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re: Is undergrad college worth it?
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:42 pm to Nephropidae
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:42 pm to Nephropidae
Going for a STEM degree more than likely is a fantastic investment and opens numerous doors in life.
Liberal arts degree not so much.
So as always it depends.
Liberal arts degree not so much.
So as always it depends.
This post was edited on 8/13/21 at 7:44 pm
1
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:43 pm to GRTiger
quote:
It's definitely something to strive for. Once they get to that decision point, you can revisit the topic. Better to have the choice.
In other words, don't tell your kids it's cool to be a moron because they can just learn to plumb later in life.
This hits the nail on the head IMO.
Do you have to go to college to be successful? No. Are there a ton of college grads who completely wasted their education? Yes.
That being said, I don’t know why any responsible parent would tell their child, at a young age, that they don’t need college. Statistically, the chances that your child grows up to become a doctor, or lawyer, or even an engineer are pretty low. But the chances are zero if they don’t even try to go to college.
Kids don’t really know what they want to do for a living in high school, much less at a younger age. Prepare as if they are going to be NASA engineers. Then when they get to be juniors or seniors in high school, assess the situation. If they have no interest in college and/or no realistic chance at graduating with a meaningful degree, maybe talk to them about a trade.
It’s a hell of a lot easier to learn a trade with a college degree than it is to get a college degree after you’ve learned a trade and “cut the cord.”
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:49 pm to Nephropidae
Depends on their aptitudes and interests.
Unless engineering, science, finance or pre professional it's not worth it.
If they aren't interested in that, go to trade school.
Unless engineering, science, finance or pre professional it's not worth it.
If they aren't interested in that, go to trade school.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:50 pm to Nephropidae
quote:
With tuition and student loan taking over the whole industry and skyrocketing, do you really think it’s worth a 4-6 year lag in your career/expenses for a social experience?
Depending on what the degree is in, absolutely. If you simply “learn to code” your options will be very limited in terms of promotions at many Fortune 500 tech companies without a degree. At times, a recruiter will send an L1 or L2 candidate for my team to interview. If an offer is extended and it is found out that the person lied about having a degree HR will blacklist that person. If you’re a self taught developer it is going to be extremely difficult getting past HR, where a Bachelors degree in something is all part of the background check process. Additionally, you will have the opportunity to obtain a Masters degree on the company’s dime if you play your cards right, depending on the company. In a matrix environment that will certainly play a major role in career growth looking towards the future.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:53 pm to Nephropidae
Depends w/ what they want to do or realistically how smart they are. Junior who is getting Bs and Cs doesn’t need to go to 50-60k/yr private school. Put them in state school. Make them pay 1/2 in loans- incentive to get a job that pays.
Skippy who has straight As and shows initiative in school- do whatever you can for him for the best school he can get into.
Skippy who has straight As and shows initiative in school- do whatever you can for him for the best school he can get into.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:55 pm to Nephropidae
Outside of learning a technical skill that is useful, no. Medicine, business/finance, engineering, science, law, and maybe software/IT stuff, you still want that degree.
That said look at the hourly rates for a plumber or an electrician and you will see that college isn't everything.
That said look at the hourly rates for a plumber or an electrician and you will see that college isn't everything.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:56 pm to Nephropidae
You will find plenty of anecdotal evidence on this board and elsewhere that college isn't worth it, but just about all the actual studies on the topic show that a college degree is absolutely worth it. There are outliers for sure, and if you can't make it through to a degree in the end you're not going to see the benefits. But for the vast majority of people, they're going to see higher lifetime earnings and better job security if they have a degree than if they didn't.
This post was edited on 8/13/21 at 7:59 pm
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:59 pm to Nephropidae
College is worth it if your aren’t a dumbass. STEM or something else employable plus whatever subject matter they’re passionate about.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 7:59 pm to Nephropidae
quote:
I expected this response and it’s funny. Finances do play a part in this thought process but not the full part. We are adequately saving for all of them but I feel a better return on that money for them would not be old school college.
Imagine if that college savings went to get them a down payment in their first piece of real estate. Say a 3 bedroom house they could rent out 2 of the bedrooms to friends they’d be rooming with anyway in college. Only this way they’re building equity and living for free or maybe making a profit. With the money saved from the house hack, they could get I to other real estate and keep expanding. Or other investing. On the path to financial freedom at a young age.
Their age peers in contrast are not getting experience in the job market and most won’t even use what they learn in class. To say nothing of paying money to go to college and not making money in the marketplace.
