Thought Id start this one going because its rather dead on this board at the moment and I suppose all my usual muckers are either at the Stella tennis event watching Dim Tim (lose again) or at Henly Regatta eating cucumber sandwiches (they wish,...NOT).

Anyway please feel free to just talk to yourself blast away and let it go on any company or subject you wish. Just wish Id thought of this one before.

cheers GF.

the churn rate says it all really

because of soft A's, they have expectations above their ability/potential

let the labour party pay for them if they think its sutch a good idea

oh yes, the labour party is broke as well

doh

Raw,

The majority of students probably do stupid things during the university lives.

The majority of students eventually get their degrees or other qualifications.

The majority of students go on to help "oil" society by their learning and function in society.

They should be able to give more back to society in various areas.

The majority of students,after leaving University, go on to be higher than average "earners".

Slight increase in taxation of the group or earners would adequately pay the
cost of "higher education" for the benefit of all.

Otherwise, because of "fears" about future "debt", only those whose parents are prepared to afford or indulge their offspring feel unable to go to university to higher education.

That is a loss to society as a whole.

I was lucky that my parents valued education and were able and prepared to finance their children's ongoing education.

I was able to do likewise for my children.

The grants given, do not have to be excessive and I would like to see the hall system regenerated and aimed at reducing the cost of accommodation etc..

But again it is what you value. It is not idealistic and was seen as an advancement in the 50s, 60s and later.

many degrees arent worth the mustard


when everyones someone then no-ones anybody

Hays,

For me, your education would seem to have been a complete waste of time.

I hope and thought reactionaries like you had died out.

"I was lucky that my parents valued education and were able and prepared to finance their children's ongoing education."

Yes, but did they finance your drinking for three years and was your degree in media studies? Because those are the degrees we are currently financing.

It "certainly" wasn't a degree in the "use" of "quotes", anyway :-0

My son is applying to sixth form colleges at present. His school makes him take some media courses. When he was interviewed at his choices of colleges they all said that they didn't want to know his results for Religious studies and Media courses as they were of no use to them. The only colleges that want pupils with media qualifications are those that accept pupils that fail to get into good colleges. the kids then go to college with all the other failures and study more media and some useless business courses. The final result is that they then enter rubbish universities and do more courses that no employer wants. By rubbish universiies, I mean the Tech Colleges and some of the Colleges of Advaced Technology (CATS) that were upgraded to universities.

Just looked at one "University" and in Computer Games it offers a choice between Computer Games Design (BA(Hons)) or Computer Games Programming (BSc(Hons)).

Now don't get me wrong, I'm sure that it is possible to work as a computer games designer or programmer, but I'm also sure that the number of jobs available every year is not going to support the output of two degree courses in it. Perhaps it is a little too specialised, or perhaps geared to interest those who otherwise wouldn't have bothered with university?

Should the state be paying for people to get degrees in Computer Games Programming?

What's Clem's degree?

;-)

I thought the main reason for giving the Mickey Mouse polytechnics a university status and sending every 18 year old in the country to "university" was that it looked good on the last government's statistics by showing higher standards in education and reduced unemployment.

Now that Brown's gone, it'll hopefully be time for reality to hit home again.

It was actually Margaret Thatcher who turned polytechnics into universities, mainly because she had a row with the universities.

Kayak,

From, a long time a go, I have memories of drinking as a student, and remember being drunk on two occasions, but I was playing rugby for a senior club for some of my student period, and often drank more than recommended, as there was a free "tab" for players.

I think my parents would have been unhappy about my consumption, as they were almost teetotallers and would have frowned at the "waste" of money.

Since that date, I think, although often drinking more than recommended, have been drunk only once. Looking back on the periods of incapacitation it seems a little stupid and I was annoyed with myself.

(My wife, would probably say, that I have drank too much, more occaissions.)

Unless you are a teetotaller, during you period between 17 and 25 years of age, did you never drink too excess or too much?

I frowned a little at my daughters escapades, two were more, or less, teetotallers and the other two followed my behaviour.

I think the quantity of alcohol drank, on a regular bases, by many adolescents and adults is unreasonable and harmful to them and others.

But that is their choice.

Who funded your drinking?

Hilary.

Relating to the statistics, there is an element of that.

I worked in a university during the late 60s, 70s and 80s and was bewildered by the subjects that degree courses were offered in.

But part of that "craziness" was due to the change of financing of the universities and their attempts to cram in, as many students from overseas, as well as, the home grown ones, as was possible.

I was told it boiled down to unit costs and profits.

My parents, and the rugby club members, as I didn't have a grant for much of my university life.

I didn't mind Thatcher turning polytechnics into universities. they were already granting degrees at the time. my complaint is with the technical colleges that became universities. These were usueally vocational colleges that taught metalwork, technical drawing etc and gave ONC/OND and a few of them HNC/HND. HNC/HND were roughly equivalent to a pass degree. Now they do media and business studies and give honours degrees in them.

I have an 'Art' colledge down the road from me.
It has about 3000 studens, on 3/4 year courses.
They seem to do it in shifts.
A vast crowd streams past my door about 9am.
Between 12 and 13hr, they all head back to the
railway station and are replaced by another crowd
heading to school.
That lot then return about 16.30.
Police are on duty at the station at these times.
I've had an official complaint from the council about
theamount of litter deposited in my front garden and
threatened with a two hundred pound fine(ongoing).
They then shift the litter bin next to the bus stop, outside
my house, five yards futher away from it.
A quick google gives 28 similar establishments.
That means about 28,000 come on to the employment?
markey every year.

It appears you're correct, Kayak, and Polys turned into unis sometime after an act was passed 1992 so it would have happened during a Conservative government, although I would've thought that was Major. When did Maggie leave? I've always thought it was a crazy idea, whoever was responsible for it.

"My parents, and the rugby club members, as I didn't have a grant for much of my university life."

So if you had had a government grant...

Hils - late November 1990.

Thought so, Skinners, ta.