I must be going soft in the head...

[red_dave]

Isn't anyone going to tell me I should just stick to bikes? Sheesh! You guys must be slipping!

OK stick to bikes then!

and bikes don't come with a HECS debt...

[Neka79]

Isn't anyone going to tell me I should just stick to bikes? Sheesh! You guys must be slipping!

whats the difference? if it has tits or wheels it'll keep ya broke as well....personally i prefer to b poor riding me bike & fondling titties!!!!

im with you yappa!!

[Felix]

It seems much more likely that this is going to be my new direction... PAAARTY!!!

Oh, I have to take it more seriously this time...nuts.

[Morden]

I'll take tits overnuts any day thanks.

[Neka79]

I'll take tits overnuts any day thanks.

howdy morden..and who may u be??

[seraph]

Hey Felix, I did half an arts degree in politcal science before I started my architecture degree, and all I did was go to centrelink and say that I wanted to do the degree because it would improve my long term job prospects. I believe they were under the impression that architects make a lot of munny (hahaHAHAHAHAHA!!!!), but I guess the same principle applies to radiography (radiology? radiomatics? radionopoly? radiocratocracy?).

Point is, they make you sign a contract saying that you will attend uni, with a full time load, and that if you defer or whatever you will inform them, and they will cancel your payments if you drop out or reduce your study load to part time. Other than that, you should be fine. Won't hurt to give them a call and enquire... Good luck, and good on you for going back. -J.

[Felix]

Yeah, I actually got pretty familiar with the whole Centrelink process - I actually went through the process to work there. I made it through the selection process, I just have to wait for them to get a vacancy and give me a phone call - they only do recruitment once a year. So I got pretty familiar with the ins and outs...they expect applicants to do a fair bit of research.

You can change your mind, but once you have a degree, they wont pay for you to get another one. Honestly, the less interference from a government department the better.

I don't have anything against IT as such, it is just that the opportunities aren't around...the killer is, if I hadn't had so much work thrown at me in my last few years of uni, I would have finished sooner, with better grades (not that I did badly) and probably would have landed a grad placement easily. By the time I graduated, the IT slump was in the depths of its lows. One of the problems though, is that a lot of people made it junior managerial level, simply because they got in a year or two ahead, and frankly a lot of these people wouldn't be fit to lead lemmings off a cliff.

Oops, I'm on a rant again!

Anyhow, I always imagined myself in medicine, or as a vet. In fact my long term plan was always to earn enough money that I could take the time off to become a vet...but Radiotherapy is just a bit more appealing, even if it is ahead of schedule.

I am guessing you pretty much went straight from school to uni?

[seraph]

Give or take, yes - I'm a relatively young'un. Took some time off to develop an alcohol habit, but essentially have been at uni full time for the past seven years I have been working for all but three semesters. Only three semesters to go I think you may be correct about the post-degree refusal, all my anecdotal evidence comes from half degreeers. Have you looked into grants and undergrad scholarships? They usually are by application or exam. Which uni are you looking at?

[Felix]

The only uni in Qld that offers this course is QUT.

I worked for 6 or 7 years before I started uni. I think it is a mistake for most people to go straight from school to uni. I know too many people that swapped and changed 3 or 4 times...what a waste of time.

Grants and scholarships always seem to favour nerdlingers who don't need them, because they get good marks as they don't need to work to support themselves...grrr...

[Zombie]

Hey Felix you can always do what *someone* i know did - borrow loads on a student loan thing ($24,000) and then move to the otherside of the world

[seraph]

Grants and scholarships always seem to favour nerdlingers who don't need them, because they get good marks as they don't need to work to support themselves...grrr...

Still worth applyin'... They take your situation into consideration, and they won't be interested in your grades from your past degree. The best part about QUT is that they have free undercover bike parking. YAY!!!

[Neka79]

Grants and scholarships always seem to favour nerdlingers who don't need them, because they get good marks as they don't need to work to support themselves...grrr...

Still worth applyin'... They take your situation into consideration, and they won't be interested in your grades from your past degree. The best part about QUT is that they have free undercover bike parking. YAY!!!

or yas could all just get real jobs and actually work for a living instead of wasting my tax paying dollars....???
no good??

[Jonno]

haha Neka I was waiting for some one to pipe up about that. I don't mind as long as ya's don't all become "professional students" and at 40 are still studying. We need to train and keep clever people in Oz.....

[RG]

The best part about QUT is that they have free undercover bike parking. YAY!!!

Hahahaha.....tell me about it..

[Felix]

Err, neka, Scotty,

Rest assured, I'll be paying my own way

The idea of this is to move from an industry with low employment prospects to an industry with high employment prospects (I am somewhat sick of only being able to find work for 6 months/year). I also found out through my quizzing of the Unit Coordinator, that a RadioTherapy clinic is designated to be attached to Toowoomba Base Hospital (?) in time for my professional development year...