Griffith’s Careers fair represented mostly science and business jobs this year, leaving arts out in the cold.
Accounting, economics and commerce dominated the fair, with 37 per cent of stalls offering jobs for finance graduates.
34 per cent of stalls wanted engineering graduates, 25 per cent wanted business degrees, 22 per cent wanted IT graduates and only 4 per cent of stalls specifically asked for arts students to apply.
Head of Griffith’s Careers and Employment Division, Tony Lyons, says: “Students from non-business disciplines can still ‘market’ themselves into these organisations even if they are not specifically advertising for their discipline”
University students are participating in unconventional clinical trials in bids to make extra cash.
University of Queensland students, Aneiki De brincat and Keira Mcdowell participated in over twenty trials combined, including a virtual colonoscopy, recieving 500 shocks from wire electrodes under the skin and trialling malaria and flu vaccines.
Ms McDowell, said it was a creative way of making money but: “I don’t see it as a sustainable method of income, and I would prefer traditional work, if I could find it.”
She said the electric test made her feel nauseous, she had great difficulty walking up and down stairs for 2-3 days afterwards, and only received $75 for her 5 hours of participation.
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What’s the Cost of a Guinea Pig? |
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Trial |
Cash |
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Blood Pressure Overnight Survey |
$925 |
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Flue Vaccine |
$250 |
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Electrical Charge Therapy |
$15 / hour |
With unemployment figures rising, university students are turning to participating in clinical trials ranging from malaria vaccine tests, virtual colonoscopies and electric shock treatments in a bid to make some extra cash.
University of Queensland student, Aneiki De brincat says she participated in 6 trials over a two and a half year period, and UQ student Keira Mcdowell says she participated in one physiotherapy trial, one drug trial and over ten psychological research projects in two years, including learning how to perform a virtual colonoscopy.
Ms De brincat said: “I like these trials because they’re a quick way of getting money, while also helping people. Most of the time it is tax free, and you can choose when you come in.”
Ms De brincat earned $995 for two, two night stays in a quarantine ward to test blood pressure medication.
“We had to be wheeled around in wheel chairs so we didn’t pass out and hurt ourselves. It was like a warped Big Brother situation”.
Ms McDowell, said it was a creative way of making money but, “I don’t see it as a sustainable method of income, and I would prefer traditional work, if I could find it.”
Ms Mcdowell warns there can be negative side effects from the tests, saying she participated in a trial involving wire electrodes being inserted into her back muscles which were then stimulated by a magnetic ‘zap’ 500 times.
The test made her feel nauseous, she had great difficulty walking up and down stairs for 2-3 days afterwards, and she only received $75 for her 5 hours of participation.
Ms De brincat also had bad experiences, saying she was once severely affected from a malaria vaccine and was rushed to hospital, although the research group did pay for her medical expenses.
Research is usually conducted by universities, hospital research groups like Qpharm and private drug manufacturing companies testing vaccines and medication.
Griffith University’s Career’s Fair has this week reflected what many arts students have feared – jobs in art degrees are few and far between while science and business reign supreme.
Accounting, economics and commerce dominated the recruitment process, with 37% of the 74 stalls offering jobs for graduates with those degrees.
34% of stalls sought after engineering graduates, 25% wanted business degrees, 22% wanted IT graduates and only 4% of stalls specifically encouraged arts students to apply for jobs with their companies.
The three stalls which sought after arts degrees were the Spinal Injuries Association, Queensland Audit Office, and the Department of Child Safety.
Griffith University’s Events Coordinator, Andrew Thrush, says that considering the biggest employers in the country are financial institutions, mining and construction companies, retail, science and education there are limited job opportunities for arts students.
Mr Thrush said he understood the lack of arts stalls because, while the university invites over three hundred companies, which cater for all of Griffith’s degrees, it was up to the individual companies to decide whether the fairs would benefit them, and whether their businesses needed to recruit.
However, head of Griffith’s Careers and Employment Division, Tony Lyons, says: “Students from non-business disciplines can still ‘market’ themselves into these organisations even if they are not specifically advertising for their discipline”
Senior Lecturer in the School of Humanities, Dr Amanda Howell, also denies claims that arts degrees are not career producing, saying that they are particularly useful when the economy is tough because BA graduates are equipped with field specific skills and knowledge, as well as many ‘generic’ skills useful in all industries.
Dr Howell said: “At the end of the day, finding a job always depends on the individual: how well she/he has used educational opportunities, how effective she/he is at looking for a job, and how well she/he has prepared for a job by acquiring experience.”
Filed under: University Matters
Improvements in technology lead to more jobs in journalism says ABC journalist Peter Mageros.
News providers are opening up more jobs in the journalistic sphere as the need for ‘online news rooms’ grows.
Mr Mageros points to his own work place, saying, “I just look at the ABC Online Newsroom, where I began with the ABC, and I see a workplace of about 50 or more journos who at one time didn’t exist”
“That’s in addition to the separate metropolitan and regional online positions that have been created in ABC newsrooms across the country.”
However, the jobs which online journalism generates also come with more pressure, including learning specialist skills and the demand for immediate news on the web, Mageros warns.
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