I AGREE with Bill Brown (Letters, June 15), who highlights the way we overly promote university as the only way to ensure our children have a sound further education and see any alternatives as a poor second option. People have many employable talents and the careers or work they end up doing long term depend on many factors and those need not include a university degree.
Of course, many benefit from a university degree whether it is achieving the academic requirements for careers such as in medicine and the discipline of learning and study, picking up soft skills associated with the chosen subject. But there are probably too many degrees that need not be undertaken under the umbrella of university education and are sold as degrees to give them weight. There are also many people in successful mid-career who do not particularly use their degree.
I see the problem as two fold. One is the poor press further education seems to have, other than degrees, and the second is the lack of resource, funding and backing for colleges and other non-university educational facilities.
Another issue is the need to ensure we try to give everyone of any ability a chance to get into a job and that includes non-academic routes such as on-the-job-learning and properly managed apprenticeships. These can be tailored to suit those who leave school to seek work right away, whether they have passed a good selection of examinations or did not so well but still have the talent and work ethic to take on work and rise through the ranks through development and training. A good example of this would be the construction industry, where it is hard to tell, when one meets or works under a senior manager, whether they went to university or left school and started in a trade.
Companies that target graduates need to cast their net wider and consider more than just a candidate’s qualifications and consider that person in the round with all the talents they posses.
Niall McTeague,
12 May Terrace,
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