PEDESTRIAN.TV has partnered with Melbourne Polytechnic to echo the sentiment that Biggie Smalls once shared with the masses: “It’s all good baby, baby.” If you’re dissatisfied, bored or having doubts about your degree, then feel free to swap it / drop it like it’s hot. Why not enter another degree you’re feeling, travel, work full-time or test the waters with a shorter course? Melbourne Polytechnic have a great range of certificates, diplomas, degrees and masters programs on offer – feel free to check ’em out HERE.
Firstly, it should be made clear that this article’s intention isn’t to bash degrees like Charlie Sheen would drunkenly accost a piñata – having one under your belt is still the most secure way to land a job, not to mention it being a entry requirement for several industries (law, medicine and their bedfellows). Instead, we’re hoping to quell any fears y’all might have about changing from one degree to another, or dropping it entirely.
We spoke to three people who’re, not only #KillingIt in their respective fields, but have had a pretty sketchy path when it comes to figuring out what course is best for them.
Marketing Consultant Alison Balch deferred her studies three times, beginning with a Bachelor of Health Science with a double major in Nutrition & Psychology before landing in a Bachelor of Business with a double major in Marketing & Public Relations. Her time at uni was interrupted firstly by realising Health Science wasn’t her cuppa tea, then by work and travel.
What has all of Alison’s flip-flopping resulted in? Oh, y’know, her owning/operating a multi-national marketing agency Halo Communications.
Based on her own hit-and-miss experience, Alison has a great perspective on figuring out what’s best for ya.
“My advice would be to go with your gut – you may not know exactly what you want to do at the end of your degree, but your gut will tell you if you’re on the wrong path,” she says.
“As an employer, I hire people based on their work ethic, passion and enthusiasm. While this isn’t viable in all fields, I think that many progressive businesses are placing more emphasis on the value of human connection.”
If you’re still keen on having a degree to your name but have reservations about the one you’re currently studying, then channel Alison. She’s living proof that you’ll likely land in the right place if you try your hand at (with well thought out judgement) different degrees that interest you. Also, be sure to question your environment. It might be the toll that work’s taking on you, your classmates or even the institution which you’re studying that’s impacting your interest in your degree.
Eddie Cranswick has tapped into the booming virtual reality market, having set up his own business Now VR.
“Now VR envisions and deploys life improving virtual reality experiences and use cases in the health and wellness space,” he says.
“Our first app, Relaxation VR, enables anyone, anywhere to rest and meditate in some of the worlds most beautiful locations using virtual reality technology. Relaxation VR has ranked in the Top 50 Health and Fitness apps in the US, UK, Canada and Australia. It’s one of the top VR apps outside of gaming.”
His path to where he is now, however, was harder to navigate than it is to understand what the hell Sting‘s lyrics are.
“Within 3 weeks I knew [university] wasn’t right, even though all my friends were extremely into it,” he says.
Eddie was studying the go-to, ‘I don’t know what I want to do with my life’ Commerce degree – a decision many make straight out of high school that sees them doing generic fall-back courses and ending up a statistic. According to the good guys at The Department of Education, up to 13,000 students change courses or institutions within the first year. So, if you’re feeling any guilt about changing course or institutions, remember that you’re one of a huge number that’s doing the same thing.
Anyway, our mate Eddie quickly changed to a shorter, and immediately more profitable course in Construction Surveying. After making hella bank, and recognising that he didn’t need a degree, Eddie did an eight week course in Human Centred Design – the catalyst for establishing his VR company.
“If you are at all unsure about why you’re doing your uni course – 100% defer and go discover who you are. Self awareness is an incredibly undervalued skill and it’s very hard to master. Travel, work various jobs, hang around different people, volunteer, meditate, experiment – do anything you possibly can to get out of your comfort zone, discover who you actually are and what you want from life.”
“Once you can answer these questions, you can begin engineering the perfect life for yourself – that may or may not involve uni, but it’s a better way to figure that out BEFORE locking yourself into a 3-4 year degree.”
“I highly recommend short courses, both in face and online, as ways to gain extra knowledge and experience around a specific interest or industry. A lot of the world’s biggest universities such as Stanford in the US are offering short courses online to people who don’t want to commit to a 3-4 year study pathway. I would never suggest doing any degree or course that you aren’t very interested in.”
Alison echoes Eddie’s support for this alternate pathway saying, “A short course can provide you with the skills and knowledge to get your foot in the door in an industry.”
“I know a lot of employers value industry experience as highly as a formal degree, as they know students can hit the ground running.”
If you’ve got a publicist working for you, then obviously you’re doing SOMETHING right – oh, and co-founding one of Europe’s fastest growing company doesn’t hurt either.
Davis Barons is the co-founder of Creamfinance and another member of the uni-wasn’t-for-me squad.
“He was accepted to university [but] instead of that, he and his best friend decided to start a business,” says Viktorija Gorcakovaite, Davis’ PR rep.
They tried to secure financing for their concept but were knocked back. So, as any reasonable person who’s been knocked back by a monetary institution, “they came up with the idea to create a personal finance company, providing short-term loans.”
As the business began growing, Davis recognised some pitfalls in his knowledge.
“He did a short course on raising capital and scaling business which was hugely beneficial.”
If you’ve found yourself reading this, either you or someone close to you is probably having their doubts about proceeding with their degree. There’s no definitive answer, test or measurement to guarantee if changing your degree is going to be the right choice, but our advice – as well as those who’ve given comment – is to trust your gut.
Go travelling with mates, get a full-time gig, secure an internship or just piss-fart around if you’re in need of some R&R. Honestly, it doesn’t matter, just do what’s right for you because:
Good luck out there, young padawans.
If you think studying your degree/masters at a different institution, or are opting for a shorter course tickles your fancy, consider Melbourne Polytechnic. Their certificates, diplomas, degrees and masters programs could be just what the doctor ordered. You can check out Melbourne Polytechnic’s course range by heading to their website HERE.
Photo: YouTube.
