Please tell me why?

[Monique1]

Why should I encourage any young person to get a degree? I am serious. Why should I encourage a young person to get a degree to teach, why should I encourage a young person to be come a nurse? Why encourage a young person to continue higher education? First of all these young people will owe a debt and either find out their job outsourced or find their job being thrown away.

I do believe in education and continuing to grow but I am seeing people especially here have no job.

[jp11]

1. It could get better, they could move to another country

where having an education is valued for letting someone come over.

Unemployment for people without a college degree is higher than for college graduates, options are much more limited, etc.

[ecstatic]

2. What are the options for people who don't have a degree?

A couple months ago, I read that unemployment for college grads was something like 4.5%.

[baldguy]

3. .

[notesdev]

8. That graph is using bad data

Those are not correct income numbers for college vs. high school graduates, nor is it factoring in the cost of the education itself and the extra earning years one has without college.

Even using good numbers, keep in mind that those were frontside-of-the-bubble numbers. The back end of the bubble may end up looking quite different!

[Obamanaut]

4. You are right. Much better to advise them to find a corner, sit in it, throw

their hands up in despair, and simply give up.

edit to add 'unrec' for doom/gloom

[RKP5637]

5. I was just wondering a bit earlier today, what, is the American dream now. For

many it looks rather dismal. I grew up when education was key to many things, and I was very lucky to have parents that could help me advance, and back then university education was a lot cheaper and available at excellent state universities.

That said, I was just wondering today what is the American dream and what does one tell someone young without getting into slinging a lot of BS. Frankly, I don't even know where we will be as a country in just a few years.

I'm waiting for Walmart to start educational centers training one to be a clerk at min wage and that will be the new American dream.

[MineralMan]

6. They will have a job, and it will pay much better than if they

just had a high school diploma. Not everything should be thought of in the short term, to be quite frank.

Just compare the salary of a nurse to that of a hospital orderly. I think you'll see what I mean.

[Taverner]

13. But perhaps we are considering the professional certification vs the college one

I guarantee a BA in Political Science is worthless, although it made me seek higher-paying work. I got professional certifications and was hired from that. The Masters helps, however, even if its not central to your professional skill. I have a Masters in Journalism from SJSU. I work in computers: either IT (my future job) or sales (previous jobs) or tech support (my previous and least enjoyed job)

By all means, if you know what you want to do, look it up, and follow the path of those previously successful.

[Taverner]

7. Depends on what they want to do...

The degree has been the casualty no one speaks of - the Voldemort if you will

If they want to go into Computers, degrees are useless

If they want to go into writing, degrees mean something

[Monique1]

9. I threw this question out to all of you

because I am seeing so many people who have degrees losing their jobs or are jobless.

[Monique1]

10. I also wonder

why we throw those who are not capable of receiving a degree thrown under the bus. Without our plumbers and other specialties, without those who serve us are being downgraded we look down on them. Why are we also throwing nurses and teachers under the bus? I just don't get any of this. I know there are many or were many on DU who have had degrees and could not find jobs. What have we done to these people? These people worked their tail off to get to where they were and we forget them. I just don't understand.

[Monique1]

11. You got yours

so why have any concern!

[Taverner]

12. Very good point

And this is exactly the kind of subject that should be analyzed

What do we know and how do we know it?

[customerserviceguy]

14. I'd encourage a young person

to find a good vocational technical school, and do something that can't be outsourced. Most bachelor's degrees are an expensive effort in futility.

[ZombieHorde]

15. The personal growth one can get from school is worth more than the tuition.

If a person has an honest interest in expanding his or her mind, school is an excellent way to do it.