"It doesn't matter what your course is, university gives you transferable skills for the work place"

"It doesn't matter what your course is, university gives you transferable skills for the work place"

A line I've heard so much it makes me want to take my long, dark, non-student hair and shove it in to my ears just so I don't have to hear it any more.

Of course uni gives you "transferable skills" like being organised and time-keeping, not forgetting determination and of course a good work ethic.

If this is a viable statement to put on your cv or recite in an interview then in my next interview, it's ok for me to say that "I have gained good skills in the work place from owning a cat" surely?!
Owning a cat means you learn to be patient, you become compassionate, ethical and caring. You also have to be commited.
Or what about having to dress yourself everyday? That gives you transferable skills doesn't it?!

So what I am trying to get at is whilst there is some truth in that arguement, you can also replace the word "university" with pretty much anything. With this in mind, some people could be lead to think that because of this, it's in fact utter rubbish.

Of course, I am Switzerland. Well, thats not true because I am bias towards alternatives to university. 

Shall I tell you what will give "transferable skills for the work place," well in fact ACTUAL WORK PLACE SKILLS?

Well ladies and gentlemen, instead of three years "learning" at university, three years in an apprenticeship or interning will give you MUCH better skills which will benefit you in a career.

Growing up at uni? I'm not so sure. Spend 3 years anywhere and you will grow up (new concept just invented by NASA called time and the ageing process) but university? I think the rate of growing up is liable to become stangnent or slow at least.

Spend three years between being 18 and 21 in employment around actual adults and your maturity levels will soar!

Three years of drinking, avoiding lectures, student loans and living with mostly people your own age. Now compare that with three years of 9-5 work, being around 16-67 year olds all day, commuting, acting as an adult in the work place, being responsible and earning your own money (not that borrowed from tax payers and often never paid back) and you'll see who gets most work place skills and maturity.

Ri x

Where I'm at

So, obviously, I have started this blog because I myself am not going to university [SHOCK! HORROR!COVER YOUR EYES CHILDREN, DON'T READ THE SHAME!]

-therefore, I thought it would be a good idea to update you on my story and how I am doing at the moment.

I left sixth-form officially on the 15th of May this year and finished off my A levels until the 15th of June so I am currently waiting for my results which will be available on the 16th of August. 
It is now  14 minutes to 1 on the 8th of July, leaving me with........................ the rest of my life to figure out what I want to do.
If you read my other blogs or follow me on twitter or have read my profile, you'll know that I am interested in writing/journalism/PR/communications and a bit of marketing [Hello and how do you do to any prospective employers] so I have some idea of where I want to apply to and how I am going to go about doing that.
I started applying for apprenticeships/internships/employment a month ago and have heard nothing back after applying for four positions.
 So I am going to continue to apply at every magazine I can think of, every PR agency, every communications department and any marketing departments that have openings. 
I do not want to end up sitting up home or working at Primark for the rest of my life, however, I have to pick up some more hours there for the summer. 
In my first post, I told you how my school didn't really help those who didn't plan on going to university, so I have been and will be 100% doing this on my own, which isn't a problem although a little help would have been nice.

Having said that, I do have some means of helping myself, for example:
I check the apprenticeships.org.uk website regularly for any updates
I have gorkana jobs send me emails when positions open up in fields I'm interested in
I follow journalist jobs on twitter 

I apply and will be applying to all that I can in order to get a job or some work experience in order to begin my career,

I'll keep you updated!

You Will Need Help

You are going to need help.

Whilst it's important that you choose you're own future and you're not swayed by the opinions of your friends, teachers, siblings, cousins, parents or hamsters, you are always going to need advice, especially from those who have made the same decision.

If you're still at school, take the opportunity to use the facilities. Find out who your careers advisor is, where they will be and when. Ask them for help- that's what they're there for! Talk to your teachers...the ones you like. Believe it or not, they want to help you to. Having said that, it's probable that your teachers will tell you to go university, whether you want to or not, but it's always useful to hear their own experiences.

If not, there are always other places to get help, the job centre, the library, the internet, apprenticehips.org.uk, THIS BLOG, and others...
Find out where your nearest "connexions" centre is, they can give you impartial advice on what steps you can take and how you should be planning.