Teenagers wronged

A press release from the Learning and Skills Council claims that teenagers have an unrealistic idea of what it takes to get into certain high paying positions or careers. Apparently, teenagers believe they do not need to undertake post-secondary education to get plumb positions in TV, on the soccer field and in other media associated roles. These just fall out of the sky, it seems. Well doesn't that just fit with certain prejudices? The study was supposedly done to encourage more students to investigate the LSC's Education Maintenance Allowance to offer the students more financial support - the principle reason 56% of the kids surveyed stated they would need to consider further education. Apart from missing its mark, I'd say the LSC has just wasted a whole bunch of money on a spurious study. The LSC's results are based on an online study of 2563 16-19 year olds only in England. 26% or 666 made the assertion reported by the LSC above. This is hardly representative, especially when seen against the 2008 population estimate for this age group in England of 3,325,000. So, there you have it, 0.02% of a presumably self-selecting group of people indicate an opinion that is little more than prejudice personified. Time for the LSC staff to go back to school perhaps?