Dancing with a lampshade, that's a promising start! Just as long as nobody at the dinner table starts whipping out their mobile phones to take pictures of a drunked reveller making a fool out of himself. _________________ Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.
What about you, Benjamin? You did mention about wanting to be a student for as long as possible. Have you considered your future work prospects?
No, I haven't really considered my future career at all. I essentially knew that I wanted to study languages when I was about 11, and I've never really seriously considered anything else. However, what I might do with it afterwards has never really been a factor, although I've generally assumed that I'd eventually be a teacher. I must admit though that I do occasionally have fantasies of being an MSP (Member of Scottish Parliament) — if only because that's probably the only parliament that I'd stand any chance of actually getting elected into.
loic wrote:
A Bachelor in Linguistics is a rather versatile degree and one can expect to find himself plugging away in a myriad of unrelated fields.
Because I'm going to an 'ancient' Scottish university, I'll actually be doing an MA (not a BA) in French and German with Linguistics — a course which lasts five years. After that, I imagine that I'd probably do some sort of postgraduate study, although I'm not sure what — either more linguistics, or something else, like sustainable development, international politics, ecological economics, or whatever.
A Member of Parliament sounds like an exciting career prospect. I can imagine how an MA in Linguistics would come in awfully handy. I'd expect you to be a very good communicator who would instinctively know the right things to say in order to successfully pull the heartstrings of your electorate. So I say, go for it!
Alternatively, there are always the more prosaic job openings for someone like you who is specialising in French or German -viz. being an interpretor or translator. _________________ Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.
Benjamin, you would certainly excel at manipulating the public through language. I bet you'd do a far better job of it than Nicol Stephen. No superflous energy, just sheer power...
Speaking of language and communication skills, is it possible in any of your countries to obtain a degree in communication? In my country, although it's a three years' course and as such qualifies as a Mickey Mouse major (not really on account of the years of study - rather on account of what they actually study during their academic years), it is one of the most popular degree courses with the rosiest prospects. Just look around...the media is lousy with them...
loic wrote:
Actually, I wanted to study law.
Me, too but I changed my mind and I'm glad I did. I would have been given my marching orders in no time as I can't swot, which is a euphemism for "I'm too lazy to memorise things verbatim". Besides, it's a very nasty business. However, I didn't want to be a barrister or a solicitor or whatever (we don't make this distinction) but a judge or an international lawyer. _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
Location: San Francisco, Noord-Kalifornië, Noord-Amerika
Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 6:47 pm Post subject:
loic wrote:
Dancing with a lampshade, that's a promising start! Just as long as nobody at the dinner table starts whipping out their mobile phones to take pictures of a drunked reveller making a fool out of himself.
Dancing with a lampshade, wearing a silly wig in court...I'm starting to understand your tastes!
Location: El Pueblo de Nuestra Seńora la Reina de los Angeles del Río de Porciúncula
Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 1:18 am Post subject:
Porthos wrote:
I'm going to eventually be an MBA, but my undergrad major is going to be finance. For the careers I want (Institutional Sales and Trading/Consulting/Wealth Management), the university you went to is crucial.
For certain fields within Investment Banking like Corporate Finance or M&A, an Ivy League education is practically a pre-requisite. I won't be attending an Ivy League school anytime soon, but an MBA from UC Berkeley Hass school of business is certainly very attractive to employers, and even its undergrad school has a fine reputation on par with many Ivy League schools, being that it's ranked as #3 in the nation.
Oh honey, if your objective is to land a high-stress, hi-NRG job with one of the top Fortune 500 companies, then by all means enroll in those expensive schools and take those mind-numbing, energy-zapping post graduate courses. But for those of us who don't wish to spend another day in school and don't aspire to an excess of riches, then a BS from Cal State LA, by way of Mount Saint Mary's College, will do just fine.
Dancing with a lampshade, wearing a silly wig in court...I'm starting to understand your tastes!
What can I say, Ma'am? I am one in a million!
Quote:
Speaking of language and communication skills, is it possible in any of your countries to obtain a degree in communication?
Absolutely. There is a degree in mass communications offered in my university and it is surprisingly popular amongst A level holders fresh out of formal schooling and who haven't a clue about what to do in life.
Honestly, I think a mass communications degree is very general and it is only as valuable as the person's inherent communication skills. I know many of them aspire to be top-notch journalists who are in charge of providing us with trenchant newsbytes and cutting-edge analysis, but the truth is that the newspaper industry in Singapore probably cannot afford to hire more than 50 fresh graduates per year.
Like you, I tend to look askance at such fields of study. In fact, I used to regard business studies with disdain as well. I thought it was an inelegant discipline and one which was vastly inferior to a more conventional and prestigious Bachelor of Arts degree or the usual prestigious options of medicine, pharmacy, dentistry or law.
