlingly uncomfortable in my own skin and have a far more blinkered world view, and my CD collection would be pitiful.

As it happens, my engineering degree has only been vaguely useful in my job as an engineer, its all the other life skills I picked up working part time in shops and generally scraping through that seem most useful.

**** me………….wot a set of swat’s
is there a uneducated version of stw anywhere……….. 😉

(Mr MC posting).

BSc (physics) and PhD (materials science) at Liverpool. Fantastic city to be a student in. Did 7 years there in the 90’s (when Cream was a dance night at The Nation, not a global marketing behemoth) and probably didnt get around all the pubs and clubs. Locals arent any more anti student than in any city, I have many many more positive stories of encounters than negative.

Good for mountain biking with north wales on your doorstep. Seem to remember hearing Liverpool had the highest percentage of graduates staying in the city after, er, graduating, which I can believe. If I hadnt used my Phd to good effect fulfilling a dream by getting to live and work in the US I would probably have stayed.

I’m now a police officer in Oxford. Go figure.

wot a set of swat’s

That would be, “What a set of swots”, Ton.

Go and sit in the corner and think about what you have done.

🙁

HND in Building from Oxford Poly. Finished with £100 overdraft.
BA Fine Arts (Sculpture) Bristol Poly (turned into UWE while I was there). Finished with£3k of student loans.

HND lead to me now running my own company. And I take every other Friday off to ride.

BA means I can weld (VERY) badly and put up shelves straight.

Not certain I would want to do an arts degree now if it meant £30k+ debt at the end. Which is a real shame.

Durham (Hild & Bede)
I regret a lot of what I did at uni
but it was worth it 😀

Nope, apprenticeship. 2 weeks at college in halls of residence every 10 weeks, was paid rather well compared to most apprentices and also received expenses while I was away (anymore than 3 pints worth of receipts a night was frowned upon tho….). Loved the uni style lifestyle pissing it up every night while I was there and sometimes wish I’d actually gone to uni! Earning definitely made life a lot more fun tho, zero money issues where as the proper students up there and at home used to always seem skint! No student debt either, swings and roundabouts ain’t it!

PGreen – Member
Currently at Loughborough, Agree on above point about alot of arrogant jocks.

Not much has changed then in what must be close on 20 years for me.

Neilsonwheels – you beat me to it!

When I were a lad, universities weren’t even invented.
Apart from Durham. Bede College Friday night was good, as was Dunelm. But I wasn’t a student, I was a fitter for the City Council. Still had a student union card though.
Does that count?