And I doubt many would argue about American universities teaching this strange, made-up concoction of jewelry skills that doesn't translate at all into the real world.
I started a new thread by breaking off this comment from a previous
thread because I think there’s something here that merits
documenting for those who are considering a university jewelry
program. There is often a complete mismatch between what the public
thinks a university degree should be and that academia believes it
to be.
I have spent the past five years serving as a Trustee of a major
university (18,000 students) and found that academics are proud that
they teach ideas and concepts utilizing higher level thinking
skills. They distain the thought of teaching anything that falls into
the category of “skills,” leaving that responsibility to their (dare
I say “lesser”) brethren at trade schools or junior colleges. But,
students at universities want skills that will make them employable
too. The University is in a quandary. If they change their
curriculum and add classes which teach skills, they are deemed to be
"pretenders" in the academic world and their professors will have a
difficult time “moving up” to better universities. Thus, there is no
support among the faculty (who controls the curriculum) to change the
curriculum.
Please don’t mistake these comments for dislike of universities. It
is not… Universities educate our society, one of the most important
functions to which an institution can aspire. However, some
professions require significant training requirements that cannot be
met in a traditional university setting or on-the-job training after
college. That’s where trade schools, journeyman programs,
internships, and apprenticeships come into play.
Interestingly, physicians are among those who need to learn what is
taught at a University AND need skills training. They have practice
rotations in hospitals while in school, followed by Internships, etc.
Unfortunately, the average job doesn’t pay well enough to justify
investing in university tuition followed by a trade school. Hence,
the choice of one path or the other.
Just my two cents worth.
]
Jamie