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One of my degrees will more than likely prove absolutely useless in terms of obtaining employment or advancement.
The first has obtained me steady (in a relative sense) employment in a mediocre paying field for about a decade.
Could I have done the same without it? To be honest?
If I had dropped out of college, I think I would have gone into computers and gotten a tech degree, or become an auto mechanic. If I had gone into computers, there's a chance I would have made significantly more than I make now, especially if you believe what you read here on CD.
As an auto mechanic, I would have definitely made less over that period. But then again, I wasted some of that extra time and $ going back to school for more degrees.
It's really hard to say. But either way, I'm not better off at THIS POINT because of my degrees. In the future, hopefully. In terms of personal enrichment, my schooling was good for some interesting life experiences that I definitely wouldn't have had if I had been working in a garage for the past 15 years.
One of my degrees will more than likely prove absolutely useless in terms of obtaining employment or advancement.
The first has obtained me steady (in a relative sense) employment in a mediocre paying field for about a decade.
Could I have done the same without it? To be honest?
If I had dropped out of college, I think I would have gone into computers and gotten a tech degree, or become an auto mechanic. If I had gone into computers, there's a chance I would have made significantly more than I make now, especially if you believe what you read here on CD.
As an auto mechanic, I would have definitely made less over that period. But then again, I wasted some of that extra time and $ going back to school for more degrees.
It's really hard to say. But either way, I'm not better off at THIS POINT because of my degrees. In the future, hopefully. In terms of personal enrichment, my schooling was good for some interesting life experiences that I definitely wouldn't have had if I had been working in a garage for the past 15 years.
I agree, auto "mechanic" or automotive technicians make a low amount of money for a large amount of physical work.
Is my degree a waste of time? No. Do I regret it? Not really. Could have I gone into a more satisfying field? Yes, yes yes.
Although I am happy with where I am in my life, I can't regret how it turned out and what I gained from my degree path. To me the degree is only part of it, it's also the experience along the way, from where I went to school, who I met, and where I've worked/work.
I am almost done with my Associate Degree and will then pursue a bachelors in paralegal studies. Which is an odd major. People usually are either paralegals with a certificate or AS degree or become attorneys. Bachelors is in between and probably a waste.
BUT, I want to apply for any office job, where you need a bachelors in something related. Usually, employers hire people with Business degrees. I took some classes and just hated it. I talked to some employers and they said, they wouldn't care if I had a business or a paralegal bachelors. As long as it isn't history or something else completely different.
So no, I don't think my degree will be useless. Education is never a waste. Well - maybe if you decide to move out into the sticks and live from hunting.
Does anyone on here feel that their degree was a gross waste of time, energy, and money?
If so, what did you major in and what would you do if you could go back and change majors?
My degree was in English and I've had a very, very good career. Doing quite well at age 51, thanks.
I've glanced through this thread and it's the usual array of bragging and complaining. So here's the thing: Unless you are in a seriously technical profession, the kind of degree you have matters for a very short period of time after graduation. After that, what really matters is your ability to keep learning and busting it.
In the field that eventually became my career, it took me less than a couple of months to learn absolutely everything I possibly could have had I pursued it as a degree. I asked a million questions, read the trade journals, worked late, and generally researched the heck out of it. A year into my first job in the biz, I was interviewing freshly-minted grads.
Are applications for law school still increasing? I read that a new law school is opening?
I know that the number of people taking the LSAT is going down, so that is probably indicative of declining enrollment in schools.
Law schools are broken up into tiers - basically how prestigious they are, and thus a good indicator of future success.
There is definitely a surplus of lawyers, as with many educational disciplines (how many sociology, psychology, etc majors do we need?). The difference is that a B.A from a state school will cost you under 30,000, a J.D from even a mediocre school will usually set you back that much in 1 year.
Kind of. I earned it while I was overseas as a military dependent. I wasn't able to work while in the foreign country, so the gap on my resume is at least filled in with studies, veruses doing nothing. And I was able to pay a little as I went, get aid, etc so I did not go into much debt for it. I only got a loan for part of the final year, of about $7K which I should be able to pay off next year. It was a computer studies degree.
As I've returned to the US, I have no work experience so I can't find work - the degree entailed a lot of business courses, so I'm perfectly happy starting as an administrative assistant to get my foot in the door. I know many who've done it, who've even started as temps and gone on to work their way up in the company. Unfortunately that has not been my fate, I've now settled for a job that will take people as long as they have a HS diploma and low pay. Although, they tend to not take people without solid work history, so perhaps my studies helped me with that gap. I'm disappointed I haven't been able to do better - that's why I went to college. I'm really no better off than I was prior to entering school. But, who knows what the future brings. I don't have to stay at this job forever.
Actually, I know one guy for whom it was a total, absolute waste.
This kid was the son of my parents' close friends. He was told from birth how smart he was. His parents practically danced around him banging tambourines and singing his praises. Robert this, Robert that. Hell, even my mom got into the act. "Why isn't your SAT as high as Robert?" Blah blah blahbity blah.
And the penultimate glory was when Robert got into Yale. I'd hear it around the dinner table. "Oh, Robert got into Yale. You know, if you'd taken those prep courses the way I suggested, you might be at Yale, too." Never mind that I had boffo test scores and a nice scholarship to a private college I could actually afford (My parents were strained to the breaking point in a four-alarm recession). It was Robert and Yale this, Robert and Yale that for four. Long. Years.
So Robert earns his degree in...wait for it...childhood education. That is perfectly respectable career path, mind you. But was it necessary to go to Yale for that?
His first day of teaching eighth grade was a disaster. The kids ate him alive. He literally walked into the principal's office at the end of his first week on the job and quit. He simply could not handle it.
Last time I heard, he was a shepherd in New Mexico. Yes. A shepherd. Heck, he didn't even need a GED for that. Funny how my mother doesn't really talk about Robert going to Yale anymore. I really wonder what his poor parents thought about it.
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