Getting back into education...

[Donatello]

I'm 22 and have a mortgage, didn't do great at school and quit college to work full time. Now manager of a department at work, I want a change.

I want to find something more rewarding and would open up my options HUGELY so what are my options? Say I went to college then wanted to go to uni, is open university any good? I doubt I could afford my mortgage and go to uni full time.

Anybody got any experiences/advice?

[STW2010]

Have a look at the Open University, as you will be able to do courses working towards degree-level qualifications without having to go back to college. I've not checked for a while, but I believe that getting an OU degree works out more cost-effective than a degree at any other University. Looking here, it looks like you can do the whole degree for £15k whether you do it in 3 years or 6 years- consider that the full time fees for other universities are more than £5k per year, and generally charge more if you do it part-time (i.e. do it other 3 years and pay, for example, 3x £8k (total cost = £24k); do it over 6 years and pay 6x £5k (total cost = £30k).

Any ideas what you would like to do?

With your management background you might like this?

[a311]

Any chance that your employer will sponsor you to do a course? This only applies if you are interested in your current field though. If you’re in the right sort of location also consider part time courses at local universities. Allot of part-time courses (in engineering anyhow) allow you to use job experience as part of the acceptance criteria in lieu of formal qualifications otherwise you could think of doing A level standard qualifications first, foundation degree HNC/HND etc.

It really depends what you want to do and where you want it to take you. Part time education isn’t easy, particularly if you’re doing on your own back. I did 7 years of higher education getting an undergraduate then post graduate degree but this was all paid for by work and given the time off to do it.

A mate has been down the OU route. For the right candidate they are a great way for people in your situation to obtain qualifications but are hard work as you don’t have the traditional support you get with conventional qualifications and you have to keep yourself really motivated.

Last word of advice is don’t assume that a degree is an instant ticket to a high paid job, I work with people with ONC’s, HND’s, Degrees, and PhD’s who are all on the same pay scale and generally the ones with the lower qualifications have the most experience and really know what they’re talking about. We’ve had a PhD student chemical engineer with us this week who went on to do the PhD as they couldn’t find any employment apparently.

[Donatello]

STW2010 said:

Helpful info...

Thank you for the reply. I hadn't even looked at the OU but it makes sense.

I could look into Business Studies, I studied business at college but left to work full time.

I like design. I did GCSE Graphics and took it very seriously, but that was at such a basic level I needed to carry it on from there. Unfortunately, stuff happened in my GCSE years and I kind of messed up my chances with anything and turned into a lazy little st for the next 2 years before starting work full time.

I always liked the idea of being an Architect, no idea why but buildings and the work that goes into designing them fascinates me. I doubt you can become an Architect through an OU course though.

I will have a look at the link and look at the OU, I need to do all this while I'm still young, so I keep telling myself!

[STW2010]

Donatello said:

I always liked the idea of being an Architect, no idea why but buildings and the work that goes into designing them fascinates me. I doubt you can become an Architect through an OU course though.

Ah, this is good. There are good careers to be had in energy efficient buildings, and the sustainable use of building materials. I'm involved in a European project at the moment on this very topic (though I work in resource management, not design).

As the above poster said, getting a degree isn't necessarily the pathway to mega bucks careers, but you should enjoy doing the course (once you've decided) and would hopefully find a role that you enjoy. I would always prefer an enjoyable job/modest salary to a personally unrewarding job/large salary.

[Donatello]

a311 said:

Any chance that your employer will sponsor you to do a course?

Not much chance of that, the company isn't doing great and I think they would see it as an unnecessary expenditure.

a311 said:

Last word of advice is don’t assume that a degree is an instant ticket to a high paid job, I work with people with ONC’s, HND’s, Degrees, and PhD’s who are all on the same pay scale and generally the ones with the lower qualifications have the most experience and really know what they’re talking about.

I understand this point as I know several friends who have no finished uni and are struggling for work. I just think it would help me and possibly open more doors for me. It would need to be in a field that wasn't riddled with qualified people who couldn't get work but I need to work out what is best.

[Donatello]

STW2010 said:

Ah, this is good. There are good careers to be had in energy efficient buildings, and the sustainable use of building materials. I'm involved in a European project at the moment on this very topic (though I work in resource management, not design).

As the above poster said, getting a degree isn't necessarily the pathway to mega bucks careers, but you should enjoy doing the course (once you've decided) and would hopefully find a role that you enjoy. I would always prefer an enjoyable job/modest salary to a personally unrewarding job/large salary.

Well it is something I will be doing plenty of research into. At the moment I'm kind of at a dead end. I have spent 4 1/2 years at this company from warehouse lacky to running the website sales department but that is it. I cannot go any further and the pay is very poor for what is asked of me.

I am the kind of person who would enjoy my work more if I got the occasional pat on the back, or a thank you or well done or anything, this place doesn't work like that, no matter how hard you work or what you actually achieve it just gets ignored.

I sound kind of needy don't I!

[STW2010]

Donatello said:

I am the kind of person who would enjoy my work more if I got the occasional pat on the back, or a thank you or well done or anything, this place doesn't work like that, no matter how hard you work or what you actually achieve it just gets ignored.

I sound kind of needy don't I!

I'm exactly the same

[rog007]

There are a number of career streams that encourage applicants through subsidised training or generous bursaries, often refered to as 'golden hellos'; maybe one of those may be of interest to you (teaching/armed forces/some healthcare professions)? Google will confirm which remain active and will tell you more. Good luck!

[a311]

This thread that is currently ongoing may interest you OP.

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

[Donatello]

Thanks for the responses guys, I appreciate it.

I will be doing some research over the next few weeks/months to see if it is really possible for me. I think I will need to start studying the subject as a hobby to see what I'm looking at long term.