Hey people, at the moment, i m in quite a confused and bewildered mind set. I'm in the process of doing my A levels, but i dont know wat to do with my life, i m unsure whether to go to university or to get a job and go travelling. I've always wanted to go to tibet and india etc to challenge myself and see who i really am. I dont want to spend my life ina dead end job and wasting my life without achieving much. So my main question is what did u guys/gals do after college? where are u hoping to get to/achieve?

__________________

I always new that I wanted to go to university so my life didn't reach a fork in the road until after my studies finished in 2003. From there, I decided that I didn't want to go straight into employment for the main reason of feeling mentally drained and unable to cope with going into what was going to be (I presumed) a fairly technical job. So I took a year out, while only casually browsing for a job.

I didn't sign on at first because I would have felt like a leach if I wasn't actively seeking employment. However, after three months my money dried up and I reluctantly signed on. For the first six months I didn't really look beyond graduate websites for work but after that six months I was moved onto New Deal.

It was at this point that I really took stock of what I was going to do with myself. I'd had 9 months of sitting back and enjoying a relatively pressure free existence but I knew I had to make a decision quickly. I ended up choosing accountancy after enrolling on a graduate employment program and within two weeks I had a placement lined up. The four month work placement led to employment and here I am today, a trainee Chartered Accountant.

I would have liked to have travelled inbetween leaving university and gaining employment but financial constraints prevented me from doing so. However, after I qualify and gain my Chartered status I wouldn't mind taking another year out and possibly seeing more of the world - this time I'd have the money. It's probably just a pipedream but it would be nice to do it while I'm still young.

In terms of how I chose my profession, well there were several factors. I didn't want to leave Liverpool and so high profile jobs in science were off the agenda since there aren't that many around here. Then I consulted my cousin who also sat the same exams that I am currently studying for now. What swayed me was his explanation of the versatility of the ACA qualification in terms of the doors it could open for me.

Where am I headed? That's not so easy to answer as I could end up anywhere. I think something like one in five board members of listed companies possess the ACA qualification so that's one option. As I said, there are so many options available to me so I'm going to take stock of my career evolution roughly every five years and evaluate it then.

I would definitely recommend going to university. A well chosen degree can open so many doors and of course start you off at a higher level on the employment ladder. It also - generally - allows you to progress further up that same ladder than someone with out one. Of course, some professions are exceptions to this rule, my own being one of them (near enough every Chartered Accountant has a degree).

Another plus to university is the social aspect. I really can't state how good it is not having lectures until midday! I endured a quite intensive degree in comparison to others but even then I was only required to go in to lectures for a maximum of three or four hours per day. Sure the exams are hard (don't believe your teachers when they say A-levels are tougher, they're not), but my time at university is the biggest contributing factor as to who I am today and also one of my proudest achievements.

The important thing to remember is that, ultimately, it's your decision and everybody should accept it without putting pressure on your to take a different course of action. Good luck!

__________________

heh, im kind of in the same position as you on this one, just a few days ago I had to make a decision on which university offer I should accept, and I decided to go in for kinesiology, and hopefully make it to med school..but before this I decided i was also really confused. and plus, its ok if you dont what you want to do, many people dont, since i remember hearing from somewhere a large % of people usually change careers throughout their life

whats the A levels?

__________________

It's the qualification in England for studies undertaken between the ages of 16 and 18. To gain entry to university one needs to satisfy entry conditions in terms of A-level grades.

__________________

oh here we have SAT's

__________________

A University would probably be the best way to go, of course its your choice though. I went to a technical school and it didnt really open the doors, but its what I wanted to do. i am a pessimist when it comes to work. I do not believe there is a job out there, besides being a musician, that I can every enjoy going to every day for the rest of my life.

__________________

I am going to have a similar dilemma in the next year or so...

__________________

i plan on going to community college for two years. transfering to a state school ,essentially in name only, and studying abroad in Denmark. my only real interest is history, so i assume eventually my career will involve history. if i can get a touring band up and running before that time, that will be what i do.

__________________

Really?




Good luck with that, but it's just not a metal world anymore

__________________

Not a metal world?? Bullshit, metal's at its peak.. Ozzfest is the top grossing festival, shadows fall is selling 250,000+ cd's.. im sure Lamb of God is doing just as good..

Headbangers ball is back on, fuse has several metal shows, sirius has several metal stattion, my local rock station plays extreme metal from 12:00 to 3:00 am

metal is definetly big..

Sure Death Metal isn't too popular but with all these bands with screetches and growls becoming acceptable Death Metal may finally find its spot in the mainstreem.

__________________

You're lucky, all we get is a 2 hour Hair metal program every Friday

I'm just saying metal is not what it used to be, hell the big 4 were practically "popular" in the late 80's early 90's

Plus metal doesnt seem to be going in any new, interesting directions. Death metal is changing a tiny bit, but thats all. I could be proven wrong though, but I doubt it.

