The National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) in partnership with St James Ethics Centre presents an Intelligence Squared Australia (IQ2) live debate.
Having an education can change people’s lives, but is a university degree the be all and end all? Once the preserve of the elite, a degree is now accessible to more Australians than ever. But does this make Australia a ‘clever country’ or just a ‘credentialed country’? On average those who have degrees earn considerably more than those who don’t. But does this average hide the many university graduates who have relatively low skilled, poorly paid jobs? And what about those who are not academically inclined? Skilled tradespeople are crucial to the effective functioning of society and can attract a good wage. Not to mention the importance of people working in community services, hospitality, retail and the like. Is the importance of their qualifications grossly underrated? And with greater graduate numbers, does a degree actually offer the advantage it used to?
WATCH THE 2012 IQ2 DEBATE
iq2oz.com/Having-A-University-Degree-Is-Grossly-Overrated It is proposed that society should invest less in universities and more in vocational education.