'University degree is important as high school's not enough to land good careers'

Students in their final year at high school are at a crossroads in life. This is a crucial moment for them to decide what to do next with their future after they finish school. Are they going to go on to college or university or will they hang around the house wearing a what-next expression on their face because there is not enough money for them to take a sewing or mechanics course? The Jakarta Post 's Emmy Fitri interviewed several students on Thursday to get a closer look at what they thought about higher education and prospects for their future.

Fabian, 18, is a student at private technical high school STM Bhakti in Pasar Rebo, East Jakarta:

University or college? I am not sure if I will continue my studies because I don't know if my parents would pay for my schooling. But then again, I haven't asked them. But I do hope I can get a job after graduation. Any kind of job. I could work at an automotive shop, but I don't have enough experience. My school didn't provide us with enough training. There wasn't even a workshop there that we could use.

To be honest, I'm not interested in getting a higher education because I don't like sitting still or reading books. I think I'm too old for that. In my neighborhood, others who are my age have already started earning money for their families. Some are even married and have children of their own. They do any kind of job: running a cigarette stall or driving public transportation vehicles.

M. Indro Prasetyo, 18, attends a private technical high school STM Bhakti in Pasar Rebo, East Jakarta:

I want to continue my studies and if possible get a masters degree if my parents can afford it. Well, I'm not sure. They haven't told me what to do after I finish high school. I'll just wait for something good to come my way. I'll probably get some work at a workshop after graduation.

For STM students, university or college is not that important. The best choice is the technical department at the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), but I haven't heard of anyone from our school getting in there yet. It's really difficult because we have to meet certain requirements. Just thinking about it gives me a headache.

Andrini Joeli, 17, is a student at state-run SMUN 22 high school, South Jakarta:

My parents and I have decided that I will go to Yogyakarta after I graduate. We have a lot of relatives there and my siblings are all studying there. I took the admissions test for the state-run Gadjah Mada University (UGM) on Tuesday. I want to become a psychologist. If I don't get accepted at UGM, I can enroll at a private university. I prefer going to Atma Jaya Catholic University. I hear they have the best program for psychology. If I go to a private university, I think I'd better stay in Jakarta to keep my expenses low.

I think it's really important for high school graduates to get higher education because what we get from high school is not enough. High school education doesn't prepare us for a career. We have to master several skills or hold a degree to get a better- paying job.

Both my parents are university graduates and working at private companies. They also want us to have university degrees. Although it's costly to send three children to university, they think that it's very important for us, so we have to go.

Besta, 18, is a student at state-run SMUN 22 high school, South Jakarta:

I want to go to university. I want to get into public relations. I have been advised to go to a secretarial college or a PR school, but I'm not sure yet -- I am still thinking about it.

I am the oldest daughter in my family and my parents really hope that I will get a university degree, or any degree at all. But since my father is the only one working in our family, I am not sure if I can afford to go to university like many of my friends. If I go to university I will have to study for at least four years and pay for other expenses like books, transportation and meals. And I would still have to find a job afterward. But if I go to college, I'll be finished in only three years.

What does university education mean to me? Going to university means we have to be ready for hard work and scrimp to get by, but we will also have more chances at gaining better, broader knowledge than if we were to go to college or take some vocational courses.