You can study just about any degree and still work in any job. But with law, you also have the extra choice of being a lawyer. Ditto for doctors and dentists. At the same time, I have met quite a few bankers who have med / dentistry backgrounds.

Of course! (Although the same cannot be said about bankers who suddenly decide they want to practise Medicine, Dentistry or Law.)

You must admit that the type of people doing certain degrees can be more or less generalised. This is mostly due to university admission requirements – the more people wanting to do a course, the harder it is to get in. This in turn does affect the overall perceived calibre of people who make up a faculty, which in turn affects the perception of a degree’s “worth”. Simple supply and demand also exists here – the less in supply a person with a particular skill set is, the more in demand he or she is. Matching degree to intelligence is an inaccurate perception – there are plenty of brilliant people who have elected to do a single engineering or arts degree – but one that exists nonetheless.

If you really want to get into a specific line of work which doesn’t require a specific professional qualification, then regardless of what degree you did during uni, if you have the aptitude for it, you should be able to get in.

Economics is a good example of the supply/demand paradigm. It’s always had a lower UAI / TER than a Commerce degree, probably because it’s perceived as a drier topic, maybe less employable and certainly less well marketed to prospective students. But because of the proliferation of so many vocational Commerce courses such as Hospitality, Information Systems, Knowledge Management etc…there is a lack of trained economists. As a result, although the UAI / TER is lower than Commerce, graduates in Economics are currently in high demand from employers and thus can earn big bikkies. Maybe the key (for the astute high school leaver), is to choose a unique course like Fine Arts, or a tough course (Chemical or Mining Engineering), which has a lower entrance score (sometimes 20 points less than trendy Commerce), do well and voila – the world’s your oyster. In the end though, it doesn’t matter what course you study – the cream will always rise to the top and enjoy the best opportunities. The mediocre will always suffer.

Only *weeks* later. I hope you get this.

As a legally trained person not working as a lawyer (well, not directly …)I salute you. It *is* good training, and it has wide application. I agree with the article you linked too.

Cheers