University Degree

[KeenTeen17]

I was wondering what degree I should go into at University. I fancy getting a job in a career involving plants mostly but a ranger, zoo keeper, ecologist etc would be acceptable. I have been told by most Uni conventioners that a degree in botany itself is too specialised. I am interested in doing a broad geography degree as I find it very interesting. I plan to go to a University close to home (Lancaster Uni most likely) because of the accomodation costs and the fact that I like family life Is this the right way to go? I have been told geography would be a good subject because of the climate change / green religion nowadays.

Thanks

[Gill Catton]

There's loads of scope within ecological consultancy to do work with plants and survey for interesting plants and good botanists aren't that common (in my experiance) I did a degree in biology (which would also then give you scope to get into micro biology or genetic studies with plants which you might find interesting once studying and that might get you into dream jobs at places like Kew Gardens or the Eden project).

Otherwise a more ecology related subject would be good (I did biology specialising down into ecology).

I can't speak for geography but I expect there's plant related stuff there too?
In relation to staying at home it definately helps financially, but when I went to uni well away from home it properly opened my eyes to real life, I learnt to support myself, cook for myself, pay my own bills etc, and finally I was no longer the geekey one because most of the people I was studying with loved the subject too! I would also then recommend living away, your family will still be there and you will be dragging yourself home with a tonne of dirty washing every holiday anyway

[NickCantle]

Originally Posted by Gill Catton

In relation to staying at home it definately helps financially, but when I went to uni well away from home it properly opened my eyes to real life, I learnt to support myself, cook for myself, pay my own bills etc, and finally I was no longer the geekey one because most of the people I was studying with loved the subject too! I would also then recommend living away, your family will still be there and you will be dragging yourself home with a tonne of dirty washing every holiday anyway

I agree with Gill 110% there Jack. For me, the independence was the key factor. I was originally going to be going to UEA Norwich but my Mum convinced me to go further afield so I could live with others and experience real life. I moved 140 miles from home to Surrey! I met new people, had a new style of life and I got to go on some awesome forays with WAB members! It taught me how to look after myself and it taught me how to manage money, and even if you've got a Degree, you need these two things more.

Be ambitious, and just because you like family life, don't let the novelty of being mollycoddled take over- I can see you becoming quite an independent chap, and I'm sure whatever Degree that you do, you will be okay. I've done a year of Degree and it's not as bad as they make it out to be

Alot of people will say 'save yourself the debt and stay at home' but for me, the debt is nothing compared to living away from home and being self supportive. It's not a debt that is unacceptable to have, you're not judged on it, it doesn't show on credit rating. It put me off at first, but there's little point worrying about it- like a mortgage.

[Hedge Witch]

They are the best years of your life, KT. Just get together a group of friends and you're laughing.

Anyone who can come on here and take on the likes of Nick and the rest of them will have absolutely no problem fitting in. It is good to go a reasonable distance from home if you can, although Lancaster is near some stunning scenery and there are some great groups to join.

All the best with whatever you decide.

[KeenTeen17]

Originally Posted by Hedge Witch

They are the best years of your life, KT. Just get together a group of friends and you're laughing.

Anyone who can come on here and take on the likes of Nick and the rest of them will have absolutely no problem fitting in. It is good to go a reasonable distance from home if you can, although Lancaster is near some stunning scenery and there are some great groups to join.

All the best with whatever you decide.

yes Lancaster is just up the road. I would drive there every day maybe but theres also the University of Cumbria which is even more further afield and still relatively family travellable. I don't fancy going to a big city university because I just don't like people, hustle bustle and chavs in cities. I might even go up to a Uni in Scotland because its great up there and mum's friends son did an arborology degree (trees) and never wanted to come back

thanks for all the advice

[NickCantle]

Originally Posted by KeenTeen17

yes Lancaster is just up the road. I would drive there every day maybe but theres also the University of Cumbria which is even more further afield and still relatively family travellable. I don't fancy going to a big city university because I just don't like people, hustle bustle and chavs in cities. I might even go up to a Uni in Scotland because its great up there and mum's friends son did an arborology degree (trees) and never wanted to come back

thanks for all the advice

Uni in Scotland sounds excellent! Note, not all Universities are in hustle and bustle cities! My Uni was in Farnham which is a small but beautiful market town of Surrey. Front of Uni was the high street, back of Uni was fields and trees!

