PGH: #6 mid-size metro College Destination (Pittsburgh, Gap: how much, high school, universities)

[BrianTH]

This according to the American Institute for Economic Research:

http://www.aier.org/aier/otherpublications/CDI.pdf

As always, the rankings themselves are a bit arbitrary (e.g., we just missed the cutoff for the major metros list), and generally should be taken with a grain of salt. But this report includes some interesting data on various issues.

[Honest Bob]

The reason why Pittsburgh was chosen as #6 was because it is cheaper to live here then other places in the country and because the area was already so depressed before the start of this recession that it was not affected as bad as other areas of the country that were hit harder because they were more accustomed to prosperity.

I got a good laugh out of the list - because all of the places on the list were the worst possible places to send a young kid for a education - with the exception of Pittsburgh.

What people are looking for is the biggest bang for their buck.

If you take an average cost of a college education for a 4 year degree in humanities and factor that cost over even 30 years against a salary that probably tops out right now at about $50,000 per a year. Plus the money you could have been making the 4 years you attended school. You end up with a person that cannot make enough money in their lifetime to even be able to afford a new car - after paying all your bills and the college tuition money back.

In a down economy, where a person can make $10 - $12 a hour doing physical work and menial jobs, isn't it more profitable for that person to take the lower paying job and not have all the college debt staring them in the face for the next 20 or 30 years?

There are flat rate automobile mechanic's working for Kenny Ross Chevrolet that is making $50,000.00 - $100,000.00 per a year, depending on which tasks they are assigned and how long it takes them to do them.

[DaBurgh]

Certainly some trade workers, properly licensed and experienced, such as mechanics, plumbers, electricians, HVAC workers, etc. will make more money than certain college grads.

Here's an article from the WSJ that describes the gap between the earnings of college grads and those who hold a high school diploma, and some other tidbits.

Earnings Gap Between College and High School Grads Small - WSJ.com

[BrianTH]

College definitely is not the right or necessary choice for everyone. On the other hand, although estimates of its size vary, on average college graduates do earn more. Moreover, there is also a question of options--even if you have a good job now, you may at least want the option to consider a job that requires a college degree in the future. Similarly, you may need to have a college degree to get a graduate or professional degree. And so on.

So again, I don't think we should insist that everyone go to college, nor is it always a bad idea to delay going to college a while. But a college degree often does have its advantages.

On the other hand, exactly how much you should pay for college is a whole different issue . . .

[PreservationPioneer]

Originally Posted by Honest Bob

In a down economy, where a person can make $10 - $12 a hour doing physical work and menial jobs, isn't it more profitable for that person to take the lower paying job and not have all the college debt staring them in the face for the next 20 or 30 years?

I think 10-12 an hour would be damn good money for a kid with no college experience to be making at a menial job. I have my bachelor's degree and I only make $13 an hour.

[Katarina Witt]

Diversity is determined by # of foreign students?

[youngabe]

Not to take this thread in a whole other direction, but I think it's sad how undervalued a college education is these days. I have my Associate Degree, I'm young, and was fortunate enough to land an amazing job because of experience I had under my belt. People have generally asked me if I plan to continue my education--my response: "If I have to pay for it myself, absolutely not." There's a chance my employer would foot the bill for a higher degree, but I absolutely refuse to incur "x" amount of additional debt to make a small amount more annually. It would be a complete wash. Luckily I have a very manageable amount of debt from my Associate Degree, but I cannot fathom increasing that to possibly not earn more annually.

[pman]

the cheapest way to get a college education is 2 years of community plus two years of university, working at a company that reimburses. still, college education is too expensive, the price needs to come down. the idea of "bare bones" colleges has been floated but was really unpopular with established colleges. the idea is that you don't need state of the art facilities of all kinds to learn. you just need classrooms and teachers. one of the better teachers I had wrote his own text and sold it to you for $11, rather than going through the normal distribution channels. he had to fight with the university every year over his right to do so since they got a much bigger cut if he went through the normal channels of book distribution. and yes, this was a state run university.

[Katarina Witt]

There are a lot of threads discussing issues like the above two posts on the education/colleges and universities forum. You guys should join the fun!

[Blackbeauty212]

Originally Posted by youngabe

Not to take this thread in a whole other direction, but I think it's sad how undervalued a college education is these days. I have my Associate Degree, I'm young, and was fortunate enough to land an amazing job because of experience I had under my belt. People have generally asked me if I plan to continue my education--my response: "If I have to pay for it myself, absolutely not." There's a chance my employer would foot the bill for a higher degree, but I absolutely refuse to incur "x" amount of additional debt to make a small amount more annually. It would be a complete wash. Luckily I have a very manageable amount of debt from my Associate Degree, but I cannot fathom increasing that to possibly not earn more annually.

AMEN PREACH!!!!

I got my bachelors and I'm still paying for it.....I believe in 2010 experience is now outweighing degrees because everybody and their mothers has one....I will NOT take on more debt for something that no longer guarantees me a well paying job.....I have a phobia of Large amounts of debt anyway, dont know how people can sleep at night owing 100s of thousands in debt (I would lose my mind)

People are so focused on $$$$$$$ need more $$$$$$$ rather than doing what they truly love and have a passion for....If you heart is into working on cars why are you sitting behind a desk crunching numbers....You will find you life sooooooo much more stress free if you're doing what you LOVE to do or are skilled in because you wont look at it as just another JOB you looking at it is as getting paid to do my HOBBY/MY SKILL

Me I love challenges - things to make me think, challenge my mind, problem solving, number crunching almost - that's why i work in Finance...and with my bachelors and a ton of experience to go along with it....I'm not looking for more unless like Youngabe said my employer wants to invest in my future and shows me that I am that important to the company.