__________________

Shadows fall is a hardcore band and hardcore is making the scene. Bands like unearth, atreyu, thats what companies are looking for. As far as my opinion concerns itself I dont consider hardcore metal. I think of that as a trend. Ozzfest has been the top grossing festival because alot of big bands (along the lines of slipknot) have been playing there. Lamb of God (IMO) has gone down the shitter and sold out. Headbangers ball plays shitloads of nu metal with some good stuff mixed in. And Sirius...Yes that is something that is great but other than that I see everyone getting into the trendy hardcore. Graduation by us has just happened and according to my friend there are only two death metallers left in the school.(What I mean by death metallers is death/thrash/black/true power. anything but prog/hardcore/nu) Its starting to suck major balls

__________________

History? Good luck with that. I also wanted to study some form of history at uni, but you really cannot find a decent job with the qualifications you get, well that's what I heard.

Mordor, didn't you say you were going to go to a Uni? If not you could always join the French Foreign Legion!

When it comes to it, I'll be in the same situation as you, but I think I've got a rough idea of what I'd like to do for uni, probably something like music production or whatever.

Shadows Fall is far from Hardcore.. hardcore doesn't have solo's, most call them Metalcore.

Im sorry if you cant see the good in bands like Lamb of God and Shadows Fall making solo's and screaming acceptable in the mainstream.. but they're doing alot of good for Metal right now whether you like them or not.

oh, and Mastodon just got signed onto Warner Bros. Records.

__________________

Exactly.

yeah i know, a history degree is about as useful as a degree in english (Being an american, english class /degrees refers more towards literature and grammar).
but its the only thing i like. i dont like science, i DESPISE math, and i cant work with my hands very well

yeah, steve, UALBANY does a study abroad in copenhagen. its not much more expensive and may parents are ok with that. whether that all pans out, ill have to wait and see


as for making it big, i dont know and i dont really care. if i could just tour like suffocation and play for a few hundred metal fans and make a living off of music id rather do that.whether or not metal is the big now can be argued and i see both sides of the case. but anyways, everybodys confused in highschool and college. if guidance councellors were useful id say go to one, but in my experience you might as well ask a magic 8 ball questions

__________________

its good to have your parents approvel but does it really matter what they think?

__________________

yeah it does. im close with my parents and they will be paying for college anyways. if they really didnt want me to, id consider not doing it

__________________

Exactly the same for me, apart from the hands bit. I have a friend who did a degree in Medieval Archaeology, got shitty underpaid jobs on various sites and museums for a while, hated it, and ended up working as a translator in a Government agency!

I'm looking to study Music Production on it's own at Uni:
http://www.southend.ac.uk/courses/detail.asp?c=1557

I think jobs will be much easier to come by, 'cos almost every form of media needs a sound guy behind the scenes, right?

Other than that, I don't know what I'm gonna do.

as for my plans, as they stand right now (no where near official but..) I plan on going to a college to major in music and minor in norwegian. then hopefully after that I can go over to norway and continue studying music at their school of music in olso

__________________

ill race ya there!

__________________

I can see your point but if you really want to then you shouldnt let your parents sway your judgemen, or else when your 30 youll be pissed at them because they didnt want you to do what you wanted to and its too late.
or something along those lines

__________________

As for after Uni, I'll probably join the most lax part of a country's army, (the air force is it?) and accumlate funds for the three years I'm in there.

a country's army? you mean englands or...?

__________________

I'm speaking generally, as Kylito mentioned the Airforce as being that.

I've always known I'd be going for post-secondary education. I was a bit sceptical, like you, as to whether to travel and take a year off, or to head straight for school.

During high school, I had a part time job and talking to others that worked there secured my decision to go straight to univeristy. They had all decided to work right after high school for a year, and then to go to school after. Unfortunately, many of them are now stuck to the job, for fear of losing it and not being able to have a source of income during the year. For them, they'll be working at that same shitty job 10 years down the road.

A degree or any sort of certification is a giant step towards making money and is important to the career you wish to persue, but the people that you'll meet in school will all be educated and have high standards. They will be the ones that you'll need and stay connected to for the rest of your life.

Go to school.

__________________

When i was at school doing my A-Levels, i was originally going to to an Electronics degree at uni. However, i started to wonder why everyone was saying that uni 'is the best thing for you, you'll enjoy the social life so much'. Don't get me wrong, i enjoy a drink as much as the next person, i just felt that my reasoning for going to uni shouldn't be for partying, and it should be about the education you get- as thats what you pay for. I ended up not doing as well in my A-Levels, but by this time i had already decided to not go to uni. I went full time in my job (working in Safeway/Morrisons) when i finished school, and i earn a fair amount of money for what i do... i run a car, i buy my guitar stuff, i go out occasionally etc. I'm now pursueing my dream, to do something music-based, so im looking into going to music college (ACM in Guildford). I've heard nothing but good news about this place, and because there is no accomodation on-campus, people don't go on about the social side of it, and they concentrate on the actual education side.

This all said, im 19 this week, and i feel in no hurry to do anything, and the earliest i'll be going is in 2006. I feel there is far too much pressure to go to uni, which is seen as the be-all-and-end-all of life, and the best thing for everyone. My words of advice would be not to just follow what all your friends want to do. I found it quite hard when all my best mates went to uni, but i know i did the best thing, uni wasn't for me.

