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If you had a degree in "gender studies", you would have a great deal of practice with heavy reading assignments and term papers. You would know how to read, write and think.
My wife's new doctor (MD) graduated with a double major in women's studies and sociology. (Of course, she took the necessary pre-med courses)
Over her lifetime, this accomplished young woman will earn more money than anyone who went to "trade school".
Then anyone is a bit much. I know an under water welder in Canada who makes over $100 an hour with a GED and a trade school certificate.
I know a plumber who flunked out of trade school twice who now makes half a million a year running a large handyman/ plumbing/ mechanical company.
I used to work for a company working on high end RV's (millon plus dollars) most of the customers were small business people who owned small under 50 person companies most in trades and I doubt most of them had a degree.
Plenty of people with trade school degrees will do far better financially then she ever will. Now of course these are exceptions and most won't but some certainly will.
In a lot of ways a bachelor's is the new high school diploma. In part, because we forget that not everyone used to graduate from high school, not that long ago.
Prior to the 1960s only about 60% roughly graduated from high school. Prior to WWII, even less.
We have more population, more schools, thus more degrees.
Looking at that link... It's amazing to think that only 100 years ago barely 10% of the population even graduated high school. We take for granted how automatic it is now.
Years ago, a BA meant you were getting a 100K job out the gates. Where as if you had high school, you'd get say a 50k job. Now, a days, high school gets you a min wage job whether you finished or not. A BA gets you a 50k job maybe. That's why it's nothing special.
No. It never meant that. Ever. Even adjusting for inflation.
I am not so sure I would be proud of myself if I got a degree in gender-studies or the like and still could not read or write or think when I got out the door. And it is highly likely I would be less employable at that point than someone who went to trade school or apprenticed at a trade, whether they finished high school or not.
But what if you got a degree in gender studies and you could "read and write and think"? (As most college-educated folks can do...) What if in pursuit of that gender studies degree you learned to "read and write and think" very well in fact? And you could reason and critique and present your arguments intelligently and convincingly? Would you be proud of yourself then?
What if you took those skills and wrote well-regarded articles and books? Would you be proud of yourself? Or you took those skills and then obtained a law degree so you could fight gender discrimination? Would you be proud of yourself? Or what if you took those skills and work for a non-profit that helped women and children in crisis? Would you be proud of that?
*It's not the degree that determines success, it's up to the person obtaining the degree*
A bachelors degree is now the bare minimum education level if one wants a job that pays a living wage.
Those feel good stories of a low iq HS dropout running a multi million dollar plumbing business is very much a exception. For every one of those you will have millions working at Walmart and living off food stamps.
Those I know over the years who own trade businesses are some of the smartest people I have ever met. They could have easily gotten a bachelors degree and many do later on. I just find it offensive when people suggest trade school as an option for someone less intelligent or less academically capable.
Then anyone is a bit much. I know an under water welder in Canada who makes over $100 an hour with a GED and a trade school certificate.
I know a plumber who flunked out of trade school twice who now makes half a million a year running a large handyman/ plumbing/ mechanical company.
I used to work for a company working on high end RV's (millon plus dollars) most of the customers were small business people who owned small under 50 person companies most in trades and I doubt most of them had a degree.
Plenty of people with trade school degrees will do far better financially then she ever will. Now of course these are exceptions and most won't but some certainly will.
How exactly are those examples doing far better than the MD? Unless she's a resident?
Then anyone is a bit much. I know an under water welder in Canada who makes over $100 an hour with a GED and a trade school certificate.
I know a plumber who flunked out of trade school twice who now makes half a million a year running a large handyman/ plumbing/ mechanical company.
I used to work for a company working on high end RV's (millon plus dollars) most of the customers were small business people who owned small under 50 person companies most in trades and I doubt most of them had a degree.
Plenty of people with trade school degrees will do far better financially then she ever will. Now of course these are exceptions and most won't but some certainly will.
Yes, there are outliers such as you describe above. There's also Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg. But for the average person, more education means more money and less unemployment.
As of 2014, 36% of US adults 25-29 held a bachelor's degree. 32% of all adults.
We have an explosion of people with "some college." Only 44% with an associates degree among 25-29, so not even half are completing 2 years, which I'm somewhat surprised by.
Traditionally only 30-40% of a college starting class makes it through, that's only marginally improved in recent years.
So yes, something to be proud of, regardless of degree type or major. If it seems like less of a big deal to you, perhaps it's because you're in a field with a lot of degrees or you're in one of the 4 states that has more than the US average of college graduates.
When people begin a degree program and don't finish it, my assumption is that they either were not able or willing to secure sufficient funding, have a lifestyle that doesn't mesh well with a traditional student schedule (small children, unconventional work hours), or that they were unable to maintain an acceptable GPA.
Yes, there are outliers such as you describe above. There's also Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg. But for the average person, more education means more money and less unemployment.
Nevermind those outliers attended ivy league universities. They weren't just random high school dropouts. Lol
Nevermind those outliers attended ivy league universities. They weren't just random high school dropouts. Lol
IMO it's better to start and graduate from a mediocre school than it is to start at an ivy league and drop out.
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