Education is a human right
Education is a human right. Everybody must have the right to the education they want and the kind of education that provides the possibility to develop as a person and as a citizen. Education is social inclusion. Education is the access to every kind of information, helping everybody become reflective, critical and self-determinate persons. Education can be considered a lifelong process of developing knowledge, skills, abilities and social competencies. University is as much a state of mind as it is a place. When you become a university student you do more than attend a particular institution, you enter into the world of scholars a world that engages many cultures and reaches through time.
You will be engaging with an intellectual community that has deep roots and just as you will build on the work of others future scholars may one day build upon the work you do. This is serious business. But it is also fun. University is the place where you finally get to learn about things that interest you instead of just giving them what they want. And herein lies the first key to how you can survive and thrive, figure out what interests you and work on that. The best part is that by working on what interests you will be doing something that you really enjoy. As mentioned, university is a different world. Think about it, you have chosen which university to attend, you get to choose your own course of study, and you have actually paid to be here. The amount and type of work differ from that of high school, as does the pace, purpose, and style of your studies. These differences provide a wealth of opportunity but also a range of challenges.
Outside of all the practical applications related to your career, studying economics has a huge net benefit to your overall life. The laws of economics don’t exclusively relate to money or the economy. With a basic understanding of economics you can better understand interpersonal relationships and why people act as they do. You can manage your resources more effectively, knowing when to spend time on certain things and when to abandon something as useless. Economics causes you to apply rationality to your life and treat your time and your happiness as resources that you have active control over. This is incredibly empowering, and in my opinion leads to a happier existence overall.
Why Study Economics? Economics is intellectually stimulating and rewarding as it provides an understanding of the ‘big picture’. A Bachelor of Economics is a degree employer’s value because it teaches highly revered problem solving skills. In order to understand society, the interaction of people, how and why they make decisions and how they value their resources (time, wealth) there must be a coherent framework for discussion. The study of economics gives you the skills to make decisions using a universal framework that can be applied to many situations. You will learn to think logically and analytically, to discuss views clearly in a variety of forums, and to write concisely. The study of economics is a general program within which you are able to specialise in areas of your own passion or interest, including environmental economics, international studies and accounting. Economics (Advanced) are specifically for those wanting a specialised degree with an emphasis on research and advanced analysis skills. Economics is a global language, recognised worldwide; wherever you travel your knowledge and skills will be immediately relevant. People trained in economics are trained to recognize the costs and benefits associated with alternative choices. In addition to this type of critical thinking, deductive and inductive reasoning skills are developed in the process of examining “cause and effect” economic relationships. Economic analyses involve data collection, a literature review, theoretical analysis, quantitative analysis, or some combination of these. The results obtained from economic research are usually communicated in writing, with the form of the write up depending upon the intended audience.
