Multi-millionaire entrepreneur Dick Smith is urging young Australians to consider taking up a profession instead of studying at university – as successful Gen Z workers warn uni is actually a ‘money sugar’.
In an interview with Daily Mail Australia, Mr. Smith, who has an estimated net worth of $60 million, that he has done ‘okay for himself’ despite having no formal qualifications.
Sir. Smith, who made a fortune selling Dick Smith Electronics to Woolworths, claimed many of his non-college-educated staff are just as hard-working as those studying at uni.
“If you want to be a doctor or an engineer, yes, it’s (education) a necessity — but so often it’s wasted, especially with people who get arts degrees and never use them,” Smith said.
‘They’ve just spent an extra year learning theory when they should be learning practical things.’
Meanwhile, several young workers told Daily Mail Australia they face enormous pressure from Gen X and Baby Boomer parents to study at university. This is despite the fact that those generations have often never gone to university themselves.
Many young Australians are ignoring that advice – with uni enrollments falling to an almost decade low as they look for full-time jobs or pursue trades instead.
Australian entrepreneur Dick Smith says it is not “necessary” to have an education to succeed in Australia. Above with wife Pip
A recent Australian Industry Group survey of 25-year-olds found tradespeople earned 16 per cent more money than their peers with university degrees at that age
And it’s proving to be the right move, with recent research showing that tradies are happier and wealthier in their 20s compared to college graduates.
Meanwhile, Mr Smith pointed to examples of traditions doing ‘incredibly well’.
The businessman said Australia needs more skilled tradespeople as record population growth – fueled by immigration – puts further pressure on the housing crisis.
“A craftsman can make really good money, especially if he or she opens their own business,” Smith said.
‘My local electrician, he’s a millionaire. He has done very well. And so to me an entrepreneur who sets up their own business can do incredibly well in Australia.
‘I think there is a greater chance that someone with a trade qualification can open their own business and employ their own people than someone with an art degree.’
Young woman: I regret going to uni
Melbourne woman Chelsea Taylor has three incomplete university degrees and about $30,000 in student debt.
The 23-year-old told Daily Mail Australia she felt a ‘really big push to go to university’ and studied exercise science, teaching and nursing every year.
“It was at the end of my third year at university that I realized I didn’t want to be there – I wasn’t enjoying university and it wasn’t leading to what I wanted,” Ms Taylor said.
Ms Taylor said she ‘felt lost’ and unsure about her career when her brother saw a TV advert calling for Melbourne Metro Train drivers.
The young Aussie applied and got the part. She has worked as a train driver since September 2020.
“When I started as a train driver I knew nothing about trains… but the training required was incredibly extensive,” Ms Taylor said.
“It can be a challenging job, it’s a big responsibility to transport hundreds of people at once, but it’s worth it,” Ms Taylor said.
Ms. Taylor wishes she had discovered her job sooner.
“When I finished high school I didn’t know there were good jobs available if you didn’t go to university or didn’t go to TAFE,” Ms Taylor said.
‘There is also a stigma that if you don’t go to university you are wasting an opportunity. I think this couldn’t be more wrong.’
Chelsea Taylor, 23, felt a “huge push to go to uni” and after three incomplete university degrees and about $30,000 in debt, she found a job she loves as a train driver for Melbourne Metro
Ms Taylor said the stigma of “wasting an opportunity” by not going to uni could not be more wrong (pictured, university graduates walking along Swanton Street in Melbourne)
Young Australians turn to FIFO work
Many high school leavers get jobs in the mining industry, some paying up to $120,000 a year – to save money and advance their careers.
FIFO worker Jayden Peters, 24, is encouraging young Australians to pursue a career in the mines to maintain their financial goals.
Peters works as a cleaner on a two-in-one shift schedule – two weeks on, one week off – while also starting an internship to become a tire fitter.
“Don’t fall for uni propaganda, it’s the biggest money and time drain of your life, and $150,000 isn’t a lot of money, especially for the mines,” Peters said.
‘Get your tickets, do a FIFO trainee or a FIFO apprentice, just don’t go to uni.
‘Don’t spend thousands and tens of thousands of dollars on s**t that you can get almost instantly and for free.’
FIFO employee Jayden Peters (pictured right) urged young Australians not to fall for ‘uni propaganda’ and to pursue a career in the mines
Mining coach at Underground Training Andrew Knight said the mining industry gave young Australians a way to earn “buckets” of money while working and developing their careers
‘If you’re broke and you really want some good money, get into FIFO. You can be a cleaner making close to $2,000 a week, Peters said.
‘The possibilities are endless. I’m a cleaner – that’s what I am right now – but I’m about to start an apprenticeship to be a tire fitter that starts at $150,000 a year and goes all the way up to $200,000 and that’s two and two.’
‘Yes, it’s 12-hour days non-stop for two weeks straight, but when you’re up here, it’s really not that bad. There is nothing else to do and the work is actually quite pleasant.’
He added: ‘Free food, free accommodation. I spend zero dollars while earning some of the best money in Australia.’
Mining coach at Underground Training Andrew Knight told Daily Mail Australia it doesn’t take long for workers to move into higher paying roles with salaries well beyond most jobs offered to university graduates.
He added that the best success stories are people who work for five to 10 years and use that money to buy their first home or pay off their mortgage.
Sir. Knight said he expected someone who has worked in the mining industry for four years to earn between $150,000 and $250,000 a year in a wide variety of jobs.
Decline in university enrolments
The number of university students continues to decline. In 2016 there were 939,000, but this year there are only 815,700 according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
This drop means Education Minister Jason Clare’s target of having 55 per cent of young people with bachelor’s degrees by 2050 grows further out of reach.
“We need more young people going to university or TAFE,” Clare said.
“Currently, almost one in two Australians in their late 20s has a university degree. But not everywhere. Not in the regions. Not in poor families.
“This report makes it clear that this needs to change. The changes happening in our economy right now mean that this needs to change.
“If we don’t, we won’t have the skills and economic firepower we need to make Australia all it can be in the years ahead.”
The average amount of student debt is now $24,770 per student, compared to $15,191 a decade ago. Meanwhile, the number of people with debt over $100,000 has also tripled in the past three years.
In contrast, many trades offer a fee-free apprenticeship, meaning many apprentices graduate without accumulating any debt while also earning on the job.
A recent study by the Australian Industry Group of 25-year-olds found that trades people earned 16 per cent more money than their peers with university degrees at that age.
The Universities Accord Interim Report released in 2023 showed the number of Australians enrolled in an undergraduate degree had fallen 12 per cent in less than a decade (pictured, students relaxing on the grass at the University of New South Wales)
Both high school leavers and young Australians get FIFO jobs instead of going to university (pictured, FIFO miners boarding flight to Newman, Western Australia)
“A lot of people who went through an undergraduate course were still unclear about what they were doing when they graduated,” the head of Ai Group’s Center for Education and Training, Megan Lilly, told Daily Mail Australia.
‘Sometimes degrees can be very generalist, so it takes people a while to navigate their way into a job that’s either aligned with what they studied or what they’re interested in.
‘The relationship between what people studied at undergraduate level and what they do for work is a much looser relationship than the apprenticeship.’
Ms Lilly said by the time a tradesman is 25 years old they would potentially be fully qualified and earning a full wage.
This is in contrast to a university graduate of the same age who would just finish their education and begin their transition into the workforce.