Do University Degrees Matter?
Two creatives’ perspectives on the relevance of university degrees today
We’re Eric and Robert, the co-founders of T15 Media. When we launched our business, both of us had to sacrifice things to pursue our passion. One of us had quit their full time job as an architect, and the other left university before graduation to become a freelance videographer.
When we were asked the question; Do you regret leaving your stable job or university education? We answered...
Rob: No, because we can never get this much flexibility at a 9-5 corporate firm, or learn from our experiences that force us to be creative.
Eric: Working at a 9-5 firm was not my passion...at the end of the day, we left our comfort zone to pursue our passion, so we have no room for regrets. It's been extremely rewarding building our skills to expand our start-up.
Do University Degrees matter?
Of course! For some career paths such as becoming a doctor, an engineer or getting into financial institutions, you definitely need a university degree...but that is only worth it if you are passionate about where you end up. There is no point studying for a degree when you do not have a clear goal of what you want to achieve after you graduate.
Eric: I believe people should not go to university “just because”...if you don't have the passion or the drive for it, it is just a huge waste of time and money. For me, both university and school education did not click with what I had wanted to do, because I always had a creative mind. There was nothing that sparked my interest looking through university course brochures.
Rob: Also, what people need to understand is that knowledge is taking a different route now, specifically the onset of the internet and technology. AI is going to have a large effect on the economy and the way businesses function in the future. The fact that we started an agency through pursuing our self-interest and passion is proof that with the right kind of drive, it’s possible to create more opportunities for yourself.
Why Work at a Large Corporate Firm when you can Pursue your Passion?
Are you genuinely interested in working at a large corporate firm?
Or are you just following trends?
Personally we feel that it is important to think about why you want to join a large company and whether it is actually what you need to pursue a meaningful career. At the end of the day, if your passion and interests are fulfilled in a smaller company, it may be just as satisfying, despite that there may be slightly lower salary and stability. It all depends on your interests and what motivates you.
The important thing here is to think about whether you are enjoying the job, and whether you are growing from it, instead of the superficial things like image, money and perception of others. I feel that a mid life crisis occurs when someone yearns for something stable, but never put much thought into personal development: years later you may realize that everything you've done in your career does not align with your personal growth and character, and it all falls apart.
The reality here is that you do not know what you enjoy until you try something, and perceptions may change over the years; so be open and flexible to any experiences.
Advice For People Who Are Doubting Themselves Or Struggling To Find Themselves At University
We would like to emphasize that a lot of people study at university just because their parents said so or because it is a social norm. However, going back to the first point; do not study a degree without a clear insight on what you want to get out of it. Despite all of the challenges we face running a start-up company, especially during this time of uncertainty, we do not regret pursuing our passion over staying in a false sense of comfort.
In the end, the question ‘are university degrees important’ is one that really depends on what you are passionate about. We are not against university degrees, we just believe that people must enjoy what they are studying, and must have a clear goal of where they take their degree after graduation.
If you want advice or just somebody to talk to, please connect with us! We are more than happy to share our experiences and have a chat!
University degree does not matter at the moment, skills acquired through short courses and practical engagements is what makes the difference. University of the Farmers is a farmer training centre where the farms are our classrooms. We have partnered with farmers from around the world to use their farms as demonstration plots and their experts as our teachers to pass down information and hands on training to farmers to ensure that the farmers get the right information, conveniently to them in a localized manner.
Most young leaders (greater than 56 percent) hold degrees in social sciences or humanities disciplines. A specific degree doesn’t lead to greater success on the job market. Successful individuals have important?leadership, technical?and?teamwork?skills. More than two-thirds (67 percent)?of respondents who built successful careers within five?years after graduation said they did well on academic writing projects.
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4 年Yes.
Freelance Content Specialist, Multidisciplinary Artist & Creative Swiss Army knife.
4 年I’ve often been the only employee without a degree in my previous positions, but in regards to the creative industry your portfolio has become your degree. In recent years and it’s become less of a focus in interviews and project discussions. The key thing In my opinion about university is that it’s a great place to become an adult and your classes and assignments are an excellent way to adjust to the workforce, with deadlines and communication being skills you can learn at uni. After dropping out of 2 degrees it hasn’t held me back but I also had to catch up on the soft skills that uni brings
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4 年University Degrees can be highly valuable (I want my doctor or pilot to be trained) but the can also just be an indication that an individual can regurgitate information. Regardless of your industry and if a higher learning is better than on the job training, attitude is critical. You can have all the training in the world but with the wrong attitude you’ll never be successful. From a biased high school drop out.