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Loudog
Joined: 22 Oct 2009 Location: Shiheung
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 10:45 pm Post subject: The most expensive and usless thing I own. |
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I have a degree in Art. Don't laugh. Other than for Teaching ESL in Korea, my degree is pretty useless. Is it the most useless degree? Is your degree worthless as well?
I would like someone to Trump my worthless degree, for the sole purpose of making me feel better about myself,my crushing debt and four wasted years of earning my stupid degree.
What do you say, history, philosophy, underwater basket weaving? What is the worst one you can get? |
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VanIslander

Joined: 18 Aug 2003 Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 10:52 pm Post subject: |
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Actually, a degree in Art can help in applying for all sorts of jobs requiring manual dexterity, eye-hand coordination and design (and that doesn't take into account the intellectual skills of articulation, imagination and discipline that goes into art work projects and which can carry into all sorts of future life scenarios without any self-reflective awareness of it); Art History on the other hand...
My degree was in Philosophy and the interrogative skills learned in university translated very well into journalism for five years and the need to present clear concepts hasn't hurt in ESL teaching either.
University is not trades school. I'm amazed how many people still think four years of university should be targeted and talored to one particular job. I guess the 'Law or Medicine?' paradigm holds sway.
You may think you would have been better off straightening nails on a construction site or waiting tables but in the long run university pays off simply by the fact that you have done it. We underestimate how formative our university years were. |
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VanIslander

Joined: 18 Aug 2003 Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 11:01 pm Post subject: |
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The most expensive and useless thing I own: my printer/scanner. I bought a fancy model that's loaded with features but I don't know how to use any of them except basic printing and the Korean manual is mud to me. That's two hundred thousand extra paid for nothing. |
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andrewchon

Joined: 16 Nov 2008 Location: Back in Oz. Living in ISIS Aust.
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 11:49 pm Post subject: |
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I paid $10K for a computer programming course that guaranteed jobs.
Then the tech crash happened. Company busted before I could finish the course.
Do you feel better? |
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Goku
Joined: 10 Dec 2008
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 11:55 pm Post subject: |
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My Diamond Ring...
$2000
Never wear it, and I'm not even married. |
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UknowsI

Joined: 16 Apr 2009
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 11:57 pm Post subject: |
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I haven't really bought many expensive things I don't need... I remember I got a $10 toy I didn't like when I was a kid. As silly as it sounds, it was a traumatic experience for me because I felt horrible for wasting $10.
I bought a TV tuner for my computer I never got to work. I guess that's the most expensive completely useless thing I've bought. |
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morrisonhotel
Joined: 18 Jul 2009 Location: Gyeonggi-do
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 12:21 am Post subject: Re: The most expensive and usless thing I own. |
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Loudog wrote: |
I have a degree in Art. Don't laugh. Other than for Teaching ESL in Korea, my degree is pretty useless. Is it the most useless degree? Is your degree worthless as well? |
I really hate this attitude. University should be about learning - it should not be about a job at the end of it. A degree isn't useless no matter what you read (unless you've managed to stifle the intellectual, creative and analytical growth that you should be experiencing throughout your time at university). Besides all that, how often is networking impressed on students? A degree isn't just a bit of paper. |
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sqrlnutz123
Joined: 15 Jun 2009 Location: South Korea
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 2:19 am Post subject: Re: The most expensive and usless thing I own. |
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morrisonhotel wrote: |
Loudog wrote: |
I have a degree in Art. Don't laugh. Other than for Teaching ESL in Korea, my degree is pretty useless. Is it the most useless degree? Is your degree worthless as well? |
I really hate this attitude. University should be about learning - it should not be about a job at the end of it. A degree isn't useless no matter what you read (unless you've managed to stifle the intellectual, creative and analytical growth that you should be experiencing throughout your time at university). Besides all that, how often is networking impressed on students? A degree isn't just a bit of paper. |
You are probably not from the US where getting a degree is insanely expensive. There's really no point in getting a degree unless it will be able to get you a high paying job. You won't be able to pay off your student loans otherwise. |
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yeti08
Joined: 04 Nov 2009 Location: Anyang - Pyeongchon
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 2:45 am Post subject: Re: The most expensive and usless thing I own. |
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[quote="Loudog"]I have a degree in Art. Don't laugh. quote]
I did laugh, but it's ok, because I have a minor in Fine Arts and it is pretty useless. And though I never figured out the cost exactly it had to have been expensive......ah well
Other than the art thing I really am not sure, there are a lot things back stateside collecting dust right now including a car.....but I will use them again someday. |
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morrisonhotel
Joined: 18 Jul 2009 Location: Gyeonggi-do
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 3:16 am Post subject: Re: The most expensive and usless thing I own. |
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sqrlnutz123 wrote: |
You are probably not from the US where getting a degree is insanely expensive. There's really no point in getting a degree unless it will be able to get you a high paying job. You won't be able to pay off your student loans otherwise. |
There are cheaper alternatives to the US for reading for a degree. In the OP's case, there are several good art schools in Europe which would be cheaper.
If getting a high paid job is the be all and end all of getting a degree then you have to network (and get as much work experience as possible). A degree doesn't equal a good job (regardless of the subject you read) - anyone thinking otherwise will be in for a deep shock at the end of their university education. |
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SeoulFinn

