is college worth it anymore

[jimmy2190]

well is it?

 

[mikexmoran]

Yes it is.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/27/upshot/is-college-worth-it-clearly-new-data-say.html?_r=0

http://money.cnn.com/2014/06/24/news/economy/college-worth-it/index.html

 

[Mandy Flores]

Seriously, how could it be? My older brother is 40. He and all of his friends went to college. Absolutely 0% of them are working jobs they couldn't have got without going to college, none of them in their degree fields. It just seems like unless you are going to be in a specialized field such as medical or law as examples, you just end up taking on huge amounts of debt, years of struggling to get passing grades and still pay your rent. Getting a degree for a degree's sake makes no sense anymore if you don't know exactly what you are going to be doing and how your degree is going to benefit you. As far as going to expand your knowledge.....made sense for you if you didn't have internet, but now there's nothing you can't learn if you are driven enough, and if you DO have that drive, then the ONLY reason to go to college is if the job is going to REQUIRE a degree. I had a friend recently get approved for an 18K loan to go to a fucking culinary school. I wish I would have had the balls to tell him he would never make it, but I wanted to believe he could as much as he did. Problem is he had NO BUSINESS trying to go to college. He can't do the simplest math, seriously 2/3 plus 1/4 completely baffled him. Yet the banks are so eager to get these loans done that you CAN'T file bankruptcy on, and the schools get paid rather you graduate or not. He never should have been there but nobody cares because they make their money either way. Of course he failed out before the end of the second semester.

Again, if your career requires a degree YES
Otherwise use your drive and ambition to SAVE your fucking money and learn anything you want for free online.

 

[xfire]

Unless you own the business, all fields require a degree for any serious advancement. There's more to college than what you learn in class, it's about networking and contacts, community service through clubs and Greek organizations, socializing outside of your established peer group, learning about life outside the protected walls of mandated secondary education, and getting a good taste of being an adult. You have four semesters to decide what you want to major in while working on your core curriculum and you get exposed to technology and opportunities that would likely be out of your reach except in the military or at a large corporation. Of course there are pitfalls to be aware of and if you're not mature enough to handle the freedom and independence life on campus affords, it might be best to wait until after you've got the partying and stupidity out of your system before you take on the debt, commitment, and responsibility it takes to graduate. In Texas colleges have programs for people who aren't prepared academically, it takes commitment and work, but you can overcome a lackluster high school career. Some people aren't ready for college, nothing but time and experience can cure that.

 

[Anonyne#017]

Unless you are planning on selling your ass on the streets or ready to do any leftover jobs, most jobs at least here usually require some kind of degree. Thought having a degree does not guarantee you a job...

 

[mikexmoran]

You have to look at education pragmatically. Choosing the right school is important. What fits into your budget and what the the school offers. There are great state schools that will put you a bit less into debt. Scholarships are key.

If done right, college will help you create a good starting network. A degree from a recognized school (it doesn't have to be ivy league or private) will allow you to gain access to careers that otherwise may be near impossible to break into. Competition is ruthless. It is international now.

I think when someone denies themselves and education, then regret it. It limits your income on average. I'm also a believer that it helps broaden your thinking ability.

 

[Rey C.]

Unless you own the business, all fields require a degree for any serious advancement.

This^^^

I would say that a degree is even more valuable to someone who doesn't know what they want to do in years to come than someone who does know (or *thinks* they know) what they want to do in years to come. Many younger people try to talk themselves out of going to college these days. And they often rely on anecdotals at the margin to support their beliefs. "Steve Jobs dropped out of college" or "I know a guy who has a degree and he can't find a job" type stuff. Sure, college costs are high and can place a financial burden on people for years to come. But for the average 18-22 year old, college is ABSOLUTELY worth it, if the effort leads to successful attainment of at least a bachelors degree. Why? Because even if you end up in a field or career choice that's not directly related to your degree, just having a degree gives you the ability to advance and additional opportunities that the person without a degree does not have. Not all degrees are created equal. And I personally wouldn't spend $60K a year, or whatever, going to Duke to get a degree in Women's Studies (*cough cough* Belle Knox). But even with that, all things equal, that person will still be in a position to be considered for higher paying jobs that the person without a degree (who is just as smart and maybe even harder working) can't even get an interview for. When companies post minimum educational requirements for jobs, they do indeed mean minimum requirements. Yeah, at 18-22, not that many people know exactly what they'll be doing at 35 or 40. Life and circumstances tend to take us in unexpected directions. But with a degree in hand, no matter what direction you end up going in, a degree simply gives you options that otherwise would not be there. If you are exceptional, you can do without a degree and do just fine. But not as many people are truly exceptional as they like to believe. And like Xfire said, college is about more than just going to (or sleeping through) classes. Depending on where you go and how well you apply yourself, college can force you to open your mind and learn how to dedicate yourself to completing goals.

