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re: What are you telling your kids about getting a degree/career?
Posted on 4/5/13 at 12:38 pm to lsufan112001
Posted on 4/5/13 at 12:38 pm to lsufan112001
You sound like my best friend in high school. I remember having the conversation...
"You don't need a college edu to get ahead in life"
... and though he is partially correct, he is without a college degree working as a bartender while I was able to land a very nice starter position at my new firm.
Take it or leave it?
"You don't need a college edu to get ahead in life"
... and though he is partially correct, he is without a college degree working as a bartender while I was able to land a very nice starter position at my new firm.
Take it or leave it?
0
Posted on 4/5/13 at 12:40 pm to lsufan112001
If I had children growing up right now, I'd try to get them as much programming exposure as possible.
Entry level computer programming should be in middle school curricula IMO... good computer programmers are lacking and it's an automation-proof field. After all, someone has to program the automation.
Also programming is useful experience in pretty much every other technical field, so even if the kids want to go science/engineering, they'll have a leg up on everyone else.
Entry level computer programming should be in middle school curricula IMO... good computer programmers are lacking and it's an automation-proof field. After all, someone has to program the automation.
Also programming is useful experience in pretty much every other technical field, so even if the kids want to go science/engineering, they'll have a leg up on everyone else.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 12:48 pm to wiltznucs
quote:
Every Tom, Dick and Harry was getting an MIS degree during the dotcom bubble thinking they'd be the next Silicon Valley millionaire; and now half of them cant find a job outside of the Best Buy Geek Squad.
MIS is one of those weird fields (this is what I do). It's been around for a while as a degree program but still to this day, about half the people I work with have degrees in something else (including myself).
You can teach someone coding, good database development/administration practices, application design/deployment, etc etc, but IMO you don't really learn it until you are inside of an organization that can give it all context.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 12:59 pm to lsufan112001
When my 2 kids were in middle school I gave them 4 rules:
Don't do drugs
Don't get pregnant
Don't get a tattoo
Finish HS
After that you make your own decisions.
They both obeyed my 4 rules. Daughter is a HS teacher. Son is ex-Marine now cop. Both married to terrific spouses. Both have 2 kids. Have no idea what they are teaching their kids. Not my business.
Don't do drugs
Don't get pregnant
Don't get a tattoo
Finish HS
After that you make your own decisions.
They both obeyed my 4 rules. Daughter is a HS teacher. Son is ex-Marine now cop. Both married to terrific spouses. Both have 2 kids. Have no idea what they are teaching their kids. Not my business.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 12:59 pm to Cold Cous Cous
quote:
Have you checked the unemployment #s for people under 30 with HS degree only?
Is college better preparing people than highschool for the job market or are people more apt to succeed always choosing to get a college degree along the way? Especially with the ease it is to get into college and the fact the very best and brightest are paid to go to college; the statistics are misleading.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 1:22 pm to C
What you say may be true. But it doesn't really matter. If you're applying for a job, and the other applicant has a college degree, how much will it help you to say "I'm smart enough to have gotten a college degree but chose not to."
Frankly I am doubtful that the value of college is purely signaling, but there's no question that it is at least somewhat signaling. But signaling does add value.
The fact is that employers place a premium on college degrees. I think that fact is telling. So is the fact that "people more apt to succeed always choosing to get a college degree along the way." Why either of those things is true may be interesting from an academic perspective, but purely pragmatically, the general rule is, if you are intelligent enough to go to college and graduate, you should.
Frankly I am doubtful that the value of college is purely signaling, but there's no question that it is at least somewhat signaling. But signaling does add value.
The fact is that employers place a premium on college degrees. I think that fact is telling. So is the fact that "people more apt to succeed always choosing to get a college degree along the way." Why either of those things is true may be interesting from an academic perspective, but purely pragmatically, the general rule is, if you are intelligent enough to go to college and graduate, you should.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 1:32 pm to Cold Cous Cous
I have never understood why college has to be only about financial opportunity costs. Every time these threads come up it is about whether you will make more money in the long run going to work out of HS or going to college. It is a lot more than that in my opinion. Universities aren't intended to be trade schools.
1. There is something to be said about the college experience. You will work for the next 40-50 years of your life, you won't experience college again
2. I don't think it is so horrible to have an education, even if it is in things that having nothing to do with ones career or making money. Being a well-rounded, education person is a good thing. Not saying you can't be those things without a degree, but it provides a good platform to do so.
3. Even if it doesn't result in more money, there is a good chance it results in a more enjoyable career. There are lots of good paying jobs for folks without college degrees, but many of them involve long, bad hours and undesirable work. Whether they admit it or not, people would rather a job that pays a little less but involves work they enjoy and has decent hours that allow them to spend time with family, etc.
1. There is something to be said about the college experience. You will work for the next 40-50 years of your life, you won't experience college again
2. I don't think it is so horrible to have an education, even if it is in things that having nothing to do with ones career or making money. Being a well-rounded, education person is a good thing. Not saying you can't be those things without a degree, but it provides a good platform to do so.
