31st January 2011, 12:53 PM
My thoughts, some also in devil's advocate style:
- Why has a well-educated workforce accepted non-graduate wages for so many years?
- Does industry really require graduates, or is this just a myth peddled by universities to drum up business?
- Could there be any other industry base-point measure of a person wishing to enter archaeology, apart from a degree?
- What does industry want from a degree course by way of preparation?
Quote:1. If the industry requires graduates, why does it pay non-graduate wages?Because the wages are accepted by the workforce. And before we start pointing fingers at desperate new-entrants, let's think about how this situation has arisen over the last 20-30 years. If you've been a professional archaeologist for any length of time, this happened on your watch. Or... possibly, a degree is just a good logical starting point for the selection process. Like Oxford entry, which now starts with getting straight As and weeding out the unsuitable from there. Maybe other good questions would be:
- Why has a well-educated workforce accepted non-graduate wages for so many years?
- Does industry really require graduates, or is this just a myth peddled by universities to drum up business?
- Could there be any other industry base-point measure of a person wishing to enter archaeology, apart from a degree?
Quote:2. If degrees in archaeology are needed for entry into the industry, why do they not prepare undergrads for that industry?Because no degree - however vocational - will do that. A law degree doesn't make a fresh graduate competent in the court room. An IT degree won't make them able to run a corporate network. A business degree won't turn them into a good man manager or a captain of industry. An archaeology degree won't mean that someone can walk onto a site, pick up a mattock and do a good job. To achieve competence in a professional field, you need to work in that field and gain experience of it. Expecting a fresh graduate to be able to walk out of university and perform as a trained professional in any arena, is unrealistic. Another good question leading on from this:
- What does industry want from a degree course by way of preparation?
Quote:3. If degrees are not valued by the industry and, degrees offered by universities are inadequate for entry into the industry, why bother with the debt of acquiring a degree in the first place?See Questions 1 and 2 - because the industry may not value them, but it does require them. Allegedly.