Good luck in your search for a direction, may you be happy in your choice

EDIT: i don't wish to travel round the world, well not yet, i'm toying with the idea of doing a tour of scandanavia on a motorbike (and going to lots of gigs/festivals on the way)

__________________

Unless you go straight into a degree where you have a vocation (e.g. dentistry, medicine) everyone suffers from this kind of malaise when you leave school. Except those boring thundercunts who've "always wanted to be an accountant" or some other similarly naueseating low expectation crapitude.

Here's the best advice I have - pick something that seems right and GET TO IT QUICKLY, even if it isn't perfect. You don't want to take months or years making any kind of decision. Throw your cock into the goddamn ring and find out. What stops you from dead-ending, regardless of where you end up, is whether or not you have the stones to keep trying out new things until you find something that fits.

__________________

I'll be achieving a BA with a major in music in 2 more years. After that...I'm not sure what I'll be doing. The following is what I have planned: teaching private lessons, metal band, and a blue collar job. Or....use my degree to get a high paying music studio job.

__________________

That's really along the lines on what I'm thinking of doing. I live in CA, and I'm looking at colleges with good music programs. I don't know what stuff to take, as every school seems to specialize in different things. I just got results back for the SAT, and kinda fucked it up, so I gotta take it again next year, then hopefully by then I'll have some idea on where to go...

__________________

I never wanted to go to college, but some of the classes I had to take later in life were quite interesting and they were considered college classes. That was mostly in Child Welfare. I could have gotten state certified, but many of us chose not to.
Remember that just because you do one thing for awhile doesn't mean you'll do it forever. My best friend is a quarter short of her Master's in Music Education, but she's taught instrument/voice lessons for years from her home. She has close to 100 students. In her case she started voice and piano when we around kindergarden age and it was in leaps and bounds she got as far as she did in college. The first one she went to was a southern Christian college out of state and I believe she got thrown out for smoking, drinking, or some silly thing like that. But there were times she was raising her son as a single mom, offering morsels for customers to try in grocery stores, and giving music lessons, too. Now she runs her music studio out of her home and can stay home with her other child and husband. She's also a choir director and has written several plays for the church. She's a month older than me.
I've heard many people say that the thing they were happiest doing for a career was something they've loved to do since childhood. Maybe if you think about the things that have made you happy in the past learning and developing skills that might be a direction to start in.
I have a friend in England that went to university for Fine Arts and also played rugby league for over 20 years. He's a graphic arts designer and has designed hotels and casinos in other countries. He got bored with that and switched companies and is designing medical facilities now. But he's also a fabulous musician and singer, and his band has come over to the States to play and promote their album.
You don't ever have to be stuck doing the same thing always.

__________________

Thanks everyone, u've given me a lot of food for thought. I ve slept on it and so far i ve decided that i'll probably be best off going to uni and seeing where that takes me. I m hoping to study media tech (media studies, technology, ict, videos etc) in london and then perhaps moving on to something like performance tech (sound, stage design, effects etc). I think that after my studies are all over i ll go travelling then.

Cheers

__________________

You're so wrong, Sam! The majority of lawyers and barristers have degrees such as history, English and politics.

FBS: it's a good job I only decided to become an accountant a year ago!

__________________

[sales pitch]Well, when you finish your degree and you start getting work in theatre, etc remember to Google "Jonathan Ford & Co Limited". It's the name of the firm I work at and we specialise in the entertainment industry.[/sales pitch]

__________________

hahha sure will

__________________

You can always travel over the summers, like I am doing. Unless you are taking summer classes, you get three months or so. This year I am going to Germany, but in subsequent summers I will be doing some long hikes (300 miles+) to get prepared for a REALLY long hike I will be doing after I graduate (2000 miles+). Then, after this REALLY long hike, I am going to whore around different careers, seeing what I like best, while doing more REALLY long hikes in between careers. Hopefully, I can make money writing about my REALLY long hikes like others have done, or just make a living writing in general. That way I can write and do REALLY long hikes at the same time.

Matty's gonna be a hippie. That's amusing as heck.

__________________

A friend is going to university and from what I remembered it sounded similar to what you might be talking about so I just asked him about where he goes and what his course of study is. He said it's De Montfort university in Leicester - Music, technology, and innovation.
I don't know if that might be something you'd want to check into, but he seems to really enjoy it a lot. He has a band and is into recording and song writing.

__________________

yea thats what im goping to do, i m going to amsterdam and belgium in two weeks which should be good, and then majorca (spain) in september cos my mate has a flat on the island.

Your hikes sound good, are they organized hikes or just something u plan to do?

__________________

well thats true. i only thought of it as a leaving college type thing. "i know about the revolutionary war, hear me roar!"

its still something to think about

__________________

Fuck organized hikes. No one wants to see a group of assholes when they want to have a wilderness experience. Four is the limit for a group hike, I think. Anything else is disrespectful.

Oh, going to school in Norway and Sweden is free. I don't know if exchange students can do this, it is something I have to look in to. I just know that citizens go to college for free.