Guest Ari Gold Report post Posted October 29, 2009 Potential employers who were looking for people with uni degrees/graduates are more than likely looking for the fresh faced enthusiastic type as opposed to someone who f**ked around for 4 years after leaving school early then went and got a degree...so bascially if you want to go to uni, get it out of the way as soon as you can. No they're not. I managed a million dollar business at 21, and find it far easier to find work than my friends who have already graduated. My CV is packed with real world and life experience, why would ANY employer hire the uni graduate who has nothing to bring to the table except for a degree and youth, as distinct from someone older who has been there, done that, got the t shirt, and THEN decided that graduating in their chosen field is what they really wanted to do? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Forrest 35 Report post Posted October 29, 2009 (edited) ^I guess it is horses for courses. It's funny the ones that have posted that are at uni currently have a far different opinion and perspective to those out in the workforce right now. And I think that my statement does depend on what industry you are in, pretty sure there isn't no one umbrella idealistic action for every employer in every industry. Edited October 29, 2009 by Forrest Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greenday-rulz21 6 Report post Posted October 29, 2009 Hey guys, sorry for the late reply. Really appreciate all your responces and all the experiences you have shared. The one thing that greatly impacts what I feel about next year is I don't know if I'd pass 7th form. I just don't have the enthusiasm anymore. Finishing Level 1 with Merit was good but I highly doubt I'd finish this year with anything better than acheived. And really the last thing I want to do is drag myself through 7th form hating everyday and then only getting enough credits to just pass. Really interesting what you've said Emily, i didnt realise you could do something to that effect. Will have to look into it. Cheers again guys. Extremely helpful and a lot to think about. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
togate 0 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 (edited) If you pass level 2 NCEA you can do a semester cert at AUT/unitec etc and then transfer into the degree if you want. You need a B average to achieve this. You can also start of with a diploma of your choice then see if its something you want to pursue and then transfer into the degree. When I was in school I was highly disinterested in the subjects I was doing. Then when I got into uni, I started to actually enjoy what I was doing because it was something I was interested in. Also, sometimes to get decent jobs after graduating its not what you know but who you know. Edited October 30, 2009 by Togate Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jjs 64 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 Hey guys, sorry for the late reply. Really appreciate all your responces and all the experiences you have shared. The one thing that greatly impacts what I feel about next year is I don't know if I'd pass 7th form. I just don't have the enthusiasm anymore. Finishing Level 1 with Merit was good but I highly doubt I'd finish this year with anything better than acheived. And really the last thing I want to do is drag myself through 7th form hating everyday and then only getting enough credits to just pass. You sound like a smart enough guy, why not give 7th Form a go? Unless you have a clearly defined sensible alternative, you will regret not doing 7th form. Ignore anyone who talks about "real life" or "real world" experience being the most valuable. You will not get your foot in the door at any decent organisation these days without some form of qualification. If you want to be entrepenuerial, why not start a business on the side whilst studying? If it turns to custard it doesn't matter, but if it booms you haven't wasted any time studying! Also don't take the 40 and 50 year olds who have no tertiary qualifications and are in senior management roles as justification for not going to uni - the times are changing and no longer are people going to uni just because they want to enter into a profession. Uni is also great fun. I did 5 years at Otago and those years were the best of my life (well, I'm only 24 so not really my entire life!) - I made some great friends, had a hell of a lot of fun and now have an LLB and BCom (Economics and Marketing double). I am currently working in mergers in acquisitions in one of NZ's largest law firms, but am off shortly to take up another role shortly. My new role, I beleive, would have been hard to obtain without my qualifications. I also have plenty of friends who did the most random degrees at Otago, but now all have great jobs (often in completely different fields) - again, roles that would be difficult to obtain without any qualifications. So... my recommendation is that you do 7th form and then go to uni (preferably away from home! -> being 18 + girls + booze + halls of residence = awesome times) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OLLIE 26 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 7th form was one of the best years of my life, i made so many great friends and figured out what i wanted to do with my life. But ... it's not for everyone. Also in reply to some comments above - credentials aren't everything, they help to a certain degree but are way trumped by personality, confidence, ability to learn, motivation, reliability etc .... All the advice that I can give is to think about what YOU want to do and only YOU can make that decision. The key is, dont' do something because it will look good on paper, don't do something because everyone else is doing it, don't do something because you just want to earn a living - DO something that makes you excited, something that you are motivated to do and will sacrifice late nights and weekends to do if necessary... If you follow a career / life path that keeps you in high spirits then you're never really going to work ever, you'll just be making a life doing what you enjoy. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kingkarl 136 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 I'm going to disagree with everyone that said 7th form was the best schooling year of their lives. 7th form has been the hardest year I've had at school. It's still easy(ish), but don't expect it to be super cruizy. Especially if you want to get any decent grades and if you take difficult subjects. My 7th form year has been just as sh*t as my 6th form. I hate the brain dead teachers and all the stupid rules. My whole life revolves around the weekend and I can't wait to get out of that shithole each day. Having said that, my (integrated) school is really anal. It's impossible to wag class and there are so many needless rules and protocols. Your school will probably be different. If I could have gone to Uni with my 6th form qualifications, I would have. Getting Uni entrance is unbelievably easy. Especially if you take a bunch of basic subjects. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
