Business qualifications

[liam333]

Hi,

I hope this thread is appropriate for here, it’s about career advice tbh, if it’s not it’s fine to delete it

I’m in my mid 30s now and my career and cv is a total shambles

The reason I’m posting here is because, I left school at 16 and did a gnvq advanced in business studies, I just about passed it but kind of went off track in life and career, I’ve had a few mental health problems such as depression, anxiety etc , I’ve only been off drunk and drugs a few months, I feel fantastic but a little bit confused as well

A lot of the time I’ve been on benefits and done nothing and other times I’ve drifitng in and out of various jobs, care work, labouring jobs etc

Obviously it’s time to grow up and get my life in order and a lot of the time lately ive been thinking about when I left school at 16 and chose business, this was before I went off the rails, I was quite switched on at that age and it’s got my thinking that maybe I had the right decision then

I’ve thought about going back into business, I could probably get straight onto the degree course, I’m just curious to know given my age is it a wise or is it a silly thing to do

My original way of thinking when I left school was to do the gnvq, then do the business degree and I’ll be 21 with a business degree and off I go out into the world and I could be a success, if I was to start now I’d be 40 by the time I got the degree and that seems a bit mind blowing to me

Should i go back and finish what I started or should I just accept it and leave it and move onto something else, I’ve genuinely no idea if I’d be making a fool of myself by doing it or not

Anyway, sorry for rambling on, I hope a few people found it interesting and I’d appreciate any feedback, positive or negative,

Thanks guys

 

[Mr D]

Its not that bad. I got my degree (not in business) at age 40 and was far from the oldest on my course.
Quite a number of people at uni are mature students.

And success? Can be done after age 40.

Up to you what you do, business degree isn't essential to run a business. You will learn a lot by reading up online, reading books and doing the work rather than the degree route.
Perhaps besides the propaganda of the universities speak to some who have got the degree and gone into business afterwards. Balance experiences and promises, modules and ideas against each other.

 

[ethical PR]

I'm not sure a business degree and 60K worth of debt or so to pay back, will be a great start to getting yourself back on track.

Congratulations on kicking your drink and drug habit. Very early days yet so concentrate on support to help you keep clean and manage your mental health issues.

What do you want to do? Use that as a starting point to think about what qualifications or experience you might need.

 

[Mr D]

I'm not sure a business degree and 60K worth of debt or so to pay back, will be a great start to getting yourself back on track.

Congratulations on kicking your drink and drug habit. Very early days yet so concentrate on support to help you keep clean and manage your mental health issues.

What do you want to do? Use that as a starting point to think about what qualifications or experience you might need.

Its not £60k of debt. Its 30 years of a graduate tax if income is above a certain high figure (think of it as a very high graduate tax free allowance).
If not earning that figure then nothing to pay.

 

[ethical PR]

Its not £60k of debt. Its 30 years of a graduate tax if income is above a certain high figure (think of it as a very high graduate tax free allowance).
If not earning that figure then nothing to pay.

Somehow not surprised you seem to disagree in principle with everything I say

Most students I know have a debt of at least 60K (degree cost plus subsistence over three years) that they need to pay back after doing a three year degree - more for longer degrees.

It's irrelevant whether the loan can be paid back over 30 years (with interest which will mean he will end up paying much more), 60K is still likely to be the amount that the OP will owe initially, unless he lives somewhere where people will cover all his living costs.

 

[NickGrogan]

A degree in business isn't going to help you start a business, but it might make you better at managing one.

Better to look at businesses and see what you're interested in and what you can do. Plenty of people are successful in business without degrees.

 

[Mr D]

Somehow not surprised you seem to disagree in principle with everything I say

Most students I know have a debt of at least 60K (degree cost plus subsistence over three years) that they need to pay back after doing a three year degree - more for longer degrees.

It's irrelevant whether the loan can be paid back over 30 years (with interest which will mean he will end up paying much more), 60K is still likely to be the amount that the OP will owe initially, unless he lives somewhere where people will cover all his living costs.

No, just sometimes I think you are wrong.

Agree with you about students with large sums that they have accrued. How much does seem to vary.

Paying back used to be based on £15k income and above when I was at uni, now its about 50% higher. Get a minimum wage full time job and pay nothing for those more recent students.
Or as some do in business, have a wage of under £10k.

