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A large amount of University students are experiencing a different kind of first-degree upon graduation.
Throughout their entire "school life" they have been told to go to high school, work hard to get good marks to get into a well-known university and graduate university with a degree and begin their career. They have been told that a degree is the key to differentiating themselves from the competition, a way to get the upper hand in a job interview and a pretty good shot at most entry-level positions in their chosen field. Their degree will be the reason they succeed at work, at home and at play.
The world of work that they have been prepared for no longer exists. It's no longer about who has graduated university. It is now about who has the right education, experience and ambition for the job. It is about who is willing to creatively solve problems and innovate.
A university degree by itself hardly holds the weight it used to. "We live in a world where a university degree alone is worth what a college diploma (community college in the U.S.) has been worth in the past. You now need a Master's to equal what a bachelor's used to be and a PhD to be at par with Master's degrees of old." Says Ryan Porter a Youth Transition Specialist for Canadian company, What's Next?... Transition Strategies.
He goes on to explain, "University used to be an institution of higher learning where people went to get an education they couldn't get elsewhere. Today, you can boot up your PC head over to MIT's website and gain instant access to over 1700 of their courses from sciences to humanities and it's all free! The Internet and instant access to information is changing education and the worst part is, many educators don't know it"
Educators must start showing students how to create experiences for themselves and how to find and most importantly use the information they have. They must examine the trends of education and work and realize that the formula is drastically different than when they were advised to "just go to university and get a degree."
Before you go into shock, take a deep breath and recognize that a university degree isn't exactly worthless. Of course it can open doors. Of course it still shows hard work and dedication. Keep in mind however, that employers want the people who have passion for their field not just someone who listened to their guidance counselor in grade 11.
Just remember that this is a minor burn. It's easily treated with a little bit of research, passion and dedication. Don't worry it will heal relatively quickly with little or no medication.