steve R 0 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 No they're not. I managed a million dollar business at 21, and find it far easier to find work than my friends who have already graduated. My CV is packed with real world and life experience, why would ANY employer hire the uni graduate who has nothing to bring to the table except for a degree and youth, as distinct from someone older who has been there, done that, got the t shirt, and THEN decided that graduating in their chosen field is what they really wanted to do? I couldn’t agree with this more, im also in the same situation. i did a year and a half of a property degree at Auckland uni. found it boring and not what i really wanted to do. during the half your of studies I also worked full time, during this time i put in a lot of effort at work, and made a lot of money. now at 21 I manage a million dollar business, the experience I am gaining at the moment is extremely valuable the career prospects to advance further are very real in the near future. I have though about returning to study next year, but after al tot of thought I have decided i will carry on doing what I am at the moment. Nick, i would highly recommend doing 7th form, as allot of the others have said here, easily the best year of school. study hard for exams, focusing on areas of them that you are good at an know you will get credits in then do a gap year. when I am looking through CVs I always put people who have not completed 7th form at the bottom of the pile, unless they have background experience, as it shows they are capable of learning and holding on to information. just my 2c Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CamB 48 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 Just to reiterate my earlier point with boring stats - a quick look at www.stats.govt.nz at the Household Labour Force survey suggests that 15-19 year olds have 23% unemployment (its 11% for 20-24yo and between 3 and 6% for the other age ranges). Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
|ncary 0 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 mergers in acquisitions What?! Murders and Executions Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CamB 48 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 Mergers and acquisitions. Keeping lawyers, bankers and accountants busy. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jjs 64 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 What?! Yes, sorry I meant mergers and acquisitions. I was typing that very fast - it sucks when you have to account for every six minutes! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
|ncary 0 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 Lol guys, I was quoting American Psycho. No harm or confusion intended! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mike 1 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 You sound like a smart enough guy, why not give 7th Form a go? Unless you have a clearly defined sensible alternative, you will regret not doing 7th form.... ... my recommendation is that you do 7th form and then go to uni (preferably away from home! -> being 18 + girls + booze + halls of residence = awesome times) Agree with all of that post. 7th form rocks and so does first year uni away from home. hell, you can spend the first year just doing random degrees and you might find something you like. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
notec 0 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 Stay for 7th form, its a kick back year just gotta put in the hard yards when exams come around.. Also try see if you can get a scholarship from somewhere? I got one for MIT for one year and they have paid for everything this year, it was good because I have a vague idea of what i wanted to do but didn't know if i'd like it so I took the scholarship in marketing and comms and it's great.. and because it's a diploma its only one year and you get a taste of what its like.. Good thing about scholarships are you can try different courses if your not to sure what you wana take and then if you decide you dont like that you can try something different and in the process you aren't racking up a student loan because they cover it all for you.. It's worth going for one, you just never know, depends where your looking at going thou as to whether or not they have ones to suit ur needs.. Just my 2cents Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kaz 64 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 If you have no idea what you want to do, stay for 7th form. Like the others said, its the best year you will experience at school. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elmarco 56 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 I would suggest that taking a gap year will make it extremely hard to go back to studying. I have seen plenty of mates do it, and only one of them actually went back and finished up. They all got used to the work routine and the money - which was pretty short sighted in my opinion. What does your career counsellor at school have to say? I only went to uni because I had nothing else to do after 7th form - I work in a completely different field to what I studied. One thing I can say is that having a degree doesn't open any more doors, but does stop a lot being closed on you. It's not the greatest economy for a year 12 leaver to find a job. Do year 13, and figure out what you wanna do. +1. The longer you can study at the moment, I think the better it will be. After that what about taking your automotive/mechanical interest and join the air force? It's always a good option. Mech/tech trades will payoff bigtime if you decide to leave after a few years. They pay you WHILE you study and you get well taken care of. Joining the military could be an idea. They do give you all the training you could ever need and they do get to play with some seriously cool sh*t (thinking Air Force and Navy here). The guys that I know that have come out of the RNZAF are pretty damn clued up and have some awesome work stories (tactical approaches to an airport in the herc, balancing huey rotors etc)! The A/F service has served them well and they now work in private industry in top end positions. I think the first thing you need to do is sit down with a career coach and work out what you really want to do with yourself. It may even help to do a Morrisby assessment to show you where your natural strengths and abilities lie, and what careers other people with similar strengths do. No good will come from doing a BA in French if you really want to be a forensic psychologist.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AN E30 Fan 1 Report post Posted October 30, 2009 Nick, I'm in the same boat as you, not really enjoying school doing average and have NO idea what I want to do when I leave, I'm considering not doing 7th form and doing a student exchange overseas, although it is expensive it is cheaper than a year at my school currently. I'm just getting sick of immaturity and want to get and experience the world, when I come back I will most probably go to a Polytech for a few years and then do something at Uni when I will have decided what I want to do, anyway. If your interested in doing a student exchange, PM me and I will give you some details on the company I'm doing it through. Regards AJ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