3. Even if it doesn't result in more money, there is a good chance it results in a more enjoyable career. There are lots of good paying jobs for folks without college degrees, but many of them involve long, bad hours and undesirable work. Whether they admit it or not, people would rather a job that pays a little less but involves work they enjoy and has decent hours that allow them to spend time with family, etc.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 1:39 pm to lsumatt
I agree with everything you say, but this is the money board so the focus is on money. And college is a financial decision whether we like it or not, especially as tuition keeps skyrocketing.
The third point is especially underrated. It only took me a couple summers working construction in South Louisiana to realize that an office job would be a nice thing to have.
The third point is especially underrated. It only took me a couple summers working construction in South Louisiana to realize that an office job would be a nice thing to have.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 1:53 pm to lsumatt
quote:
why college has to be only about financial opportunity costs
I've made the distiction in most of my posts in this thread.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 1:55 pm to Cold Cous Cous
quote:
if you are intelligent enough to go to college and graduate, you should.
Agree with what you said until this. There are degrees that should be pursued and certain colleges that you should attend. But going to SUNO for a journalism degree isn't going to be very helpful in this job market.
ETA: on second thought you would be one of select few that actually graduate from SUNO so that could be saying something to the employer...
This post was edited on 4/5/13 at 1:56 pm
Posted on 4/5/13 at 2:08 pm to lsufan112001
I will never just make it seem like just going to college to go to college will be okay. I will hope that they go to school with a plan to work towards a job after college, not just a degree. Even with an ME degree, I really wish I would have started preparing for a job early on in college instead of waiting until the last semester. I had a job lined up before graduation, but it's stressful waiting until the end to know what you are going to be doing with your life.
And there are plenty of degrees worthwhile outside of the medical field. I'm in engineering and I don't know if I'd trade for a medical degree (and I seriously considered medical school).
And there are plenty of degrees worthwhile outside of the medical field. I'm in engineering and I don't know if I'd trade for a medical degree (and I seriously considered medical school).
Posted on 4/5/13 at 2:17 pm to lsufan112001
I wish I had learned computer programing when I was younger. If you can get your kids interested in it and learn all the languages they will be able to name their price one day.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 2:19 pm to C
quote:
certain colleges that you should attend
quote:
SUNO
Well, the state of the La. higher education system as organized is a whole separate issue. If someone died and made me Huey Long, there would more than a few universities in this state - maybe half a dozen - that would wake up tomorrow and find themselves junior colleges.
Still, SUNO dropout > Univ. of Phoenix dropout, if only because the loans are less.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 2:20 pm to lsufan112001
If they can get through it, Accounting/Finance is the way to go. No matter the economy, businesses need these people.
Oh and ISDS. Networking and system maintenance for businesses is HUGE.
Oh and ISDS. Networking and system maintenance for businesses is HUGE.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 2:43 pm to AngryBeavers
quote:
wish I had learned computer programing when I was younger. If you can get your kids interested in it and learn all the languages they will be able to name their price one day.
You have to be careful with the short halflife of technical knowledge. I minored in computer science in the early 70s, other than Fortran the other languages I used were extinct after about 10 years. Machine language programmers were thw hot ticket in the 80s, now that is gone. For young kids it is better to build a solid foundation in math and science which can be applied to whatever future technology or programming language that my come along.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 2:46 pm to ZereauxSum
quote:
Sometimes that undergrad degree looks like a bust but it can still create opportunities for you.
Agreed. And as far as the comment about the devaluation of a master's, I would point out that only 8% of Americans have a master's degree of any kind.
Where you see devaluation is where people in one particular field (e.g., business) are systematically more likely to get a particular master's degree (e.g., the MBA). In this case, you need experience and/or connections to get the full value out of the degree.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 2:47 pm to lsumatt
quote:
Universities aren't intended to be trade schools.
Definitely agree. The OP fits with the recent trend to view college purely in terms of job training and financial cost/benefit.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 2:56 pm to barry
quote:
The O&G sector is fantastic. If you have a mechanical engineering degree and are willing to move to where the work is, you should never have to worry about not having a job.
Given a long enough period of time, every field has "boom and bust" periods, O&G has probably been the most volitale over the last 30 years, but it is looking bright for the imediate future. Nursing was a hot ticket, but a glut is developing. After the end of the Apollo program in 1973, there were 400,000 engineers unemployeed almost overnight not that there is nothing like that on the horizon. No matter what field you pick, in the course of a 40 year career the market or your skill set will change.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 3:13 pm to TxTiger82
quote:
Definitely agree. The OP fits with the recent trend to view college purely in terms of job training and financial cost/benefit.
Every person that graduates from a university even those who's original intent was only to be a more learned citizen of the world suddenly have only one goal, to find a job and make a living.
Posted on 4/5/13 at 4:11 pm to TxTiger82
quote:
Definitely agree. The OP fits with the recent trend to view college purely in terms of job training and financial cost/benefit.
What do you prioritize with regards to the college experience?
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