College is not for everyone... (1 Viewer)

[Julie K]

I knew what I wanted to do at an early age and, with a little fine tuning along the way, followed that course. By 18 my goals had been long engraven in stone.
I enjoyed college a great deal. Perhaps there's a masochistic streak in me, but I liked the experience so much that I then went on to 5 years of grad school, which was even better than college.
No, it's not for everyone but for some it's a very enjoyable experience.

 

[Greg Rowe]

I have hated school since about 7th or 8th grade. The best route for me and my career choice was to go to a 4 year college however. I did so, got a decent job out of school, and I am now giong to grad school for a Masters degree. I hate every minute of it. I want to quit but since school is financially free for me (thanks to my employer) it is too much to pass up.
In 2 years when I have that degree in my hands will be the happiest day of my life (probably
Greg

 

[Todd Henry]

Since someone asked, I did go to an Ivy League school, however, I do not hold that over people's head and look down on those who didn't go to college.

On the other hand, my college experience was incredible. To me, college life teaches critical thinking skills. The conversations with friends and in classes were very stimulating and incredible learning experience. Do I use everything I learned in class at my job? Of course not, but I think it prepared me very well for situations I encounter in my job and in life.

If you don't have the apptitude or willingness for formal education you can learn many of these skills and lessons on your own. Everyone needs to do what makes the happy and that should always guide your decision making process. For many of you, who have replied to this thread, college would have made you miserable. I applaud you for chosing a different path that made you happy. There has become an immense amount of pressure to get a college degree and it really isn't for everyone. In fact, I would argue, that people in college who don't want to be there harms the experience for those who are there.

I also agree that you can become successful in your job without a college degree through hard work. Studies that indicate higher pay with more school do exist. However, jobs like lawyers and doctors which are among the highest paid, skew those numbers.

Todd

 

[Scott Van Dyke]

I got a job right out of highschool and worked my way up through the company:

Press Operator

Tooling maintenence

Leadman

Shift Supervisor

Plant Manager

Process Engineer

(No, management wasn't for me.)

I make a comfortable living as an Engineer with no college experience.

"Props" to Homestead Highschool in Mequon, WI!

 

[Dave Morton]

I disagree with a lot of what some people say. Although I do think college is not for everyone, I do think that it is useful. I think college helps with problem solving skills that are important to the business world. Nevermind if you don't use your engineering degree (I'm not singling anyone out) but you do know how to think more analytically. I've worked with some people that are not in college and there is no way they could do what I do.

I have a friend that helped me through calculus in high school. He was a couple of years older and didn't go to college. He is extremely smart, much smarter than I am. But since I have a degree and he doesn't, he would never get hired for the same position or at the same salary.

Granted some people have a knack for business and can do quite well, that is not the majority. I think it is a safe assumption to say that on average, people with college degrees make more money than people without college degrees. I would even say that people with a graduate degree do better than people with a bachelors degree. Most people I know that are at the upper management level have an Masters (MBA or MS) or PhD degree.

I guess it all depends on where you want to be in life and be happy. Maybe college isn't for everyone but it sure can open the doors.

 

[Chris Rosene]

I'm with Julie K on this one. From age 14 I knew what I wanted to be and college was the only means of attaining it. I greatly enjoyed college (hated high school) and find myself often thinking back to the good ole days. 80% of my current friends were met at college. Now granted, my college routine was not "normal". Party Thursay noon to Sunday night and make as many classes and I "could" during the week. I have an weird exam taking ability and memory that studying took up very little of my time in college.

 

[Dave Poehlman]

Does a college degree improve your chances for financial success?

I can tell you that starting salaries here at my office are slightly higher for diploma holders. I stress slightly. But, after hire, your increases are based on performance.

I really depressed one of my coworkers who had a degree in business when I told her I was an art school dropout (was a fine-arts major for 2 years) and we were doing the same job and getting the same pay.

 

[Chuck C]

moved

 

[Frank_S]

But since I have a degree and he doesn't, he would never get hired for the same position or at the same salary.

That's the main problem I see in companies these days. I live and work in the Sillycon valley and have seen many examples of this. I ended up starting my own business and therefore control my own destiny. This valley is full of people with materialistic attitudes and it disgusts me sometimes. EX. I am a Machinist, wear T-shirts and jeans to work and use a truck for my business. I usually get ignored in hi-end audio stores when I dress like this and drive my truck. If I go home, get in my BMW and put some other clothes on, guess what, I am greeted with , can I help you sir?
I don't do business with anyone if they treat me in this manner.

 

[Chuck C]

Wow. This thread has opened up my mind, and as a result, I have a few things to say. First, I'd describe myself as academic. I loved high school and I love college. In regards to college as the direct training for a career, I must say that college BUILDS CHARACTER instead. Thanks to the social and academic portions of college, I can honestly say that I am more well-rounded and mature. College is fun! I have met some great people that I consider friends, and the nightlife is exciting. However, there is dark side to all the glitz and glamor.

