September 2011
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INSIDE Legal professions still proving plentiful 3 Pharmacy techs’, assistants’ roles evolving 10 Do edgy, creative resumés get the job done? 11
expert advice Maggie B. asks: “How can I get a job with no work experience?” 6
Think before you quit 12
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How to handle the toughest, oddest interview questions 15
Future jobs Is it still worth getting a university degree? By Tracy Nesdoly
O
ther than the lucky few who really do become rock stars, the path to the future as a grownup is straight, narrow and predictable: go to school, get into university, land a decent job. But before rushing off to get that degree in English literature, wise high-school students and their parents might want to listen to an influential group of U.S.-based economists who are pushing for alternatives like vocational and career training or corporate apprenticeships. This makes good sense in Canada, too, where the bulk of skilled workers – plumbers or electricians for example – are nearing retirement age. “It is true that we need more nanosurgeons than we did 10 to 15 years ago. But the numbers are still relatively small compared to the numbers of nurses’ aides we’re going to need. We will need hundreds of thousands of them over the next decade,” Richard Vedder, an economist and founder of the Centre for College Affordability and Productivity, a research nonprofit in Washington, D.C., told the New York Times. According to American statis-
tics, of the top 10 growing job categories only two require university degrees: accounting (a bachelor’s degree) and post-secondary teachers (a PhD). But this growth is expected to be tiny compared with the need for registered nurses, home health aides, customer service representatives and store clerks – jobs where a bachelor’s degree is strictly optional.
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While a university education
may still be its own reward, it is no longer the one and only way to a bright shiny future
Further, this coterie of contrarian economists parade evidence such as data showing the high likelihood that no more than half of those who began a four-year bachelor’s degree program in the fall of 2006 will get that degree within six years – that’s a lot of time and money spent with no degree, or job opportunity, to show for it. In this country, about twothirds of all job openings over the next several years will be in occupations that usually require postsee Major, 2
Trading up: about two-thirds of all job openings over the next several years will be in occupations usually requiring postsecondary education, but that can mean college or apprenticeship training
Community Mental Health and Addictions Worker diploma program It is not our purpose to become each other; it is to recognize each other, to learn to see the other and honor him for what he is. – Hermann Hesse In partnership with PHS Community Services Society and the Lookout Emergency Aid Society, this unique curriculum has been prepared to support individuals with mental heath challenges and addictions. Based on the input received from these industry partners, this program has been specifically designed to prepare students – philosophically, mentally/intellectually, emotionally, and experientially – for a successful career with longevity and the potential for advancement.
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