In addition to what Xfire and Mike have said, this is all I would need to know if I was trying to decide whether or not to get a (bachelors) degree these days, especially after the Great Recession decimated the middle class.

Employment status of the civilian population 25 years and over by educational attainment

Less than a high school diploma Unemployment rate July 2014: 9.6%
High school graduates, no college Unemployment rate July 2014: 6.1%
Some college or associate degree Unemployment rate July 2014: 5.3%
Bachelor's degree and higher Unemployment rate July 2014: 3.1%


People with degrees have a lower unemployment rate and if they do become unemployed, their period of unemployment is MUCH shorter than it is for people without degrees.

 

[Mandy Flores]

After reading through the input of the last few posters, I do agree with them, but still have reservations about how vital it is to obtain a degree. My family has always been entrepreneurial and it never occurred to me that I wouldn't be working for myself someday. Obviously I am very fortunate that I had the looks to pull off what I am doing now, and the brains to be able to take advantage of it without having someone else owning all of my work. I really have a skewed view of the work environment because of what I have been able to do previous to this career. I guess when I think about it I always assume that a driven and intelligent person will end up running their own business. Why would you do a job for someone that you can do for yourself and make who knows how much more?

But you guys are right, it really is the exception that someone will be able to pull that off, or that they will be as fortunate as I have been.

On a side note though...... I hope it is just common sense for anyone going for ANY degree, to save a ton of money and begin those studies in a community/2-year college and finish up at the college you want to have your degree from. Doesn't matter where you start just what college you get your degree from.

 

[Will E Worm]

As I've documented in the past, many leftist teachers teach our youngsters to hate our country.



Only 27 percent of college grads have a job related to their major Article

 

[Mandy Flores]

As I've documented in the past, many leftist teachers teach our youngsters to hate our country.



Only 27 percent of college grads have a job related to their major Article

That whole hating the country you live in is another thing that dumbfounds me. This country IS the world, everyone comes here, anyone can come and build their dreams here.... Look back through history and find me even one Empire that had such complete and overwhelming wealth and power that didn't just take anything and everything it wanted. The U.S. isn't perfect by any stretch but seriously...go to war with the United States and you'll find yourself being rebuilt, becoming a democracy that is at least partly controlled by it's people, and in the cases of Germany, Japan, and S.Korea..... becoming some of the wealthiest people in the world! Go to war with Russia, or China and you just end up having all of your land and money taken by them. No country or Empire in history has spent so much and devoted so much energy into trying to improve the lives of others throughout the world. I know this nation still does some fucked up shit, but nothing close to the unimaginable murders of Russians and others under Stalin, or the horrors of Mao, or the oppression and hatred in the so many middle eastern countries.

 

[BusterLoads]

It really depends on what you want out of life and how well handle yourself. If you just want a simple job that you can just work at for your adult life, then no college would not be worth it, but it can be worth it to those only if they are smart but I wouldn't say it's absolutely necessary. Nowadays there are so many options instead of going to straight into college, especially if you're able to build up good work experience from early on. Then there are vocational/specialty schools to learn how to be a plumber, electrician, etc. There's always the many branches of the military (hey, it's an option). And there are government jobs, which although some of them require college credits, most only ask for a bare minimum of 60 which you can get at community college for dirt cheap.

I agree with pretty much what everyone said here, especially xfire and mikexmoran. College is more than just getting a degree; I mean hell you'll probably forget about 90% of what you learn there anyway. It's really about networking with other people in your field, maybe becoming friends with people on your level, and being presented with opportunities that you wouldn't otherwise have if you had opted out. But I definitely don't think it's worth some the monumentally ridiculous prices people feel they have to pay. Mandy hit the nail perfectly. Start off going to a community college and knock off the first 2 years off cheap, then finish off at a 4 year school. Picking a good major also has a lot to do with it. Getting a 4 year degree in Liberal Arts or something stupid like 12th Century Italian Literature.... probably not the wisest idea if you want some type of feasible job afterwards.

And speaking of, Rey C. mentioned Belle Knox. I'm really compelled to say that Belle is massive fucking idiot. She goes to one of the top colleges in our country, majors in one of the dumbest subjects in our country, then tries to use that to justify getting into porn because "school is so expensive." Not that I'm vilifying her for getting into porn, her reasoning is just dumb. If she wanted to do porn, she should have just fucking done it. Paying for school is not a good excuse because she could have just as easily gone to a cheaper school if she really couldn't afford it, or she could have gotten a legitimate job if she really wanted to work while going to school. And majoring in Women's Studies is about as lucrative as majoring in something like Art History. Good luck with making more intelligent decisions in the future Belle.

