Occupational Hazards From The THE

This article, published by The THE last week, talks of the same job-seeking woes that sometimes I let seep in here. The interesting thing is that Nicholas Tesla isn’t fresh out of the uni or fresh out of his PhD; no sir, he is applying for high-end management roles within the academia (and must therefore have... twenty-five years worth of relevant experience perhaps?) and is being treated with the same contempt usually reserved for us, scum at the lower end of the research spectrum. Naturally, his piece isn't just about his own interviews, for it raises questions about the role of leaders and the one of managers, but even if you have no interest in higher education, I urge you to have a read, if only to rejoice in knowing that no, it is not just you at the mercy of HR androids everywhere.

I particularly love his reference to those institutions that do not even have the decency to acknowledge one’s application (cue, ‘superlicious silence’). I am telling you, when I read that, I felt like laughing and crying at the same time, if at all possible. Was I crying with laughter? Was I laughing while crying? I’ll never know and, let me tell you, it’s better that way.

Scarred for Life? Really?

Yesterday The THE fell through the door. I need to be brutally honest with regards to The THE: as of late, I haven't been reading it as thoroughly as I used to, mainly because it is turning into a Daily Mail for academics. If I wanted to read slap-dash, sensationalistic reporting with the occasional blinkered column for good measure, I would read the real Daily Mail. At least they use fresh pics and not stock PowerPoint images.

Still, it fell through the door with this cover headline: 'Admissions of Failure: How a generation of students has been sold short'. This relates to the tough competition for uni places when degrees are more than ever necessary in the job market. You can read for yourselves right here.

As it turns out, they are talking about this generation, the one that got its A-level results only this week. I feel the need to clarify this point as, upon scanning of the article, I thought that they were talking about my generation, the generation of those that crossed the finishing line ten years ago (and in some cases again a few years later as post-grads) and are now living in poverty, unable to afford food and water. I know because I am one of them.

I also know because John is working himself into the ground trying to make a living in IT, on call at all hours and at work from 7 am until 10 pm, while his builder brother-in-law lives in a 6-bedroom mansion in Berkshire. I know because Sam lives on a pittance of a salary as a receptionist and you really do not need a degree (or two, as in her case) to be a receptionist. I know because Charlotte can only afford to live with her parents on her teaching assistant salary. I know thanks to many other Johns, Sams, Charlottes. So I am not really sure that this fresher generation has been sold short, or indeed shorter, than the previous one. If I had my chances again, I would learn a trade at 15, practise it well and save myself £ 30,000 worth of university-related expense and a lot of unaccounted-for heartache thank you very much THE.