Apparently, I was hugely mistaken. I was blind to the remuneration which people in the financial sector draw. I quickly revised my opinions once I gained possession of the facts. Besides, I know I would probably make a very mediocre engineer. My grades would not allow me to enter medicine, pharmacy or law at any rate. One needs a perfect clean sweep of As to even merit an interview, not to mention getting past their hallowed doors.
By the way, engineering is ubiquitous here. 6 out of 10 guys here are studying to be engineers.
Quote:
Me, too but I changed my mind and I'm glad I did. I would have been given my marching orders in no time as I can't swot, which is a euphemism for "I'm too lazy to memorise things verbatim". Besides, it's a very nasty business. However, I didn't want to be a barrister or a solicitor or whatever (we don't make this distinction) but a judge or an international lawyer.
I still think I would have made a rather good lawyer if I had been given half a chance. As part of our curriculum, accounting students are required to do two law modules and I did business law this semester. I realised that law is not a particularly difficult discipline as long as one knows the rules of the game. As Singapore is a common law jurisdiction country, many cases from the House of Lords set a legal precedent here through the principle of stare decisis . Lawyers can successfully plead for their clients as long as they are able to select the appropriate cases with which they would proceed to weave cogent arguments around their stand. As you can imagine, there are millions of old cases buried in the archives and we have the luxury of not only consulting English cases, but also cases from India, Australia and Malaysia.
In general, most English cases are legally binding here whereas cases from the other Common Law jurisdictions, which includes America, have very persuasive authority. I really enjoyed legal research in which I was obliged to read up on cases from the law library in order to do my thesis. Besides, judges often possess acerbic wit and they are proud to show it off in their judgement. Lord Denning MR springs to mind. I used many of his cases when I was studying tort law, the most famous being the 'cricket case' of Miller v Jackson. Almost every student would bank on this case whenever we encounter a tort of negligence situation. Basically, Lord Denning began his judgement with a little story of how a cricket club was deprived of its immutable and historic right to play the sport on a field next to the house of Mr and Mrs Miller and what was fascinating about this case summary was his Lordship's constant ramblings with cheery insouciance, totally indifferent to the issue at hand. Finally, his Lordship concluded that being a cricket lover, he was inclined to side with the cricket club even if this means that stray cricket balls would fly into the Millers' garden from time to time.
In Singapore, there is technically no difference between a barrister and a solicitor as law students are trained in both disciplines. However, many of them would choose to specialise after being called to the bar and it is thus useful to continue observing this difference.
And you cannot be a judge unless you have been a prominent lawyer for years. It helps if you are also a Senior Counsel (SC), the local equivalent of the much vaunted QC (Queen's Counsel). In fact, we used to have quite a few QCs in our midst, but the number of Singapore lawyers being called to the English bar at Middle Temple, Grey's Inn, Inner Temple and Lincoln's Inn have dwindled dramatically in recent years. But we are still not deprived of their wisdom as highflying clients continue to bring in QCs from overseas to lock horns in court from time to time.
But alas, I am going to be an accountant so I ought to stick to what I know best: rules of the IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards). This is the language of accounting and well, soon to be my bread and butter. _________________ Hillary Clinton is an acquired taste which I have clearly yet to acquire.
Absolutely. There is a degree in mass communications offered in my university and it is surprisingly popular amongst A level holders fresh out of formal schooling and who haven't a clue about what to do in life.
Same here. For some reason, it seems to be much more popular with girls than with boys. Half of those people who choose to study communication get admittance to the private "sector" only. Private education doesn't necessarily coincide with quality in Hungary as we don't have a tradition of private education. The vast majority of people are being privately educated simply because they weren't good enough to gain admittance to a public educational institution and only an exiguous number of students choose to pay for their education for other reasons.
That said, you might as well stand a better chance of getting a good job if you obtained such a degree rather than a traditional one, like mine. In theory, you can become a journalist with a degree in communication but you are not very likely to succeed if you have a degree in Hungarian / English etc. language and literature. Life is cruel, isn't it?
loic wrote:
Like you, I tend to look askance at such fields of study. In fact, I used to regard business studies with disdain as well. I thought it was an inelegant discipline and one which was vastly inferior to a more conventional and prestigious Bachelor of Arts degree or the usual prestigious options of medicine, pharmacy, dentistry or law.
Speaking of the Bachelor of Arts, it is still popular and considered prestigeous, but it has lost popularity considerably in the past few years. Students of philology and the like often are the subject of mean jokes, like this one:
- What does the unemployed Bachelor/Master of Arts says to the employed BA/MA?
- ???
