Thinking about Uni!

KingDing

KingDing

KingDing

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I about 24 and i just thinking about starting Uni! Crazy idea but i think the time is right. What you guys think?

I gonna do a course in "Year Zero Computing and Media Technology" to get me in then i chose a Degree course once i done that. These are my choices after i done that.

http://www.lincoln.ac.uk/home/courses/dct/foundation/computing/index.asp

BSc (Hons) Media Technology
BSc (Hons) Multimedia Technology
BSc (Hons) Audio Technology
BSc (Hons) Web Technology
BSc (Hons) Computing
BSc (Hons) Games Computing
BSc (Hons) Informatics
BSc (Hons) Computer Information Systems
BSc (Hons) Internet Computing

I want one with maximum wages and jobs.

Anyone done any course or give me some help and stuff?
 
Waste of time. You'll rack up loads of debt and not get paid much more than you will build up in 3 years of working. Get a job instead.

The thing is, without grants and with tuition fees you will probably end up with like 20K debt and that's a load of money to owe for not much education. Is there not a night course you can do that will teach you what you need to know? I work in computing and I've got no qualification in it.
 
Do the course which interests you the most, theres nothing like paying your fees (it'll be upto £3000 a year too remember) to find you don't really enjoy it! If you want one with maximum wages and jobs, then I'd recommend doing some research into the indiusty, seeing which area is expanding etc etc!
 
If you want to do it, then do it.

Personally I'd do something more concrete like Computer Science, and probably at a better University.

How is Lincoln ranked in the tables?
 
my tip: leeds met are doing £2000 a year fees, and Northumbria are offering £1000 refund (so £2000 a year again) on some of their courses, i read somewhere that applicant figuresre down 13% because of the top up fees, and unis are becoming desperate to fill the places
 
da_mic_1530 said:
i read somewhere that applicant figuresre down 13% because of the top up fees, and unis are becoming desperate to fill the places
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That's because they were up the previous year due to people rushing to get in before the top-up fees.

Stupid media.
 
What qualifications do you already have? I'm guessing you only have GCSEs if you have to do a course to get in?
If you already have (average or better) A-levels then a degree from Lincoln probably wont help you get a better job or a higher salary, since its seems to consistently rank very near the bottom of university league tables.
Why dont you do A-levels instead of this year 0 course and then apply to a better university?

A few bits of specific advice:

- BSc (Hons) Games Computing is probably useless. Its too specialised to be of use in any industry apart from the games industry, which is extremely hard to break into. You will find yourself competing with hundreds of people with top Computer Science degrees for every games industry position you apply for, so chances wont be good there.
- A lot of the other courses are also very specialised. I would definitely advise doing something more general like Computer Science if you can, otherwise you will be restricting yourself a lot.
 
When I left uni, the IT companies I had interviews for didn't really care what my course was called, their more interested (apart from grade) in what uni it was from.

Barring audio I suspect that 85% of the above courses modules would be the same, so what I'm trying to say is.... pick the one which is going to have most of the modules you would prefer as companies won't generally care in my experience. The job I got wasn't any part of the degree I took.

Although I will say some may turn their nose up at 'Games Computing' more in deciding what type of person you are as opposed to any skills it taught you, I don't think it fit's in with the corporate image a lot of them like to portray. I know my company would look down on it (I work for a multinational software house in finance.. we actually write the software for student loans company among others). Unless you really want to go into the games industry, but I can;t see why you would :)
 
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good for you, don't stress too much about what to do after year zero. that first year will give you plenty of time to mull it over and think about your options.

i'd also give a fair bit of sway to doing whatever you think will interest you the most.

i was 25 when i went to uni and had to do a foundation year too.
only thing i found, took a while for me to integrate with the younger crowd. most of them were getting their first taste of freedom where as i'd been independant for years.
however, all came good, and before long i was in the swing.

i would also say, don't be put off too much thinking about debt. sure, be realistic and think it over, but the truth is, if you get a decent degree in say computing and then go get a job in say software engineering, you'll be on fair money, and within a year or two you'll be thinking of buying a house. and a mortgage really puts student debt into perspective.

look, life's like this, some lucky folk are rich, the rest of us are gonna get fleeced forever. no reason to let that stop you having fun or doing what you want with your life though ;)
 
Bigsy said:
When I left uni, the IT companies I had interviews for didn't really care what my course was called, their more interested (apart from grade) in what uni it was from.
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I think it depends a lot on what kind of level of university you are going to. If you go to a top university companies generally dont care what degree you get. You can do a degree in History at oxbridge and get a software job pretty easily. If you are lower on the university ladder the course choice matters more.
 
Lagz said:
If you are lower on the university ladder the course choice matters more.
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very true, but there's more to a course than just it's name.
the Internet Computing, might be a better / more relevant degree than the Computing one for certain jobs.

use your time wisely.
find out what each course that interests you covers.
speak to careers services.
consider a year in industry.
get involved with a sports club or uni society.

the more proactive you are during your time at uni, the more rounded you will be by the time you leave.
 
Unconditional said:
I'm sure a degree like Computer Science is going to look a lot better than 'Internet Computing'
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Hehe my degree title is offically internet computing...although I did do 2 years of normal comp sci.

Did me no harm at all, got the first job I had an interview for when I left uni, and a very good job at that.
 
Your choice matey, some guy is 40-45 (he doesnt tell anyone his age) years old and doing a course, I asked him what hes gonna do after and he said "another one" lol. he has an ex gf, 2 kids, no job and used to be in the army/a fireman (apparently)
 
Some ok comments there. LoL. Must say thanks to MrWhippy. :)

Prolly better to give a little background. I left school at 14 to find a job and got into so much trouble. since then i had about 15-20 jobs none that fulfilled me. been married and split up, had a kid etc. There are no jobs round these parts. and for the last 8 years computer have always been there, me doing little things all the time. i think its about time to make something of myself. uni seems a good place to start.
 
KingDing said:
i think its about time to make something of myself. uni seems a good place to start.
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Thats the spirit mate, uni will also get you involved with a lot of cross curricular activities, which in turn will widen your spectrum of friends, and at the end of it, you will have a lot to show for it :)
 
50/50 said:
waste of time tbh.. lincoln isnt particually well regarded to say the least. You would be better of working.
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Yep. He isn't gonna get a well paid computer job even with a degree - employers want someone with past experience. I think the OP might be better served taking something like GCSE English first which I'm guessing he doesn't have.
 
Yeah its not realy worth getting a degree in any of those from lincon. You are better off getting experience and working your way up. It is possible to get a job straight out of uni with no experience but very competitive.
 
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