[pammosley]

My son goes to Birmingham uni, studying Environmental science. He lives at home. He manages to be independant (though I still do his washing!) & works part time to earn money. We discussed which uni & the only one he wanted to go to was Brum We are happy thinking that he will not have as much debt hanging over him as some other students...........so is he!
Have a good look around the different Universities & courses. Whichever you choose I wish you all the best. With your enthusiasm you wil go far

[Jim Ford]

Originally Posted by NickCantle

Alot of people will say 'save yourself the debt and stay at home' but for me, the debt is nothing compared to living away from home and being self supportive. It's not a debt that is unacceptable to have, you're not judged on it, it doesn't show on credit rating. It put me off at first, but there's little point worrying about it- like a mortgage.

Nah, don't worry about the debt - let your dad worry about it!
;^)

My eldest daughter spent money like water when she was at university and taking a couple of years out. On the advice of a financial adviser (who described her as a 'financial hooligan'), I took out a mortgage on the house to consolidate her debts. Fortunately it all worked out as she qualified in law, and paid it off working in a City law firm on an obscene salary.

Jim

[meinchewster]

Originally Posted by KeenTeen17

I was wondering what degree I should go into at University. I fancy getting a job in a career involving plants mostly but a ranger, zoo keeper, ecologist etc would be acceptable. I have been told by most Uni conventioners that a degree in botany itself is too specialised. I am interested in doing a broad geography degree as I find it very interesting. I plan to go to a University close to home (Lancaster Uni most likely) because of the accomodation costs and the fact that I like family life Is this the right way to go? I have been told geography would be a good subject because of the climate change / green religion nowadays.

Thanks

KT, if you are particularily interested in plants, I would look into the environmental degrees and aim towards a career in conservation more than consultancy. I say this because the scope for working with plants, i.e. prescribing managment programmes, habitat creation such as meadows, glades ect would fall into this sector more than consultancy. I also say this because you have stated a ranger, zoo keeper or ecologist would do, i dont want to be dismissive, but there are a lot of people in ecology who frankly, have dropped into it without having the genuine passion, I dont want to discourage you in anyway, just want you to consider what you want to do as apposed to what may be a more mainstream option without fulfilling your passion for plants and also consider the context you wish to work with plants as this may be cultivation/horticulture, conservation and habitat creation, identification etc etc. This should help define the career path and the degree you wish to take.

Good luck with your studies and all the best.

[JennyS]

If your passion is for plants follow it!
As Gill said there aren't too many good botantists around, maybe partly because those interested get advised to seek more 'mainstream' courses......and there's a need for them!

Good luck with it all

[Words]

It's difficult to advise, but I'm not sure that a geography degree would necessarily provide the right background for working with plants. It's likely to focus either on human or physical geography, though obviously some moduels will cover environmental issues. A Biology degree or Ecology & Conservation might prove better. Most of the latter will include animal as well as plant biology (strong inter-connections between them as in both cases the one depends on the other). Check what options they offer as well as core modules/courses. And what the range of field work is. That's vital in all these subjects.

As for location, put down a couple of 'local' options and a couple of flyers in other parts of the country. And visit all of them on Open Days. Find out as much as you can about the courses and facilities you'll be working with. Worth doing the research now as it will be three or four years of your life, and great years if all works out

And don't write of Geography or Botany yet. It's your degree and having a passion for the subject gives you a fantastic head start. You'll find career optinos widen out as you learn more. And take a look at what graduate jobs previous students have got. Most universities publish this sort of information on departmental web pages. That will give a good idea of the type of thing to expect; and if you can't find the info email the admissions tutor. They'll be only too pleased to help.

Good luck whatever you choose!