The teachers are one drawback to my university (and others, I am sure). There is a very inconsistent mix of teachers. For example, my buddy Mike's marketing teacher changed his life while my roommate said his marketing teacher was awful (same course, different teachers). Some teachers are middle of the road. They are the ones who teach one section of the text per class and give a test or quiz on the material after a few weeks...no creativity whatsoever. Perhaps the greatest example of Miami's good vs bad teachers lies within my latest semester:

First the bad. Before economics class started that afternoon, I gathered all the terrible rumors about the teacher that was about to walk in. "He's Hitler", "He forced my sister quit the business school!", "I hear nobody can get an A in this class". When the professor walked in, he didn't even give a hello, but instead lectured about Socialism for the hour. SOCIALISM! When I went to class the second day, he eased up and proceeded to explain how "this is a class for those who really want to learn" and "if you do the readings twice before class, use 'your' office hours, use the supplemental instruction sessions located at Presser Hall, and sign the sign-in sheet before class EVERYDAY, you'll earn a good grade". The complexities of this man are far too tedious to discuss, so I'll keep it short. I visited the professor during office hours to discuss topics for the tests and so forth. His teaching style in class was engaging, i.e. no one fell asleep. However, this man brought with him too many politics and controversy. First, he was a socialist; That's the conclusion some classmates and I came up with toward the end. He often quoted Marx and clips form wsws.org. He chided out the right wing especially Bush II. Of course this infuriated many people because first, some people were obviously republicans, and second and most importantly, we were there to learn macro-economics and just that! nothing else! Of course, if you weren't on the professor's side, you paid the price. If you walked in a half second late, you were the subject of a good "bitching-out". Did I mention most of the grade was based on one's class performance? Well I participated almost every day, saw him outside of class about seven times, read the readings twice half the time, but that wasn't good enough. The ball-busting Marxist gave me a C+ for the A effort I put into his class. If fact, I worked so many times harder in ECO 202 than my other classes that I am afraid it's the reason some of my other grades were not higher. Did it pay off? The Social Security discussion was interesting.

If you've gotten this far in the post, thank you. And now for the good teachers; they are the reason I love learning. I had an amazing history professor. HST 112: U.S History 1865-present was the course's name. Presiding over the class was Dr. Allan Winkler--Harvard under-grad, Yale graduate, Columbia Ph.D., award winning historian, book writer, and head of the history department at Miami University. The class itself was gigantic...probably close to 300 people, but Dr. Winkler engineered the course well. On Mondays and Wednesdays, he gave lectures, but they weren't any ordinary lectures. It was story time. Sometimes I forgot to take down notes because I was so engaged in the lecture. Of course, all the day's topics were available online plus there was a third class taught by Dr. Winkler's Teaching Assistants (the lucky grad. students lured to the University because of the professor's reputation). He often played popular songs on his guitar that reflected the current time period. Sometimes he had the class and out-of-tune TAs sing along! In addition to a rewarding lecture, there were critical thinking oriented discussions during the TA-taught courses, selected literature, an interesting text book, and yes--movies! Also, the teacher was unbiased. Instead of preaching strong opinions, Dr. Winkler raised awareness and invoked the importance of the events and people that shaped America, and now, I will always be informed when it comes to current events and the like. BTW, I shook the teacher's hand on the last day of class.

This brings me to my next point. There are some students who are going to walk away from such a class without knowing the feeling that they just underwent "good" education. These are the people who are in either college just to get a degree or are not born for four-year university life. It's the student's responsibility to pan out the bad qualities of college and realize that daddy is paying a ton of money for you to have a satisfying career and life. College is the intermediate step, thus you might as well make the most of it.

Q.E.D.

 

[Justin Doring]

I would like to echo the statement that college is absolutely not for everyone. Right now we have far more people in college than there should be, and yet there is still a push by the government, media, special interest groups, etc. for more people to go! Meanwhile, our skilled labor force has dwindled to virtually nothing, and people wonder why the middle class is disappearing!

A good college can be a wonderful place, but a person should go there for the right reasons. The sad fact of the matter is that most colleges today are simply glorified trade schools: "I wanna make a bunch of money, so I have to go to college." The vast majority of parents and students view college this way, and this is sad in my opinion, as college is about so much more. If all you want to do is make money, do not go to college. You're better off becoming an entrepreneur. If, on the other hand, you want to grow as a person, then please go to college. There was a time when college was actually a place for personal growth where one learned how to think, but now the focus is on money. Never forget that money buys a lot of things, but it can't buy everything.

