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Slightly tongue in cheek list of career options for the un-degreed.
Wedding Singer
Nightclub DJ
Valet
Dog Catcher
Director of Entertainment
Process Server
Line Cook
Hostess
Light Manufacturing / Quality Control Supervisor
Internet Loudmouth (blogger...or otherwise)
That being said, a college degree is a wonderful way to obtain skills, but a diploma doesn't come with a bottle of fairy dust that entitles someone to a career. I'm impressed with someone's pedigree for a hot minute before I start figuring out what that persons intrinsic motivations/talents are.
I'm often inspired by the engineer (or fill in the blank) that turned chef because they realized where their true calling is. When a degree mates with a calling (or you can at least feign sincerity )....you might have the tiger by the tail.
I think if a college degree is affordable, aligns with the marketplace and individual desire/passion, then it's a worthwhile pursuit.
Last edited by multiphonic; 02-27-2013 at 01:45 AM..
A lot of kids these days have the Bill Gates fantasy stuck in there head, the "I dont need college, just look at Bill Gates".
Being a capitalist isn't a fantasy. What is a fantasy however, is the notion of the average baby boomer that if their kid(s) go to college like they did, they'll have a cushy white-picket fence life like they had in the 80's and 90's. Ain't gonna happen.
The amount of college grads in America has risen 400% in the past 30 years. Are there 400% more white-collar jobs in this country that require a college degree? Furthermore, baby boomers are now trying to sell the "American Dream" back to their children's generation for about six times what they paid for it in the 80's. My dad's house cost him $50,000 in 1984. Now he's trying to sell it for $300,000. Meanwhile, pay rates for entry-level positions for recent college grad really hasn't changed all that much. $40,000/year is now $55,000/year. But if you don't live in the big house like mom and dad, have three cars, two kids in private school, and have a head start on your retirement by the time you're 30, then you're "underachieving". Ha!
Being a capitalist isn't a fantasy. What is a fantasy however, is the notion of the average baby boomer that if their kid(s) go to college like they did, they'll have a cushy white-picket fence life like they had in the 80's and 90's. Ain't gonna happen.
The amount of college grads in America has risen 400% in the past 30 years. Are there 400% more white-collar jobs in this country that require a college degree? Furthermore, baby boomers are now trying to sell the "American Dream" back to their children's generation for about six times what they paid for it in the 80's. My dad's house cost him $50,000 in 1984. Now he's trying to sell it for $300,000. Meanwhile, pay rates for entry-level positions for recent college grad really hasn't changed all that much. $40,000/year is now $55,000/year. But if you don't live in the big house like mom and dad, have three cars, two kids in private school, and have a head start on your retirement by the time you're 30, then you're "underachieving". Ha!
I'm a Boomer (born 1960) and a college grad (1982). At 30, the hubs and I had 1 car, 2 kids and a 2 bedroom/1 bath apartment. We both worked full time, but we had no retirement savings whatsoever since neither of our companies offered pensions and 401Ks were not widely available. We also had 1 TV, no VCR, no cable, no cell phones, no computers, no trips to anywhere and no meals at nice restaurants.
Yeah, it was WAY cushy back then. There is a big disconnect about the way some people perceive all Boomer parents lived at a 30 and how many actually lived.
There's all kinds of answers to the OP's question. It might be easier to view the prospect of a college degree by looking back from the goal, rather than by looking at the goal to attain. The experience of many will confirm that the educational intent at time of entry to college may wind up vastly different from the actual achievement, "...just look at Bill Gates."
Rate the student on some working criteria...
Does the student excel in courses, advanced placement?
Does the student like to read?
Does the student participate in extra-curriculars?
Does the student have a plan that can be recognized in his/her usual practices or lifestyle?
Make up all the questions that would connect today's reality with tomorrow's unknown, and the final goal - if there is one.
If there is no defined goal, such as 'I intend to be a 'deepwater structural engineer' which might be supported by having excelled in other offshore interests - such as diving - then it might be time to scale back on planned educational activities.
If the student is going to college because 'It's what everybody does,' then STOP... STOP. Consider the Jco route. Get all of those basics and pre-req's out of the way while the kid is at home. Let the kid concentrate on being the best student he/she can be. Or take fewer hours and let the student work or volunteer part time. Try reading some of the tales of recent graduates strapped with overwhelming debt. And for what? A few courses in database management?
