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Which Uni courses are likely to lead to jobs in future ?

W

wacko

pfm Member
I have a 16 year old nephew. The question is for him. He doesn't know what he wants to study. He is perhaps just above average smart.
I agree that Uni courses do not have to lead directly to jobs, but let's just say he would like a good chance of a job after studies.
The lawyer, doctor, accountant, dentist type professions are a given but apart from those ?
The future job market looks more uncertain than ever with AI and robotics likely to cause many changes in the next 5-25 years.
Even if he wanted to ride the tidal wave of AI or robotics itself what would he study at Uni ?
Yes it will be his choice.
Tks for any advice.
 
What 'A' Levels is he taking and where does his interests lie e.g. Science/Engineering, Arts/Humanities?
 
15 years ago I would have said anything that had an element of software engineering, but not necessarily actual software engineering (my last company had a ban on hiring actual software engineer grads, despite being a software engineering company. They claimed, "they weren't good enough". I believe the truth was closer to "they won't do things our way and always want to innovate, which we don't want"). But with AI advancing as it is, I don't think there will be half the jobs in software as their is now, in another 10-15 years.

Construction will always be needed though. I'm a project manager, and currently struggling to find work because 99% of project management jobs at the moment are in the construction industry, which I have no experience in (and experience and acreditations in construction is mandatory for all of them). So my advice would be, think of something that will always be needed by humans and go in to that sector: food, shelter, health, communication

Technology wise (if that's what he's interested in), I'd go for infrastructure stuff. As in the technology of the networks that will always be needed to carry the communication that the world requires. AI etc is all application level and those are the jobs it'll hit, but AI won't impact the fact that we will always need to send information from one point on the planet to another (it may make it more efficient somehow, but ulimately signals will still need to be sent from A to B).

Or he could go the alternative route and do an apprenticeship. I was a direct entrant in to BT (which they don't do any more), and my career progressed from there. It may not be as glamorous an industry as Google et al, but overall I can't really complain about the life working in Telecommunications has given me over the years. Just a thought.

Apprenticeships

Apprenticeship roles
jobs.bt.com jobs.bt.com
 
Motivation, motivation, motivation.......

Don't start any course without very good motivation. He has to really want it. If he's unsure, get him to a good careers coach where he can get independent advice away from the immediate family. If he's still unsure, wait a year and get some life experience. I was pressured by my family to do a degree I wasn't interested in and had to re-start later with a degree I really wanted. And I'm not alone. Get it right or don't do it.

If he's still not motivated and is just going through the motions don't waste £30,000 on a degree. Look at apprenticeships and on the job training. My son had an apprenticeship with the creative dept. in MTV London and gave it up for a design degree which turned out to be pretty useless for his future career. He lost £30,000 and the money and opportunities he would have had at MTV.

Also consider degrees in other European countries which may be cheaper and in English. Holland for instance. Scotland too.
 
It's a good question, if you want to be an online retailer eg, I see a lot of uni courses with broad and vague names; ecommerce, digital marketing etc......I'm not sure anyone would come out of that as employable with me, since it would start with 6 months packing boxes in the warehouse and understanding which couriers are the best for which parcel, and which box size for which courier service type. Then it would be how to crack facebook groups, thereby avoiding advertising altogether. Then book keeping and international VAT. I bet they don't learn stuff like that. I bet they do stuff like google ad simulation exercises and the 4 Ps etc.....learning a veyr narrow part of the job of onlione retail to join the advertising or marketing department.
 
I'm not even sure there's an answer to that question. If he chooses a course based mainly on future employability or career path but doesn't have an actual interest in the subject, then he risks either not doing well in the course itself or leaving Uni and being faced with a career that he doesn't want.

Personally I think it's more important to study a subject you're interested in.
 
I think his attitude, and the quality of the university count for much.

An anecdote. A friend's son graduated 2 years ago with a 2nd from Loughborough in Politics. The careers service found him a job as a manager in a chain of gyms and fitness centres, and he loves it, he's flourishing. He should try to find a university with good support for careers. I don't know how possible it is to find this out ahead of time.

I also think that he should think twice about going to university at all, rather than taking an apprenticeship in a trade. University's expensive, and it may not be fun. Unless he has an academic interest then he may well be better off training to become an electrician or plumber.
 
One thing that's important to understand is: University only suits people who are self-motivated, self-learning, book learners. It's a totally different learning environment from school. More than 90% of the learning you do at university is all off your own back, you go to lectures (where they talk at you, not engage in any meaningful teaching), you buy books and you study the books. The book learning is mandatory because well over half of what will be in the exams is never taught in the lectures. So if you're not great at learning from reading, then university really isn't for you.
At least that was my personal experience decades ago. Things may have changed, but I doubt they'll have become true teaching establishments.
 
Study what motivates you. But law, medicine, civil engineering, and architecture are careers.
 
Ideally he would pursue something he likes. A friend is an accountant. She went into it because she knew she would always have a job, which is exactly what happened but she does not enjoy it (and I think regrets her decision).

Some of the more obvious options: AI (computer science + AI, maths + AI, Machine Learning, Machine Intelligence courses), Coding/Hacking/Security (coding, programming, cyber security courses), health (established courses for these. GP, genetics and mental health are good options) and something in money (maths, physics, finance, accounting courses).
 
His mother wants him to do a degree...
I have gently said it is not always the best route in life and have been ignored.
 
Sue Pertwee-Tyr said:
What’s he good at? What does he enjoy doing?
Click to expand...
I'm not sure I really used any of the stuff I leant at uni first time around in terms of the actual subject. I took Social Science for reasons that are still unclear to me.

What I did learn was how to study and how to think analytically. That turned out to be a great foundation for a career in IT.

Not saying that's the best approach just that the course you take doesn't set in stone what you do as a career.
 
40 years of this, I asked
'what did you love when you were 8 years old?'
That's what you do to be interested and happy.
If those are not as important as money of security then go aslk someone else ;)
 
One of their ideas is Business Studies. Waste of time IMO. And typical of those who don't know what they want to do.
An MBA OTOH after some work experience is not a waste of time.
 
richardg said:
I see a lot of uni courses with broad and vague names; ecommerce, digital marketing etc......I'm not sure anyone would come out of that as employable with me, since it would start with 6 months packing boxes in the warehouse
Click to expand...
On the other hand where I work seems to be creating a new digital marketing type role every few months. Seems to be plenty of demand for that sort of thing and it can pay well.
 
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