23rd October 2005, 09:35 PM
(first post so please go easy
)
Having just done an archaeology degree the two things that astounded me were:-
1. Virually none of the students had any idea of what the job market was like or what the working conditions/payment would be should they get a job.
2. On the first training dig, good summer weather digging in gravelly sand, how many of them took one look into the trench and refused to go in because it was full of "mud".
Which, to my mind sort of suggests that many students choose archaeology because they think it'll be an easy/dossing degree rather than because they have any real desire to be archaeologists...
Thus, even if training is excellent (which I feel it mostly was on my degree) many people simply don't learn anything of practical use - they just want some letter after their names so that they can become trainee manages in a financial services company.
I should of course say that this is not my opinion of _all_ the students on my degree - some worked damn hard and and really applied them selves to getting the maximum out of it. However, I fear that these were the minority[:0].
)Having just done an archaeology degree the two things that astounded me were:-
1. Virually none of the students had any idea of what the job market was like or what the working conditions/payment would be should they get a job.
2. On the first training dig, good summer weather digging in gravelly sand, how many of them took one look into the trench and refused to go in because it was full of "mud".
Which, to my mind sort of suggests that many students choose archaeology because they think it'll be an easy/dossing degree rather than because they have any real desire to be archaeologists...
Thus, even if training is excellent (which I feel it mostly was on my degree) many people simply don't learn anything of practical use - they just want some letter after their names so that they can become trainee manages in a financial services company.
I should of course say that this is not my opinion of _all_ the students on my degree - some worked damn hard and and really applied them selves to getting the maximum out of it. However, I fear that these were the minority[:0].