I'm a Boomer (born 1960) and a college grad (1982). At 30, the hubs and I had 1 car, 2 kids and a 2 bedroom/1 bath apartment. We both worked full time, but we had no retirement savings whatsoever since neither of our companies offered pensions and 401Ks were not widely available. We also had 1 TV, no VCR, no cable, no cell phones, no computers, no trips to anywhere and no meals at nice restaurants.
Yeah, it was WAY cushy back then. There is a big disconnect about the way some people perceive all Boomer parents lived at a 30 and how many actually lived.
I'm an older Boomer, in the first wave (born 1949), and a college grad (1970). At 30, I was single (divorced), working full time, renting a tiny post-WW II house with my boyfriend (now husband of 32 years), paying off a Ford Fiesta. I'm trying to remember 1979. The hostages were in Iran. I worked for a public agency, so I had the prospect of a pension upon retirement, some 35 years later. I had little savings. We had no cable, and in rural Illinois, where we lived, there were only the three networks and PBS. Of course, there were no cell phones, no internet, etc.
As I am wont to do, I will continue my tradition of making unpopular (but hopefully thought provoking) suggestions and say that people ought to do what their natural inclination is, what interests them, and what gives them satisfaction regardless of whether it takes them to college or not. If you like English literature, you find it fascinating and you want to spend your life studying it, then go to college and major in English lit. If you like working with your hands and building things from wood, then go a trade school and learn woodworking. You should'nt go to college just because that's what everyone says you *should* do. You should do what you have an affinity for.
I think if a college degree is affordable, aligns with the marketplace and individual desire/passion, then it's a worthwhile pursuit.
Traditional college isn't for everyone but it's true a person needs some sort of training to earn a living, unless they are going into the family business whereby they'd get on the job training from dear old dad. Those are few and far between, though.
There is nothing wrong with a technical or trade school and I know quite a few wealthy realtors and insurance people who never went beyond high school, with the exception of eight weeks of schooling to become certified.
I'm an older Boomer, in the first wave (born 1949), and a college grad (1970). At 30, I was single (divorced), working full time, renting a tiny post-WW II house with my boyfriend (now husband of 32 years), paying off a Ford Fiesta. I'm trying to remember 1979. The hostages were in Iran. I worked for a public agency, so I had the prospect of a pension upon retirement, some 35 years later. I had little savings. We had no cable, and in rural Illinois, where we lived, there were only the three networks and PBS. Of course, there were no cell phones, no internet, etc.
Doesn't sound like the "cushy" life some claim all we Boomers enjoyed at 30. I guess some younger folks assume we lived at 30 how we live now without considering the 30-40 years of hard work and the un-cushy parts that came before. For me and my husband, college degrees did indeed lead to better things. But, we definitely didn't arrive there magically the day after graduation.
Doesn't sound like the "cushy" life some claim all we Boomers enjoyed at 30. I guess some younger folks assume we lived at 30 how we live now without considering the 30-40 years of hard work and the un-cushy parts that came before. For me and my husband, college degrees did indeed lead to better things. But, we definitely didn't arrive there magically the day after graduation.
Exactly!
Some of this anti-Boomer hostility sounds like my own generation with its "Don't trust anyone over 30" mantra that some embraced. Truthfully, many of us thought our parents didn't know squat about "how things are today"; we said they had a "depression mentality"; they said we were too idealistic; that credit was now too easy to get, etc. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
False assumption, especially for students getting merit aid or those not transferring to their state universities....
Is college worth it, yes. List 10 jobs that one can get, now, today, without going to a community college or 4 year school.
As for student loan debt, there are 100's of colleges out there that offer merit aid. College doesn't have to be expensive and if you max out your federal student loan debt that is $27,000, basically a car payment that can EASILY be paid off in 5 years or less, just like a car payment. Just don't take out any parent or private loans. The average student loan debt is about $24,000--hardly "drowning for life". Stop listening to the 1% of students that were stupid and took $200,000 in student loans for a degree in "philosophy".
Just looked up tuition at Minnesota state colleges. U of M Twin Cities has resident tuition of $13,000 plus per year. Looked up some grants. They typically pay very little in most cases. I think you might reasonably expect to be $20,000-30,000 in debt upon 4 year graduation. If you luck out and graduate into a normal healthy economy, that might not be too bad. But the people who graduated from 2007-2010 found the worst of all worlds. Truth is that college administrations have been terribly prodigal in running up expenses. Cheap student loans have created a bubble economy in the higher education sector. If the country ever wises up, I think there's going to be a LOT of pain in higher education. Way too many approvals of student loans in unpromising situations.
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)....you might have the tiger by the tail.
