Leia o texto a seguir e responda à questão.
Many graduates earn ‘paltry returns’ for their degree
Mr Halfon, a former skills minister, stated ∈ his speech that the nation has “become obsessed ______(1) full academic degrees”.
“We are creating a higher education system that overwhelmingly favours academic degrees, while intermediate and higher technical offerings are comparatively tiny. The labour market does not need an ever-growing supply of academic degrees. Between a fifth and a third of our graduates take non-graduate jobs. The extra return for having a degree varies wildly according to subject and institution. For many, the returns are paltry.”
Mr Halfon said that there is a strong need for intermediate skills. “There are skills shortages ∈ several sectors. And there are millions ______(2) people who want to get on ∈ life – preferably without spending £50,000 on academic degrees,” he added. “There has been growing concern about the amount of debt students are accumulating and the interest being charged on that debt.”
A spokesman for UUK (a representative organisation for the UK’s universities) said: “Official figures are clear that, on average, university graduates continue to earn substantially more than non-graduates and are more likely to be ∈ employment. A university degree remains an excellent investment.”
“We must, however, be careful to avoid using graduate salaries as the single measure of success ∈ higher education. Many universities specialise ∈ fields such ______(3) the arts, the creative industries, nursing and public sector professions that, despite making an essential contribution to society and the economy, pay less on average.”
Adapted from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-42923529
According to the text, read the statements and choose the correct alternative.
I. Fifty percent of the graduates take non-graduate jobs.
II. Having a degree doesn’t necessarily mean having great salaries.
III. The labour market lacks intermediate skills.
IV. Many people would rather not spend £50,000 on academic degrees.
V. In every single case, university graduates make more money than non-graduates.