[KeenTeen17]

I found this on Lancaster University. Its a dual course geography and biology.
Course Search
It looks pretty good, Lancaster is up the road.

this as well which looks pretty good for Cumbria.
http://www.cumbria.ac.uk/Courses/Cou...nv/ConBio.aspx

[NickCantle]

Originally Posted by KeenTeen17

I found this on Lancaster University. Its a dual course geography and biology.
Course Search
It looks pretty good, Lancaster is up the road.

this as well which looks pretty good for Cumbria.
Conservation Biology

If you genuinely like the Lancaster course, worth a go, but do not let the location take priority at all costs!!!-

[Highland Damsel]

I agree with Words, go look around at open days they can be really informative and find a course that really excites you. Don't go for something just because it's local but if it's the right course don't let that put you off it. Be aware that geopgraphy can be geared toward human geography e.g.towns and population but also lanscape and geology, i'm not sure but read the syllabus for any course you're looking at really carefully.

There is a wealth of subjects you can study that relate to plants and conservation. You could start off with a National or a Higher National Diploma, either of which are two year courses and the HND will give you the opportunity to top up with one year and get a degree. These courses are relatively practical but with a good emphasis on the academic. There will undoubtedly be identification work involved that will give you the basics but to get good you are going to have to learn in your spare time as well. Subjects you can study include those you have mentioned but also Countryside Management, Ecology Conservation, Forestry, Arboriculture (Askham Bryan in York has a course on that). There is the Scottish Agricultural College in Dumfries? in Scotland offering a range of courses, I studied Countryside Management at Uni of East Anglia, Horticulture (Urban Forestry) at York and Arboriculture at the Forestry College in Inverness . Newton Rigg on the edge of the Lake District offers countryside courses. Don't just look at Universities but also at colleges offering land based quals and degrees.

My advice would be to go for a general Countryside Management/Conservation based HND, it will give you a taster of everything including plants, animals, ecology, science and practical work and teach you about real issues in the countryside but also give you a chance to find what it is that you are most into and it will have quite a bit of relevance in terms of jobs in that field.

Good luck and have fun looking.

[Gue Jam Fowsid]

I did my Zoology degree in Bangor, North Wales. The uni has a fantastic centre for biological and ocean sciences. The uni even has its own ship!! The city is very small and has a great student life. For the environmetal degrees, Bangor has everything on its doorstep with the Snowdonia National Park only a stones throw away.

One of the best decisions of my life was uprooting from London and heading to Bangor. At the time it was the only University that had Herpetology as a module in the third year, which was perfect for me.

They also have their own botanical gardens and so have a number of expert botanists.

Good luck.

[ring ouzel]

Lancaster has (or used to have when I did it) an excellent course in Ecology but two things. First of all I think you need to define a bit more what you want to do, zoo keeper, conservationist or ranger Sit down and work out what direction you really want to go into, do your research now. Its astonishing how many people dont know the difference between conservation and welfare for example.

Secondly if you do go to Lancaster then dont stay at home, you will always regret it! And if you really like your family life too much to move to another University then forget any job in the Environmental sector as you must be prepared to move around to chase the jobs, you cant afford to be picky.

Another point that springs to mind is dont think because you study one thing then that is all you will ever work on. I started as an Ornithologist but amongst other things worked on Asian Big Cats, helped found the Shark Trust and became CEO of a national charity - none of which had anything to do with birds!

Good luck. I wish I'd had the Internet when I was starting out!

[Paul mabbott]

It's probably too soon for you to home in on a particular profession: there may be no openings and you may change your mind. So go for a broad biology or ecology degree - the ecology one may tend to be a bit more practically based but you should get the broad knowledge from either.

Save the specialisation (to botany, &c) until you do your MSc.

From what people say who have qualified at them, I gather that Bristol and Sheffield are the best universities outside of the two "big" ones (Cambridge and Imperial) and quite nice places to live. If you really want to stay fairly close to home then Newcastle is very good, especially if you're into invertebrates.

[Highland Damsel]

Have a think about what it is that attracts you to the proffession, is it because you love beng outside, is it that you have a really intellectual interest or a practical one and then it might be useful to think about what level you want to go in at, as a ranger doing practical stuff and education or at a higher level managing a site and a team.

[shirl]

I did a Certificate in Ecological and Environmental Studies with Lancaster University but by distance learning, the equivalent to the first year attending the universuty. There were 4 modules including a project and I have to say it was excellent. Really enjoyed it and the tutors were really good, of course you do miss that interaction with other students and the joys of student life .

Good luck with what you do decide to do.

Shirl