Whether a person thinks college is worth it or not, I definitely don't believe that people should go there straight out of high school. I'm 33 and in my 3rd year of school to become a music composer because I really didn't know what I wanted to do out of high school. I went to school when I was 19 and majored in Computer Science because back then I thought I wanted to be a computer programmer. After 1 year of school I basically dropped out of school because fuck programming. Fast forward 14 years and I couldn't be more happy that I didn't decide to try to stick it out. I probably would have killed myself if I had to work on computers my entire life.

 

[mikexmoran]

After reading through the input of the last few posters, I do agree with them, but still have reservations about how vital it is to obtain a degree. My family has always been entrepreneurial and it never occurred to me that I wouldn't be working for myself someday. Obviously I am very fortunate that I had the looks to pull off what I am doing now, and the brains to be able to take advantage of it without having someone else owning all of my work. I really have a skewed view of the work environment because of what I have been able to do previous to this career. I guess when I think about it I always assume that a driven and intelligent person will end up running their own business. Why would you do a job for someone that you can do for yourself and make who knows how much more?

But you guys are right, it really is the exception that someone will be able to pull that off, or that they will be as fortunate as I have been.

On a side note though...... I hope it is just common sense for anyone going for ANY degree, to save a ton of money and begin those studies in a community/2-year college and finish up at the college you want to have your degree from. Doesn't matter where you start just what college you get your degree from.

Well, you and Christy Brinkley did win the genetic lottery.


I don't know you beyond that, but I do suspect you're intelligent and work hard as well. There are those who say, "I'd rather be lucky than good any day." Can't hurt to be both.

 

[sean miguel]

That whole hating the country you live in is another thing that dumbfounds me. This country IS the world, everyone comes here, anyone can come and build their dreams here.... Look back through history and find me even one Empire that had such complete and overwhelming wealth and power that didn't just take anything and everything it wanted. The U.S. isn't perfect by any stretch but seriously...go to war with the United States and you'll find yourself being rebuilt, becoming a democracy that is at least partly controlled by it's people, and in the cases of Germany, Japan, and S.Korea..... becoming some of the wealthiest people in the world! Go to war with Russia, or China and you just end up having all of your land and money taken by them. No country or Empire in history has spent so much and devoted so much energy into trying to improve the lives of others throughout the world. I know this nation still does some fucked up shit, but nothing close to the unimaginable murders of Russians and others under Stalin, or the horrors of Mao, or the oppression and hatred in the so many middle eastern countries.

Well said. The U.S. throughout it's history has shown an incredible amount of forbearance in relation to it's power that no other country can compare to. America is far from perfect but we're grading on a curve. I lived in Japan for a couple of years and and it was amazing to think that just a few decades earlier this was a country we kicked the shit out of yet this was anything but a conquered and oppressed nation or people.

 

[Straight Shooter]

I would not say that college isn't worth it. If you look at the data you'll see that the unemployment rate for those with a college degree is far lower than those without and college grads are still more likely to make more money than those without a degree. A degree doesn't guarantee you anything but you're better with it than without it. Now what I would say is that "college" as in a 4 year university is not for everyone. In this job market good luck finding anything without having some kind of post secondary education. If a 4 year university isn't for you, go to a community college. If you're not the school type at all, look into a trade school where you can learn a valuable skill and get a good honest paying job like an electrician, plumber, etc

 

[Lee Van Queef]

I went to college to become a cop but they never taught me there was a psych exam that would stop me like a brick wall. After being thrown out into the street by the head shrinkers I became a bouncer. When I got tired of that I thought life would be more interesting if I had money. So I did that. College showed me hippies that cling onto podiums that you can dismiss as hobos once they get to the parking lot. I wonder what those mongrels look like now. If fate is prophecy I'll flip 'em a quarter if they block my path.

Godspeed, Fancy Book Lerner.

 

[Will E Worm]

That whole hating the country you live in is another thing that dumbfounds me. This country IS the world, everyone comes here, anyone can come and build their dreams here.... Look back through history and find me even one Empire that had such complete and overwhelming wealth and power that didn't just take anything and everything it wanted. The U.S. isn't perfect by any stretch but seriously...go to war with the United States and you'll find yourself being rebuilt, becoming a democracy that is at least partly controlled by it's people, and in the cases of Germany, Japan, and S.Korea..... becoming some of the wealthiest people in the world! Go to war with Russia, or China and you just end up having all of your land and money taken by them. No country or Empire in history has spent so much and devoted so much energy into trying to improve the lives of others throughout the world. I know this nation still does some fucked up shit, but nothing close to the unimaginable murders of Russians and others under Stalin, or the horrors of Mao, or the oppression and hatred in the so many middle eastern countries.

Hating America and continuing to live here is hypocritical, it also makes the person look stupid.


They are useful idiots, as Stalin called them.