Is Going to Uni Worth it?

This valuable handbook empowers school leavers to take ownership of their early career choices. The author presents 4 parts comprising 14 chapters, offering a systematic guide to considering whether it is worth going to University.

By adopting a positive mindset and embracing hope and optimism, the student, parent/carer, and teacher will appreciate the complexities and perplexities of career information, pathways, options, and choices, at this important stage of the early career journey.

Comparing the well-known and established University pathway and the lesser-known, Apprenticeship levels (intermediate, advanced, higher, and degree) the author introduces five factors - career options, learning preferences, financial costs, future financial rewards, and social life that enable a deeper and richer understanding. The final practical exercise is an excellent summary and opportunity to apply the five factors and ultimately arrive at an optimum decision that suits a school leaver's individual circumstances.

At a time when school leavers are faced with so many options and suffering from information overload, a trusted and knowledgeable guide written in a friendly, accessible manner becomes indispensable.

This is an informative book and is a helpful guide for anyone who is unsure whether University is for them. It covers the importance of self reflection and asks the reader to consider their motivations and goals. Whilst primarily focusing on the options of University and Apprenticeships, it does also mention 'Working your way up' and 'Taking time out'
However, to support with making an informed decision, the book suggests spending time reviewing five key factors:

career options - is a degree vital for your chosen career path and if unsure would keeping choices open be a better option?

learning style - academic v practical?

financial implications and future financial rewards - how much is it going to all cost? Will earnings be more over a lifetime if attending university in comparison to completing an Apprenticeship?

social life - how much of a priority is expanding your social circle?

The scoring exercise during the latter chapter allows the reader to review the salient points of the book and consider them in the form of a quiz to help them with their final decision making and offers suggestions if the outcome was equal for both pathways.

I particularly liked the recaps at the end of each chapter and would definitely recommend the resource to anyone requiring just that extra bit of support to help them make up their mind.

The title suggests that this is focused on university but it gives more than that: it provides a useful exploration of options which should improve the reader's understanding of what they could do post 18. The text challenges university as a 'default' option: pros and cons of apprenticeships, gap year and 'working your way up' alongside studying at university give balance, considerably enhanced with many case studies and examples relating to the options, and a useful summary at the end of each chapter. The tricky thing when financial details, pay and costs are included is that they date quickly - published in 2022, the materials referred to the previous year.

There are chapters on 'the five key factors' to help with the decision which include career options, learning preferences, finance and social life. These are followed up with some exercises to help with the decision but more could have been made of additional decision making activities as this is the hardest part. It was good that the author makes it clear that 'there is no such thing as a perfect choice'. However there was no reference to using guidance specialists such as trained careers advisers or the National Careers Service to discuss options impartially and help with the decision, which I felt was a significant omission.

It is a useful book which I recommend for all careers and key stage 5 libraries.