What Will 2012 Hold For Us?

I stand upon the threshold of my third year at the centre of the academic universe (okay, the University of Lincoln) and contemplate the state of the world outside the brick and concrete walls of academia.

Why bother? I hear some of you ask. Well it’s quite simple really. The state of the economy of this fair nation (the UK) is going to have a direct bearing on our (and I really mean my) ability to find work after we finish our courses. From where I’m sitting the future doesn’t look at all rosy.

Why?

1. The UK government is mired in debt. Successive governments have maxed out the state credit card and we suddenly find ourselves with the national equivalent of a nasty looking pair of guys at the front door looking to take away anything remotely valuable. It’s like a scene out of The Full Monty, except I don’t think the whole nation standing up in its collective underwear is going to scare them away.
2. We, as a nation, have very limited means of making money. We don’t really make much, our services sector is heavily dependent on banking (which is not exactly doing that well), we have few natural resources to exploit and we’re pretty limited when it comes to tourism.
3. Our educational system is a nightmare. The value of many of the academic awards appears to be bogus. My own experiences of dealing with university students doesn’t engender in me any respect for “A” Levels or GCSEs. My son’s current education, at a state secondary school (sorry, academy with a focus on the performing arts), fills me with dread. Especially when I look at the syllabuses for various GCSE courses.
4. Our costs, both as a nation and as individuals, are rising like rockets. Electricity, gas, petrol and diesel have all reached a price point where they have become real weights around our collective necks. I now dread the arrival of power bills and I’m sure that I’m not alone. If the cost of energy is so high here then that puts our nation’s ability to compete in the global markets in peril. It also puts off potential investors in the UK. Remember, business isn’t about sentimentality it’s about making money. 
5. The UK has become addicted to state interventions. Both in monetary terms and in social terms as well. If anything goes wrong then people seem to be obsessed with “what’s the government going to do about it?” Self-reliance seems to be as rare as rocking horse poo. That’s led us to a welfare state we cannot afford, hence the huge government borrowing, and a people who expect to be spoon fed from the cradle to the grave.

So what can we do? Unfortunately, not a lot. My considered opinion is that the UK is in the toilet and will remain there for some time. My advice is to start looking elsewhere. Beyond the rather stinky and turd laden shores of good old Blight. Look for those countries where they’re making money. China, Canada and Australia seem to be doing well at the moment. Africa could be the rising star of the 21^st Century. Perhaps Eastern Europe? You need to look into the options available to you and start thinking of not just what you want to do when you leave university but where you want to do it. I’m certain of only one thing at this time. The UK is going to be in intensive care for a long time to come. Can you afford to wait around?