Is higher education a guarantee of success?

While the government and Universities entice students into taking degrees, will added qualifications ensure a better career?

By SUKRIT SABHLOK

Not too long ago, Senator Chris Evans announced an injection of $67 million in funds for a partnership between universities, schools and state governments. The rationale was simple: help more Australians achieve their goal of going to University. “A university degree gives Australians a greater chance at getting a high paid and high skilled job,” said the Senator.

The Gillard Government believes that higher education should be encouraged, and says its goal is to reach its target of 40 percent of young Australians holding a bachelor’s degree by 2025. That’s despite experts like Tom Karmel, managing director of the National Centre for Vocational Education Research, indicating that there is a risk greater numbers of people pursuing university degrees won’t get a ‘good return’ from it.

Yet since the government spends millions each year subsidising education and making it easy to attend college, there are even more credentialed individuals than ever before. This naturally makes getting a job after graduating more competitive than say in 1991, when only 8 percent of people aged 15 and over held a tertiary qualification. There is – in economic terms – potentially an oversupply of graduates relative to the number of jobs available.

While it’s true that a lot depends on the particular degree you do (the arts degree, forever the butt of jokes, is probably less useful on the job market than a degree in medicine), the debate around university qualifications has raised some valuable questions.

Questions like “Is there a better way to structure our university system, a way that doesn’t load students with unnecessary debt and gives them a realistic chance at getting a job down the track?”

Writers like Tony Featherstone, for example, argue that in business, a more flexible mode of education would better serve companies. Instead of the standard 3 year campus-based degree, why not allow students to gain qualifications while doing work experience and receive on-the-job training? Or why not let them enrol in a short-term or part-time course for subjects, as the need arises?

It’s not an exaggeration to say that the current university system promotes conformity at the expense of lateral thinking and creativity. Many of the world’s entrepreneurs – take Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg – were college dropouts who made it big despite, or perhaps because of their lack of formal training. University tends to compartmentalise but the real world isn’t always like it is in textbooks, especially if those textbooks are written by state-funded professors whose theories aren’t subject to the discipline of the market.

Chances are, in a free-market without government crutches, specialisations such as ‘gender studies’ aren’t likely to attract many paying students and will be reliant on philanthropic support to survive.

There would also be significantly fewer economists pontificating about policy issues – in centuries past, economics was considered a hobby, not a profession. Only those disciplines that directly relate to providing a good service – in helping produce computers, cars, trains, or curing cancer – would find large numbers of customers willing to pay for the course.

Without government funding of higher education, there would be no taxpayersubsidised pleasant interludes of sex and parties between leaving school and beginning working life (the laid back undergraduate lifestyle). Moreover, practical business skills such as administration and effective communication might enjoy a resurgence.

None of this is to say that the humanities aren’t worth pursuing or that only knowledge that’s commercially valuable is important.

But it’s a reminder to parents, students and anyone at the beginning of their careers that further education isn’t necessarily a guarantee of success or gainful employment in one’s chosen field. The number of cab drivers in New York City who have degrees should be proof of that. As Michael Ellsberg points out in The Education of Millionaires: Everything You Won’t Learn in College About How to Be Successful, even graduates need to learn how to market themselves.

That’s a lesson that Julia Gillard would be wise to consider before subtly instilling the mentality that tertiary education is an end in itself. It’s not the degree that matters – it’s your street-smarts, creativity and diligence that count.

By PETRA O’NEILL

Do you take white or brown sugar with your flat white?”

I was asked, and it might not seem an unusual query, except that I was within the grounds of Wat Chiang Man in Chiang Mai province as monks were chanting their morning sutras, their voices a low and murmuring drone. It is impossible not to feel the pull of centuries, the timelessness of this ancient city though modern day Chiang Mai in Thailand is a city of juxtaposed contradictions from traditional to hip chic, serene to chaotic, old to new.

The ancient kingdom of Lanna, meaning a million rice fields, was an agricultural empire of villages, unified by King Mengrai in the 13th century and ChiangMai, founded in 1296, became its capital.

Blessed with a cooler climate than Bangkok and buffered by mountains, Chiang Mai remained isolated until the railway opened

Chiang Mai in Thailand’s north is an archaeological adventure and a shopper’s paradise

in the 1920s. A recent influx of artists and designers has turned it into a vibrant destination with galleries and boutiques, spas, bars and restaurants that compliment the architecture and rich cultural heritage to be found here.

Though much smaller than Bangkok, Chiang Mai boasts almost as many wats (monasteries) built from the 13th to the 16th centuries when it was a major religious centre for Theravada Buddhism. While many were altered by the Burmese who ruled the city from 1558-1774, the architecture still epitomises the Lanna style with features such as elaborate dark wood carvings on temple pillars and doors.

I started one of many walks at Wat Chiang Man, the city’s oldest temple, built in 1296 with its fine Chedi supported by rows of elephant buttresses; to Wat Chedi Luang, completed in 1481, which houses a giant stupa damaged by an earthquake in 1545. Within the old city walls you will find many more wats, including Wat U-mong, Wat Phra Singh dating from 1345 with exquisite woodcarvings with a lion Buddha, the city’s most revered image; Wat Suan Dok notable for its white Chedi; and Wat Saen Fang influenced by Burmese architecture. You will also find teak wooden houses, many over 100 years old, characterised by low hanging latticed eaves, slatted shutters and wide verandahs.

