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You seem to be unaware of options other than sending your 18 year old to Harvard. It's callous for a kid to expect their parent to go into debt so they can leisurely stroll through 4 years of partying. If a kid wants to go to college, they can get a job, study part time, study online, study at night, work at night, work all day, work during breaks, bla... bla... bla... it's like almost an entire country forgets that the legal working age is 14/16 and the money saved between then and college entrance can easily pay for the first year or 2 - especially if that's done at a community college which... why wouldn't you do that? Then the money earned during those 2 years can at least pay for the 3rd year... and then the 4th can be paid 'as they earn' and if that means finishing off part-time, at least they finished. Where the heck does debt come from?
Kicking a kid out of your home at 18 - now THAT's callous. Expecting them to pay for their own education while you house and feed them and probably also pay for their car, phone and clothes? Big deal.
oh look, it's someone who went to college in the 70's or in another country.
average state school costs $20,000/ year.
working full time at min wage ($8/hr) = $16640.
not to mention if you are getting any degree while working 40hrs/week, it's not a marketable degree. 98% of the population can't get a STEM degree at a top university while working full time. If you aren't going to one of the top colleges in your state, forget college. It's not going to help you out in anyway.
here's a link to show you the percentage of recent college graduates who are getting real jobs. there's a nice graph on page 6.
In the 1930s, my father took a train from suburban Pittsburgh into the city at night to go to classes at Carnegie Tech, now Carnegie Mellon University. He eventually saved enough money to go full time.
That data does show a difference but it isn't exactly a huge gap. 43.5% vs 59.7% completed their degree within 6 years. This difference isn't too surprising considering older adults have other things going on or may end up finding a job that pays a satisfactory salary. I believe the point still stands that one can start college well after 18 and still fairly easily obtain a degree (especially with things now going online).
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I think most everyone is aware that parents have no obligation to support their kids past age 18. Anything after that is done b/c the parents want to.
oh look, it's someone who went to college in the 70's or in another country.
average state school costs $20,000/ year.
working full time at min wage ($8/hr) = $16640.
not to mention if you are getting any degree while working 40hrs/week, it's not a marketable degree. 98% of the population can't get a STEM degree at a top university while working full time. If you aren't going to one of the top colleges in your state, forget college. It's not going to help you out in anyway.
here's a link to show you the percentage of recent college graduates who are getting real jobs. there's a nice graph on page 6.
If paying their own way, most people around here will live at home or with several roommates, work part time and commute to a university or community college.
Doing two years at community college cost about $5k. The local state school is about $7k/yr for commuters. That adds up to a 4 yr degree for less than $20k. And that's not including any scholarships, financial assistance or grants. A semi-responsible kid could easily finish their degree with no debt or just chump change on a loan.
Add about $10k to that if one wants to do their final two years at one of the 7 or 8 private schools around here.
That data does show a difference but it isn't exactly a huge gap. 43.5% vs 59.7% completed their degree within 6 years. This difference isn't too surprising considering older adults have other things going on or may end up finding a job that pays a satisfactory salary. I believe the point still stands that one can start college well after 18 and still fairly easily obtain a degree (especially with things now going online).
I agree that most are, but not all...
In other words, you're about 33% more likely to finish in 6 years if you start earlier. That's a huge gap.
oh look, it's someone who went to college in the 70's or in another country.
average state school costs $20,000/ year.
working full time at min wage ($8/hr) = $16640.
not to mention if you are getting any degree while working 40hrs/week, it's not a marketable degree. 98% of the population can't get a STEM degree at a top university while working full time. If you aren't going to one of the top colleges in your state, forget college. It's not going to help you out in anyway.
here's a link to show you the percentage of recent college graduates who are getting real jobs. there's a nice graph on page 6.
School does NOT cost $20k. Show me ANY associates degree in a community college that costs more than a few thousand per semester.
"Top university" - there's your problem right there. You think everyone is entitled to a "top university" education when it's not financially viable?
Plain stupidity.
Get your 2 year degree and finish off the Bachelor degree at a "Top university" if you're so inclined, but do it when you have the money - in your own calculations - do it when you've saved up about $40k
I'm gonna stomp my feet and complain that I can't buy a Bentley without getting into mountains of debt, and I'm going to bark about how people who drive Fords are just wasting their time.
If paying their own way, most people around here will live at home or with several roommates, work part time and commute to a university or community college.
Doing two years at community college cost about $5k. The local state school is about $7k/yr for commuters. That adds up to a 4 yr degree for less than $20k. And that's not including any scholarships, financial assistance or grants. A semi-responsible kid could easily finish their degree with no debt or just chump change on a loan.
Add about $10k to that if one wants to do their final two years at one of the 7 or 8 private schools around here.
Well done - my point exactly.
But he insists on everyone having to go to MIT or Harvard for 4 years so it's not a viable answer... lol
Why is it okay for 18 yo's to go off to WAR and DIE for causes they had no part in creating.....but it is NOT okay for them to do something much LESS risky such as have a real part in paying their own way through college without having to live at home to do it?
Why is this age group coddled ridiculously so if they're college-bound....but damn if almost every single one of us on here knows of a young person that's been killed in the line of duty???
I don't get it.
If you can fight a war, you can be an adult and live apart from your mom and dad whilst they help out somewhat (not 100%, but pitch in especially if the kid has motivation and is really working hard). The onus should be on the young person, especially since most parents try really hard to instill the right sense of values and work ethic in their children all through their minor years! God knows the onus is on them in combat, or in any other military service, or any non-college occupation. Why are college kids so babied all the time? What makes them more special than anyone else? Classism? Is this why so many rich folk in power tout the party line about service to your country and whatnot while hiding their own children away in some University somewhere so their own kids are safe?
Then you get the people with the crazy idea that if mommy and daddy aren't going to bankroll junior well past age 18 into college, they shouldn't have kids???
What happened to personal responsibility?
Why are college kids so special? Honestly, if one has gone to college on their parents dime whilst living at home, eating at home, having mama do their bloody laundry and all that crap for four long years only to have junior graduate to enter their dream job (courtesy of yet another secret handshake mom and dad probably helped set up) immediately? When exactly is this young person expected to learn anything real about the nature of life?
If you think the younger generation has it harder than previous generations, why don't some of the posters on this thread go find a person from the WWII generation or before to talk to. They'll tell you about hardship.
There is so much entitlement everywhere around us anymore about things like this that people have lost sense of what success really means.
I am recently divorced and while I did not want to be in this situation my ex had other plans. Of course the harder lesson is now trying to get her to understand that when we were married our daughter's (who is now a senior in high school) college fund grew at a very steady rate. Now that our household has split into two separate households (with expenses doubled) the ability to put away as much money for our daughter's education has suffered quite a bit. Now for me I have to work a couple of years longer just to be able to help put her through college. I do it gladly to continue to give my daughter the advantage I promised to give her when I was married to her mother.
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