In before all the “college experience “ people. They can get experience elsewhere. Also when I was at LSU one guy dropped out pretty early on went I to sales. He still hung out with everyone, went to the parties, etc. Only difference was he was making money instead of wasting time in class.
All of that said if they have a specific plan of how they want to go to college and be on a specific career path, then fine. Make a good plan and execute it. Don’t just go because it’s the thing to do.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:00 pm to Nephropidae
Depends on the kid. More than half of college students have no business being one but for high achievers, it would be an utter waste not to go.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:00 pm to Nephropidae
I wouldn't trade my undergrad education for anything, but not everyone is the same.
I had the "luxury" of an excellent liberal arts education.* It gave me a foundation in a vast array of subjects that allowed me to use my autodidactic personality to teach myself in a more efficient fashion. Getting a college-level introduction to math, science, foreign language, art, history, economics, literature, psychology, poli sci and etc made almost the entire world of subjects much more approachable. That broad background in many subjects has come in very handy in my career and life.
While true as Will Hunting opined you can get a Harvard education for $1.50 in late fees at the public library the ones that do that are few and far between. I personally see pure education to be just as much of a benefit to a person as the earning potential it facilitates. However, not everyone sees it that way.
* I say luxury because law school didn't require a very set undergrad curriculum so I had 4 years to learn about a wide variety of subjects
I had the "luxury" of an excellent liberal arts education.* It gave me a foundation in a vast array of subjects that allowed me to use my autodidactic personality to teach myself in a more efficient fashion. Getting a college-level introduction to math, science, foreign language, art, history, economics, literature, psychology, poli sci and etc made almost the entire world of subjects much more approachable. That broad background in many subjects has come in very handy in my career and life.
While true as Will Hunting opined you can get a Harvard education for $1.50 in late fees at the public library the ones that do that are few and far between. I personally see pure education to be just as much of a benefit to a person as the earning potential it facilitates. However, not everyone sees it that way.
* I say luxury because law school didn't require a very set undergrad curriculum so I had 4 years to learn about a wide variety of subjects
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:01 pm to Nephropidae
I see your point. I feel like most four year degrees could be reduced to two years of coursework.
But college is a big business racketeering with all sorts of industries and state government boards so will we ever see that happen? Not likely.
But college is a big business racketeering with all sorts of industries and state government boards so will we ever see that happen? Not likely.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:01 pm to Nephropidae
I have 6, as well, and all 8 and under (2 sets of twins).
I am planning 5 out of 8 go to college.
I will encourage them all to get a meaningful degree, if they go, but will also be supportive of the trade school route.
One thing I will pressure them all to do is at least take one semester of basic finance classes at a local community college.
I am planning 5 out of 8 go to college.
I will encourage them all to get a meaningful degree, if they go, but will also be supportive of the trade school route.
One thing I will pressure them all to do is at least take one semester of basic finance classes at a local community college.
This post was edited on 8/13/21 at 8:02 pm
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:04 pm to Nephropidae
My cousin could have gone to college. The kid didn’t have much encouragement from his parents though. My dad even offered to help cover part of his expenses. He decided that he would pass on college. He now works for GrubHub and picks up fast food and delivers it to college kids.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:10 pm to Nephropidae
quote:
unless you are going for a narrowly defined function, engineering... medicine.... which still seems inefficient with a traditional college experience.
Why don't you try being an engineer or doctor without a college degree and let me know how it works out for you
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:10 pm to Nephropidae
I get the feeling everyone is a bit conflicted on this.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:10 pm to Nephropidae
quote:
There is nothing intellectually that I learned in college classes that can’t be learned online with paid courses, masterminds, resources - in modern times.
I think the problem here is the dedication to learn such things. For some people, sure they can do it without college. For most people, I’m not so sure that’s the case. But is college for everyone? No.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:12 pm to TheWalrus
quote:
but for high achievers, it would be an utter waste not to go.
See I think the complete opposite. For high achievers, college would be a goddamn waste of time. They are going to figure it out without a class schedule and part time job for 4 years.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:15 pm to Nephropidae
quote:
Is undergrad college worth it?
The answer to that question depends 100% on the Curriculum and student.
For good students, YES!
For students studying university "trades" like Engineering, Accounting, possibly education, etc. Again..... YES!
If you are studying Humanities, the arts...... Most of the time it is not worth it.
Posted on 8/13/21 at 8:17 pm to Nephropidae
quote:
See I think the complete opposite. For high achievers, college would be a goddamn waste of time. They are going to figure it out without a class schedule and part time job for 4 years.
Nah. Being around other smart frickers encourages growth. People need the stress of competition. It's science.
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