The loan system isn't set up to pay back over 30 years, its simply based on income at any one year. Hence graduate tax.
Earn £30k one year and you pay something, earn £20k the following year and nothing paid.

After 30 years any remaining sum is written off. So while a very few students could end up paying 30 years its much more likely to be paying those who do pay end up paying something in a few years or paying it all off in a short space of time.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

I doubt anyone would hire you as say a manager just because you have a degree at your age, they would either expect someone to have years of experience or be a young graduate who will have some thing to offer in the long term

I would suggest you start your own business probably in a small way part time and enable it to grow, Night classes at a college may give you more knowledge in your chosen area

You have done well to break the habits, now is the time to sort out the rest of your life

YouTube has many video's teaching people different skills and the local library will have many books on starting up as self employed and running a business

Good luck and join this forum for good idear's

 

[The Byre]

Everything hinges on the rest of you. Hobbies, other associated abilities and general experience.

Most of the time, a degree is only of great benefit as far as a career is concerned, if it is earned early in life and from a good university. The big and very attractive employers who have graduate programmes, will have lists of the better university courses - and conversely, they will also know which courses to avoid at all costs.

As an employer, I have always ignored all but the very best courses. The quality of the candidate is waaaay more important than the quality of the sheepskin!

The one aspect in your question that is missing - glaringly so BTW - is "What business???"

Just 'business' is not a career path. If you want to do just 'business' pure-and-simple, so that ANY type of business will want to hire you, then you need a business degree at the very highest level, Cambridge or the LSE, followed by an Ivy League MBA. (Except that you would be well into your 40s before finishing and that means that you are too old to step into the very top management trainee programmes.)

An employer is looking for a 'Red Thread' running through your life that draws you inexorably towards one industry or group of industries. Some people are obsessed by cars, others by aeroplanes, yet others by beer or whisky.

Example - I recruited a barkeep in Germany as a part-time journalist for all things to do with air transport. He was ex-USAFE and nuts about all types of aircraft. Cut a long story short - he ended up working for UPS Air-Freight Division as technical author and documents manager - a seriously kewl position that took him all around the World.

The thing is, he did not have ANY tertiary education whatsoever! He quit school, joined the US Air Force and left as a junior NCO and settled in Germany, working in a bar. Some of the people under him had all kinds of magic degrees in this, that and the other, but he could write good copy, spoke fluent German and he lived, ate and breathed aeroplanes - a far more useful set of attributes than a business studies degree!

You must see things from an employer's PoV - we are looking for production factors, people who generate an income for the company (and therefore, for themselves). A business degree on its own in an employee cannot be turned into bacon. Add to that, business degrees are ten-for-a-penny.

There are all sorts of fantastic careers out there that youngsters never think about and that do not require £60k student debt mountains either! I visited a brewery last month. The head brewer had just come back from New Zealand, where he helped to set up a local mini-brewery for a small pub-chain. He began making beer at home and worked his way up from the brewery floor, but there are of course qualifications at all levels up to PhD.

So, bearing all the above in mind - what is your 'Red Thread'?

 

[Mark T Jones]

Well done on getting yourself to this positive point.

Having a business qualification certainly won’t hurt your chances of gaining employment and will benefit you personally - the real questions lie around associated.debt and whether it is best use of your time

Some compromise options might include an OU degree or a slightly lower qualification such as HND (its probably called something different now) which only takes 2 years.

 

[Jasondb]

Hi,

I’m in my mid 30s now and my career and cv is a total shambles

A lot of the time I’ve been on benefits and done nothing and other times I’ve drifitng in and out of various jobs, care work, labouring jobs etc

Anyway, sorry for rambling on, I hope a few people found it interesting and I’d appreciate any feedback, positive or negative,

Thanks guys

Liam, seems to me you passed a business qualification yet went into another direction.
Do you really want to get into business or does your interest lie elsewhere?
Only you can answer that.

If you still think business is right for you then ask what skills do you have or could acquire,
Are you more of an introvert or extrovert, do you like analysing or researching or persuading people to buy a buy something.

Do you want to manage other people or provide a service as an employee.

Think through these points and you should be in a better place.

 

[menetworkjadaltd]

I’ve only been off drunk and drugs a few months, I feel fantastic but a little bit confused as well

Congratulations!

Hanging around this forum will help you try and put your ideas together.

The very best of luck