When he originally came to power, Tony Blair proudly announced that his party’s big focus was “Education, Education, Education�. A worthy enough focus and seemingly not an area we would think of associating with frustration and growing personal debt. But over the years, as greater numbers of institutions have acquired the status of a university, and student loans have become easily available to all, schools have encouraged a lot more young people to go for higher education without really pointing out the cost.

There’s no question that we require a more highly educated society, but are youngsters often getting the very best advice? In reality; is it such a difficult sell to persuade a young adult to leave home and live with mates, not bother about obtaining a job for several years and get discounted beer at the student union bar. A over simplified interpretation perhaps – of course there’s a bit of lessons to attend, and a careful balance to make ends meet, then the rewards will be worth it in the end. But is that really so? For many families, the price of university education lasts for a long period after graduation, both in social and financial terms.

The student loan system (the best method of funding for university undergraduates), tuition fees, lodgings and day to day living expenses over the course duration can set you back well over £30,000 – without any guarantee of employment. It’s to nobody’s amusement that freedom-seeking teenagers out to conquer the world too often are forced to return home because they can’t find work. Not only do fathers and mothers find themselves still stumping up the cash, but unemployed adult children back home again can definitely get in the way!

Formal education can be a fulfilling experience for young people, and is the only route for many of our professions. But advisors and families ought to know that in some areas, there are other, frequently better alternatives. As far as IT is concerned, employers are always searching for professionally qualified IT professionals. University graduates frequently have to bolster their computer training skills to be ready for work and have a chance in the job market with Microsoft, CompTIA or Cisco professionals. The disappointing fact is they would have qualified two to three years earlier and been without a really large debt had they gone straight to a commercial interactive computer training provider. Perhaps drinking in the student union bar isn’t such a great idea after all – surely the family coffers would be a lot less exhausted, and there’d certainly be more seating left on the sofa!.

(C) Scott Edwards - www.learninglolly.com. Scott Edwards has been involved in the IT and Training Industry for 30 years.

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