- A Big Mac menu with Coke, please.
loic wrote:
By the way, engineering is ubiquitous here. 6 out of 10 guys here are studying to be engineers.
The same here, too. Most women I know are either married to an engineer or go out with an engineer. (I almost wrote "ingenieur" twice.)
loic wrote:
I still think I would have made a rather good lawyer if I had been given half a chance.
I'm positive you would, considering your discussions of Sarkozy with Greg. You would make a good barrister, solicitor, attorney, lawyer or whatever. Honestly.
By the way, do economists and lawyers have a banter in Singapore, too? _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
Benjamin, you would certainly excel at manipulating the public through language. I bet you'd do a far better job of it than Nicol Stephen. No superflous energy, just sheer power...
Haha, you really think so? I'm usually seen as someone who lacks self-confidence and doesn't actually talk very much.
I probably shouldn't be too mean about Nicol Stephen though — there are much worse politicians than him, and the Greens will probably end up having to form a coalition government with the Liberal Democrats in the Scottish Parliament at some point in the future.
Liz wrote:
loic wrote:
By the way, engineering is ubiquitous here. 6 out of 10 guys here are studying to be engineers.
The same here, too. Most women I know are either married to an engineer or go out with an engineer. (I almost wrote "ingenieur" twice.)
It seems to be quite popular here as well. However, the most popular university course that people in my year at school are going on to study is medicine — about 25% of the year group, I think.
No, it's just someone who looks remarkably like me... only prettier.
LOL! That must be true.
I'm surprised that no-one has asked me if it's me on my avatar. I bear close resemblance to Garfield with the caveat that he is a bit fatter than me and I'm not a cat. _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
Last edited by Liz on Wed Jun 20, 2007 8:54 pm; edited 3 times in total
Location: El Pueblo de Nuestra Seńora la Reina de los Angeles del Río de Porciúncula
Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 6:25 pm Post subject:
Liz wrote:
I'm surprised that no-one has asked me if it's me on my avatar. I bear close resemblance to Garfield with the caveat that he is a bit fatter than me and I'm not a cat.
Well I was going to ask, but I didn't want to impose.
Benjamin, you would certainly excel at manipulating the public through language. I bet you'd do a far better job of it than Nicol Stephen. No superflous energy, just sheer power...
Haha, you really think so? I'm usually seen as someone who lacks self-confidence and doesn't actually talk very much.
Interesting. You always come across as someone who is confident and who likes to share his opinions. However, appearances can be deceptive - I also write more than I talk.
Benjamin wrote:
I probably shouldn't be too mean about Nicol Stephen though — there are much worse politicians than him, and the Greens will probably end up having to form a coalition government with the Liberal Democrats in the Scottish Parliament at some point in the future.
He isn't that bad and he doesn't seem to be as devious as other politicians, but he is a bit funny. _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
No, it's just someone who looks remarkably like me... only prettier.
Liz wrote:
LOL! That must be true.
I acted like a functional illiterate and misunderstood you. I should say
It can't be true. _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
Interesting. You always come across as someone who is confident and who likes to share his opinions. However, appearances can be deceptive - I also write more than I talk.
Haha — it's funny how people can so often get the wrong impression. Like, when I go to Unitarian conferences, people often ask me for specific advice, because for some reason they've got the idea that I'm 'really clever'. If only they realised how mislead they were — I suppose they'll find that out if they ever elect me as convener of the Executive Committee at some point in the future.
Actually, the last conference I was at, this 20-year-old American woman described me as a 60-year-old in an 18-year-olds body, and accused me of being 'overly set in [my] ways'. I wasn't really quite sure how to respond to that.
Like, when I go to Unitarian conferences, people often ask me for specific advice, because for some reason they've got the idea that I'm 'really clever'.
Yes, you really make that impression. It might be the way you present your ideas - you don't use an "I've been brought up on a council estate" sort of language like I do sometimes. (I've been recently "told off" by Pauline for writing too colloquially, which makes her difficult to understand some of my posts. ) Anyway, it's amazing how I'm obsessed with others' style of writing nowadays!
Benjamin wrote:
Actually, the last conference I was at, this 20-year-old American woman described me as a 60-year-old in an 18-year-olds body, and accused me of being 'overly set in [my] ways'. I wasn't really quite sure how to respond to that.
You are a bit radical for a 60-year-old, aren't you? _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
I've been recently "told off" by Pauline for writing too colloquially, which makes her difficult to understand some of my posts.
I didn't told you off!!!!
I only told you that sometimes I find it difficult to understand your posts in English because of slang and the colloquially written things. Uriel as well and in German Tiorthan not because of slang but because he write a very posh type of German.
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) Anyway, it's amazing how I'm obsessed with others' style of writing nowadays!