Joined: 27 Feb 2006 Location: 1h from Seoul
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 4:09 am Post subject: |
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OP, I can beat your achievement without breaking a sweat. I have TWO university degrees in Art. Even better than that, they're both (BA and MA) in Korean Studies!
Since I'm not a native English speaker, I can't even teach English in Korea, if I wanted to! (Not to put down those who do, thou.)
There's one good thing and it's this. At least I didn't have to pay for my degrees as education is funded by taxes in Finland. But I'm soooo unemployable in Korea... and pretty much everywhere as well.
So, where can I pick up my prize? I won, didn't I? |
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Draz

Joined: 27 Jun 2007 Location: Land of Morning Clam
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 5:35 am Post subject: |
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SeoulFinn wrote: |
OP, I can beat your achievement without breaking a sweat. I have TWO university degrees in Art. Even better than that, they're both (BA and MA) in Korean Studies!
Since I'm not a native English speaker, I can't even teach English in Korea, if I wanted to! (Not to put down those who do, thou.)
There's one good thing and it's this. At least I didn't have to pay for my degrees as education is funded by taxes in Finland. But I'm soooo unemployable in Korea... and pretty much everywhere as well.
So, where can I pick up my prize? I won, didn't I? |
I think the non-native speakerness is tripping you up here, a degree in Korean Studies is an Arts degree, but not an Art degree like the OP has.
You don't win, cause it was free. People who get insanely expensive stuff like grad degrees for free don't get to win biggest loser. Can't you just go back and get another one? It's free! |
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SeoulFinn

Joined: 27 Feb 2006 Location: 1h from Seoul
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 5:44 am Post subject: |
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Draz wrote: |
I think the non-native speakerness is tripping you up here, a degree in Korean Studies is an Arts degree, but not an Art degree like the OP has.
You don't win, cause it was free. People who get insanely expensive stuff like grad degrees for free don't get to win biggest loser. Can't you just go back and get another one? It's free! |
Dang! I was so sure that I won!
Alright. At least both of my degrees are pretty much useless... although free. Your suggestion is good, though. For a quite some time I've been pondering about getting another degree. Unfortunately it wouldn't help me find employment in Korea. Why not? Because I'd love to get a PhD in Korean Studies. LOL! I'm screwed, aren't I? |
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Xuanzang

Joined: 10 Apr 2007 Location: Sadang
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 5:55 am Post subject: |
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SeoulFinn wrote: |
Draz wrote: |
I think the non-native speakerness is tripping you up here, a degree in Korean Studies is an Arts degree, but not an Art degree like the OP has.
You don't win, cause it was free. People who get insanely expensive stuff like grad degrees for free don't get to win biggest loser. Can't you just go back and get another one? It's free! |
Dang! I was so sure that I won!
Alright. At least both of my degrees are pretty much useless... although free. Your suggestion is good, though. For a quite some time I've been pondering about getting another degree. Unfortunately it wouldn't help me find employment in Korea. Why not? Because I'd love to get a PhD in Korean Studies. LOL! I'm screwed, aren't I? |
Are you an adoptee? Is that why you picked Korean studies? it seems like the farthest thing that a Finn would pick to study lol. |
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VanIslander

Joined: 18 Aug 2003 Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 5:59 am Post subject: |
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Xuanzang wrote: |
... why you picked Korean studies? it seems like the farthest thing that a Finn would pick to study lol. |
Not really.
In Linguistics it's well known that the two languages (Korean and Finnish) share certain grammatical structures with the Hungarians and a couple of small Ural Mountain cultures, and to a lesser extent with Turkish (the Turks came down from the North originally; the Finns and Hungarians from the East and the Koreans from the West). |
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