Students would get career warning under FL higher ed reform bill (college, counselor)

[MissLizzie85]

Students would get career warning under higher ed reform bill | February 9, 2012 | Zac Anderson | HT Politics

I'm all for letting students explore different careers to find which is the best fit for them, but this bill seems ridiculous. As a former music teacher and artist who is married to a successful musician, I can't think of anything worse than a guidance counselor who is required by law to basically talk a student out of his or her chosen career path. Is there nothing to be said for students who want to pursue a career they love rather than a career that leads to "financial riches"? Don't we need scientists AND English teachers? I shouldn't even read the news anymore- it's all too frustrating!

[Charles Wallace]

Originally Posted by MissLizzie85

Students would get career warning under higher ed reform bill | February 9, 2012 | Zac Anderson | HT Politics

I'm all for letting students explore different careers to find which is the best fit for them, but this bill seems ridiculous. As a former music teacher and artist who is married to a successful musician, I can't think of anything worse than a guidance counselor who is required by law to basically talk a student out of his or her chosen career path. Is there nothing to be said for students who want to pursue a career they love rather than a career that leads to "financial riches"? Don't we need scientists AND English teachers? I shouldn't even read the news anymore- it's all too frustrating!

I think it's a fine idea to provide reasonable and demonstrable information about the future income a person in a profession is likely to make.

I think many students get "sticker shock" when they realize that their Women's Studies major won't allow them to find many jobs, and those jobs won't come close to covering the student's loan debt for his or her college education.

Believe me, I went into teaching with no illusions I was going to be getting a new Mercedes, a corner office, and a six-figure salary -- but that's because the salary teachers get is well-known and often joked about. I have a feeling some students are under the illusion that their major will actually pay for their debt. Obviously, this is not always true.

[Stijl Council]

But unless you're in one of the few professions for which a bachelor's degree is, in effect, a professional degree (accounting, engineering, nursing, education), your choice of major doesn't really matter. What matters more is developing experience and skills, and not taking out financial obligations (including student loans) unless you have a clear plan for why they're useful to you and how you're going to pay them back -- skills a lot of teens do NOT leave high school with.

[MissLizzie85]

Originally Posted by Charles Wallace

I think it's a fine idea to provide reasonable and demonstrable information about the future income a person in a profession is likely to make.

I think many students get "sticker shock" when they realize that their Women's Studies major won't allow them to find many jobs, and those jobs won't come close to covering the student's loan debt for his or her college education.

Believe me, I went into teaching with no illusions I was going to be getting a new Mercedes, a corner office, and a six-figure salary -- but that's because the salary teachers get is well-known and often joked about. I have a feeling some students are under the illusion that their major will actually pay for their debt. Obviously, this is not always true.

This is true. However, Florida's new STEM regulations undermine careers outside of STEM fields. While I understand that science and technology are important subjects and that many students aren't educated properly in the sciences, I'm upset that tax dollars will be used to essentially push students into fields that they don't have any interest in. Students should have the opportunity to develop into well-rounded citizens, and undermining liberal arts programs in favor of the sciences isn't the answer. I don't see how favoring STEM programs in public schools will be affordable- think of all the paperwork! Plus, it insinuates that the overwhelming majority of students that are uninterested in STEM careers are somehow less valuable to society.

[HappyTexan]

Look, if everyone can be a winner then everyone can be an engineer..right ?
Someone, somewhere in the education food chain has no clue what they are doing.

[High_Plains_Retired]

I certainly wouldn't want the government steering my child toward biology. It's a science that has been deeply corrupted by politics in America.