Ultimately, university is a fantastic opportunity to develop your skills, broaden your horizons and grow as a person along the way.
For some careers, you’ll need a degree, for example you’ll need to study Medicine in order to become a doctor. The same goes for professions such as nursing, dentistry, teaching and law.
A degree can also hone your skills and abilities to boost your employability. No matter your chosen course, you will develop a broad range of transferable skills and experiences. You will become a team player, develop your communication skills, learn to manage your time, be organised, develop resilience and more. Such qualities are in high demand from employers and will be useful to any career.
Going to university can open many doors in terms of a career move for mature learners too. Parents and carers in particular – we’re looking at you! Have you considered higher education? Research conducted by Leeds Arts University has revealed that mature learners choose to retrain in creative disciplines in particular for various reasons. Some had not previously had a ‘first chance’ to explore their interests in creative subjects. Others had enjoyed creative subjects at school and regretted not pursuing a creative career. Some cited wanting to be role models for the children in their families. Often, mature learners are looking to give something back to their communities and use their creative skills to improve the lives of others.
You’re also more likely to earn more as a degree-holder over your lifetime, statistically speaking. Over the course of a lifetime, estimates suggest women can expect to earn about £250,000 more if they have a degree, while the figure is roughly £170,000 for men.
Source: search ‘graduate earnings’.
When it comes to how much you could earn exactly, the simplest answer we can give is ‘it depends’. It’s important to note that how much you earn does not always tell the complete picture of the value of a degree and related career – for instance, how fulfilling it is, or the quality of life it provides. Nonetheless, it is good to be aware of the information out there – a good starting point is the Discover Uni website, which provides information on graduate salaries for a range of undergraduate courses. Our best advice is to do your research and ask questions.
One MASSIVE benefit of going to university is the overall experience it can gift you. This is not something you can read about in a prospectus – it’s something that can only be experienced for yourself!
If we attempted to list all the non-academic experiences you can gain, we’d never be able to cover it all, but it does include: getting involved with student societies, sampling the hustle and bustle of campus life (and even study abroad), forming friendships for life with like-minded people on your course and beyond from all over the world, and much, much more. University study can also foster independence in an individual as they develop life skills either living away from home or navigating how to balance their studies in an environment that is very different to school, sixth form or college.
It’s not a cliché when we say that for many, the university experience is truly life changing! Check out this great blog from a female student about how her university journey changed her life.
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