 

[DeathStar1]

>>I ended up starting my own business and therefore control my own destiny. This valley is full of people with materialistic attitudes and it disgusts me sometimes. EX. >>>
Exactly the reason why I started my own buisness. The other is that all the media jobs I would have liked to take where in California, or New York, and I hate big City travelling, it's just easier for myself this way. Besides, I'm in charge of everything. If I don't make it, I only have myself to blame, and it's back to Blockbuster Video work again :/.
I read an article somewhere that had a biusness profile of Jet Blue. Stated that the head of the copmany makes millions of dollars, yet still takes the time to check up on everyone, knows the customers by name, and even helps out in a 'lowly' job such as loading luggage onto the plane so it lifts off faster. That's the type of model I want to have with my buisness. Not to mention, Casual Day, EVERY Day, except during buisness meetings with clients . Now, lets just hope we can finally start advertising so we can actually expand ...

 

[MikePeroni]

Not much has been mentioned about skilled trades. Im currently finishing up a 4 year 'apprentice-ship' for tool and die making at Ford. During the apprentice program you do have to take alot of classes at the local community college, and this leaves you only a few classes away from a 2 year...
While Id like to get back to school to finish my degree, I dont know how much better I can do. The hands on skills I have learned are great, Im probably making double of any of my college-educated buddies, and Im home @ 3:00 everyday!
There is something to be said about being a skilled tradesman. Ive built an entire finished basement from scratch, built decks, ect... and laugh while all my white-collar neighbors pay 100.00 to get a light bulb changed
Not to mention all the other trades, electricians, pipefitters, carpenters...All that said, the manufacturing industry needs tradesman and believe me they pay you right there with engineers and the like...its a great alternative to college

 

[John Thomas]

I went to see the doctor of philosophy
with a poster of Rasputin and a beard down to his knee
He never did marry or see a B-Grade movie
he graded my performance; he said he could see through me
I spent four years prostrate to the higher mind
got my paper and I was free.

 

[Todd H]

Thanks, John for making me miss Athens Ga. Now I'm gonna have to listen to the Indigo Girls when I get home from work.

I agree that college isn't for everyone. Some people would be better off attending a technical school and learning a skill. I myself enjoyed college greatly. Call me strange, but I've always enjoyed school.

As for my major, I got a Bs in math education and was planning on being a high school math teacher. I now work for the government. Strange how things work out.

 

[Frank_S]

Mike,

While Id like to get back to school to finish my degree, I dont know how much better I can do. The hands on skills I have learned are great, Im probably making double of any of my college-educated buddies, and Im home @ 3:00 everyday!

Congrats Mike, however you may find that in the years ahead your college grad. buddies may pass you up in salary. Their degree can open up avenues of promotion that your profession will not due to your lack of a degree.

 

[Leila Dougan]

I loved college, in fact I can't wait to go back. I didn't care too much for high school because I everything was too easy and I didn't like environment (cliques, teachers, excess rules, etc).

I can completely see, however, how college is not for everyone. My brother is incredibly intelligent but he'll be lucky to graduate HS. But I digress.

The main problem I have, is not with people who don't go to college, but with people who do nothing to better themselves. I applaud all of you that found a trade you enjoy, something that has the opportunity for advancement, and then do the best you can to move up.

I don't think everyone should go to college (in fact I'm of the opinion that there is too much of a push for people to go to college). I do think, however, that everyone should do *something*. Whether that means becomming an apprentice, getting a certification, going to a community college, etc. I work with some very bitter people, people that are 50 years old and have never held anything other than a fastfood job or a telemarketing job (we do tech support and customer service here). There is nothing wrong with these jobs in and of themselves, butI can't imagine they make a very good career.

As long as people are actively trying to make their lives better (and if they aren't they shouldn't complain), I have absolutely nothing against people that do not pursue a 4 year degree.

 

[MikePeroni]

Frank, great point...I guess you never know what the future will bring.

Mike

 

[AviTevet]

When you're considering college, just remember this old adage: Classes just get in the way of the college experience.

 

[Yee-Ming]

It makes no sense to ask an 18 year old to decide what he wants to do with the rest of his life.

funny, that. it's more or less what happened to me, when I finished high school (rather, it's equivalent here in Singapore) I had no idea what I wanted to do. by default I took a professional degree rather than a general one (unlike the US, professional degrees are not post-grad here), since it opened up a specific profession, but could still be used to get jobs where "only" general degrees were required.
by default after graduation I completed the professional qualifications as well -- made sense, might as well get them, that sort of thing. having completed them I got a job with the place I did my professional training, and accepted since it was the most straightforward thing to do. 10 years later I'm still "practising" my profession (though I've switched workplaces since).
I wouldn't say I'm happy or unhappy, it's a job, pays the bills, it's a decent living. actually, I suppose it's pretty good, considering I took a 3-hr lunch break to watch SW2:AOTC
oh well, YMMV