Nearly twice as many people think learning to drive gives school leavers better value for money than getting a degree.
A new survey has found that a third (33%) of people think learning to drive offers better value for money than getting a degree or getting on the property ladder. Only 18 per cent think getting a degree gives the best value for money, while more than a quarter (26%) think putting down a deposit on a first home offers the best value for money.
An AA/Populus poll of 11,361 AA members conducted between17 and 24 August 2011 asked:
After leaving school, young people have many important life skills to gain and many of their own priorities for life. With this in mind, which of the following would you describe as the best value for money?
- 5% said being fashionable
- 9% said gap year travelling
- 13% said buying a car
- 18% said getting a degree
- 26% said putting down a deposit on their first home
- 33% said learning to drive
Amongst 17-to-25-year-olds, results showed the perceived value for money offered by a degree decreases with age. 17-to-19-year-olds were twice as likely (46%) to think a degree offered value for money than 23-to-25-year-olds (21%).
Conversely, the perceived value for money of learning to drive increases with age among that demographic from 11% of 17-to-19-year-olds to 15% of 23-to-25-year-olds.
AA President Edmund King said: “Getting a degree, buying a home and learning to drive are all key life milestones. Each one helps build an independent and successful life.
“As the cost of university rockets and the housing market remains volatile, it is not surprising that many people think learning to drive offers school leavers the best value for money out of the three options. Driving is important for young people as it brings independence, enhances employment prospects and gives job mobility. In today’s economic climate with greater competition for jobs, having a driving licence, as well as a degree, helps people get on the job ladder.
“School leavers taking their test at 17 are also more likely to pass than those who take their test later in life and therefore, learning to drive early can bring wider economic benefits. Added to that, if you drive regularly, once you have your licence you are reminded of the value of learning to drive most days. But as you progress your career, getting your degree can easily seem a distant, if happy memory. This may explain why the perceived value for money offered by driving lessons increases with age, and decreases with age for a degree.”
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