On the city’s outskirts, Doi Suthep is the town’s holiest temple that dates from the 14th century, set atop the area’s loveliest mountain range reached via 304 steps, topped by a glittering golden Chedi. On a clear day, the temple affords views across northern Thailand, though the view was obscured by a thick haze on the day I visited it. Also worth a detour is Wat Chet Yot characterised by its square Chedi with seven spires, the design inspired by the temple at Bodhgaya, the site of the Lord Buddha’s Enlightenment.

While the night market is popular with tourists, Waroros Market has been selling fresh produce for over a hundred years, while fabric shops, quirky boutiques and gift shops are nearby. Also, the small Hmong hill tribe market beautiful finely woven embroidery that seems quite old judging by the slightly faded colours, sadly cut up into saleable pieces.

With its mountainous terrain, Chiang Mai has become a base for adventure sports including white water rafting, trekking and cycling and offers cooking classes, visits to hill tribes and elephant rides.

Lisu Lodge, an hour’s drive north is nestled in a green valley with views overlooking lush terraced rice fields and hills where life remains slow paced. Lisu and Akha, hill tribes originally from Tibet live here, and I enjoyed leisurely bike rides along quiet country lanes to visit their villages. I enjoyed a ride on a gentle mother elephant with her young offspring nudging her as it walked alongside, pausing periodically to drink and splash water as we sauntered besides the river’s edge. The white water rafting trip downstream was exhilarating, with the small Thai boy seated in front of me laughing with excitement!

On arrival at Khum Lanna lodge I was provided with a perfect introduction to traditional northern Thai cuisine, with a tour of the organic vegetable and herb garden, before being set to task to cook a delicious four-course dinner. Northern Thai cuisine incorporates Burmese cuisine, my favourite is the coconut milk soup. A Thai massage provided to all guests by women from the nearby village was the perfect way to end the day, too relaxing to be jolted into consciousness at 4.30am by

Buddhist chanting from a nearby wat, followed by a 5.30am wake up call for a bike ride through the countryside to Phrao town market. But as I sipped on a cup of heady organic locally grown coffee with a large dollop of condensed milk, I thought that rural Thailand, with its hill tribe villages, terraced rice fields and unhurried pace is an altogether enjoyable and restorative destination.

Travel noTebook CHIANG MAI

Gett I n G there

Thai Airways International flies to Bangkok with convenient connecting flights to Chiang Mai. Buses and trains depart from Bangkok regularly.

Gett

I n G A round

While I preferred to walk, bicycles are a great way to get around within the old city. Taxis and mini buses are inexpensive. Lodges will arrange transfers.

Where to stAy

Visitors are drawn to Chiang Mai not only for its beautiful wats, but also for shopping and exquisite boutique hotels that are well worth the splurge. The Rachamankha offers refined elegance, antiques from the owner’s private collection and successive flowing courtyards. T: 66-5390-4111; email: info@ rachamankha.com; or visit www. rachamankha.com

The chic and tranquil Chedi hotel has a sleek contemporary design, spacious public spaces, a relaxed ambience, welcoming efficient staff and landscaped grounds overlooking the Mae Ping River. The Club Lounge is worth the extra, the restaurant serves the best Indian cuisine in town as well as Thai dishes from where you can enjoy watching the boats go by. The Spa with highly trained therapists is absolute heaven. I wish I could have stayed longer. T: 66-5325-3333; email:chedichiangmai@gmhhotels.com; or visit www.ghmhotels.com

More moderate accommodation includes the Galare T: 66-53-81-8887 email: info@glare.com; website: www.galare.com and the 3 Sis Bed and Breakfast 66-53-273243; email: 3sis.bng@gmail.com; website: 3sisbedandbreakfast.com

Having served as a backpacker’s haven since the 1970s, modest guesthouses are clustered in several areas, with Lamchang House a good choice T: 66-53-210586.

Near Chiang Mai are many beautiful resorts and lodges. Lisu Lodge set in a beautiful tropical landscaped garden is a great example of sustainable low impact tourism. Khum Lanna in a rural setting focuses on cooking using ingredients from its organic vegetable and herb garden. All meals and activities are included. T: 66-53-278338; email: info@asian-oasis.com website: www.asian-oasis.com dI n I n G

While restaurants at hotels are generally very good, restaurants overlooking the Ping River on Charoenraj Road including The Gallery, are recommended.

Wh At to buy

Designer boutiques line Charoenrajd Road. Warorot Market and the boutiques nearby are more affordable. The Hmong market has some great buys.

I enjoyed a ride on a gentle mother elephant with her young offspring nudging her as it walked alongside, pausing periodically to drink and splash water as we sauntered besides the river’s edge

Though much smaller than Bangkok, Chiang Mai boasts almost as many wats built from the 13th to the 16th centuries when it was a major religious centre for Theravada Buddhism