All theory, no practice

Are universities ignoring the realities of the knowledge economy?

LIAM BRENNAN

This week, thousands of high school graduates are attending university orientation meetings in preparation for the start of their post-secondary education. Some of these students will already have a strong idea as to what courses they will take for their respective degrees, but most of these young adults are uncertain as to what path to follow.

As a recent graduate of the University of Manitoba, I can say honestly that after four years of hard work to earn my undergraduate degree in English, I am unable to find a job in my chosen profession. That’s not to say I haven’t applied for my dream job, that being the position of print journalist, or searched out every possible internship available to me. The cruel reality is that it’s highly improbable that I will ever be hired without a journalism degree, despite my university education.

More and more university graduates across Canada are recognizing this harsh reality. Instead, graduates of trade school such as Red River College are finding themselves with multiple offers in their chosen profession, as they have gained intangible work experience in their field along with a post-secondary degree. In my case, this means that without prior newsroom experience, I am unable to apply for the majority of internships that often lead to full-time positions in journalism.

While it makes sense that news publications would search out applicants with experience in journalism, those of us with university degrees are being left to fend for themselves. But this applies to more fields that just journalism. Close friends that have graduated recently with degrees in business education from the University of Manitoba are also finding it extremely hard to land a position in their field, as employers seem to be favoring individuals with business degrees from trade schools.

The simple fact of the matter is that universities such as the University of Manitoba are not providing enough work experience in their curriculum when compared to trade schools that specialize in work placement programs for the majority of their students.

Therefore, students having recently graduated with degrees may be extremely knowledgeable in a specific area or industry, but lack actual working experience in that field, leading employers to look past these individuals in favour of more experienced workers.

So why then do many students opt to pursue a university degree instead of a two-year certificate provided by trade schools? It seems that the idea of a university education is one that has been instilled in them by their parents and elders, many of whom actually opted not to attend university at all.

The concept of a university education is one that is hammered repeatedly into young people’s minds from the time they enter kindergarten. Once students enter junior high, they begin selecting courses that will help to guide them toward university in the near future. While this is not at all a bad trend, most students are adamant about basing their futures around what school they will attend without analyzing the best possible route toward their chosen profession.

In my case, I was not at all interested in journalism when I started at university, instead opting to study film. Midway through my second year, I realized that while studying film in university may prove to be quite interesting and provide one with a bachelor’s degree in that field, the majority of production companies in the world are looking for graduates with actual filmmaking experience rather than knowledge of film theory.

When I realized I wanted to pursue a career in journalism, I was already finishing the final year of an English degree, which helped groom my writing ability and help me understand the process of writing as a whole. However, without a degree in journalism, I am unable to land a job at a newspaper in this day and age.

Had I recognized this reality during my first year at the U of M, I may have been able to save the following three years and instead earn a journalism degree in two years. So while students spend ridiculous amounts of money earning their respective degrees, once they graduate they are being told that their efforts, while admirable, are entirely fruitless.

While earning a university degree will likely never go out of style, universities need to realize the growing trend amongst employers is to hire graduates with actual work experience, something that most universities are not adequately providing these days. By not doing so, many schools are not looking out for their students’ best interests, preferring to stick with dated curriculum and increase tuitions rather than properly training their students for the real world.