<p>That’s why WHERE we send our kids to college matters more than it used to.</p>
<p>^ Uh, no. Studies show students who were offered admission at Ivies but chose other colleges did just as well as the ones coming from the Ivies. It’s much more about the student than where they go.</p>
<p>Agreed. We have entirely too many people going to college these days, so careful consideration of where your kids matriculate is key. </p>
<p>What is most unfortunate is this glut of degrees creates a situation where very few people can just go to college and feel out their interests- a lot of kids have to know by sophomore year and start working towards those goals immediately or you’re already out of the running for top tier jobs.</p>
<p>Good point Erin’s Dad. Depends on what type of field they want to go into, only a few are very prestige oriented for undergrad (thinking finance, but even then the top students at any business school can get in)</p>
<p>Get ready for a decade of “news” stories about “underemployed” college graduates :rolleyes:</p>
<p>I thought the most useful information in the article came at the end:
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<p>I think its more of a supply issue. Employers can get college degrees for cheap, so why not just require them? Easy way to weed out your applicant pool without any effort. So saying those jobs ‘require’ a college degree is putting the cart in front of the horse.</p>
<p>For the trade skill jobs they mention, the degree requirements are just trade protectionism. There’s no reason an auto mechanic, most nurses, or a beautician needs a degree to do be allowed to do their jobs. An extreme example of this is law school.</p>
<p>I am scared about how many of these kids are U of Phoenix grads (or equivalent). That degree is only meaningfull, IMHO, if someone has a civil service type job and in effect has already earned a promotion by the level of their work, but can not get it without the degree. Otherwise, the resume with that degree goes right in the circular file. The losers, of course, are people paying for those degrees.</p>
<p>Most offerred Ivy still go to very good schools–state flagships etc. Going to noname school still a problem. And that study is not holding up well-more exceptions all the time. Minority, poor etc.</p>
<p>^^ Right – this is what I was getting at. I don’t mean that everyone should go to an Ivy…that’s not even a consideration for most people. But, for instance, my daughter got a big scholarship to a little-know private LAC, and a smaller scholarship to one that is well-known, so we picked the well-known one (for many reasons, but also for its name). A generation ago, it would not have mattered as much.She would have gotten just as good as education at the lesser known school, but it wouldn’t have opened as many doors for her, considering that “everyone” now goes to college.</p>
<p>But your daughter is not competing against “everyone.” She is still the same smart young woman who got into these colleges. She is likely not in the same consideration set at either of these schools as she would be if she had gone to some strip-mall school for returning students. </p>
<p>Also, money represents opportunity too. Say your daughter had pocketed the difference between the cheaper and more expensive schools, and upon graduation she had that to work with. That amount could be enough to support her in an internship in an expensive city, or to allow her to take a job she loves but that doesn’t pay all that well, or help fund grad school or service work abroad.</p>
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<p>Where did it say that an auto mechanic needs a bachelor’s or associates degree? Auto repair needs some specialized education or self-education, but I have not heard of any type of bachelor’s or associates degree requirement for such jobs.</p>
<p>sally305: In 1979, I was able to walk out of a little-known private university and go directly to an advertising copywriting job in a small agency in the NY metro area. I don’t think that would hold true today. My daughter will likely go into some kind of publishing/editing career and having the name of a presitgious school known for writing, with high-profile alum, on her resume will enhance her chances of being hired more than the exact same experience at a much lesser known, but also very expensive school. (And this coming from someone who absolutely does not believe college should be “vocational training”, or completely career oriented!) But with the cost of higher ed, and the current job market…</p>
<p>The situation is much grimmer in China. A record 7 millions students are graduating this summer. Less than half have jobs lined up. </p>
<p>“The only thing that worries them [Chinese gov’t] more than an unemployed, low-skilled person is an unemployed educated person” said Columbia University economist, Shang-Jin Wei.</p>
<p>source: Int’l Herald Tribune</p>
<p>The article goes on to say that Chinese students have been gravitating towards majors that are perceived as less academically demanding, but will lead to careers in banking.</p>
<p>My3Daughters, for sure a college that is known in an industry for specific programs should give your daughter an edge, especially when she is starting out. I was just trying to make the point that the glut of college graduates doesn’t mean there are more capable applicants in the pool for every job she applies for, and that for the benefit of people reading this who CAN’T comfortably choose the more expensive option, it’s not necessarily the end of the world. For instance, the leading tech company in my area routinely hires LAC grads, seeking out smart kids with a certain combination of character, skills and experiences. Many obscure small colleges are represented in the ranks of its employees, and the company is hugely successful and considered one of the most (if not the most) desirable places to work in our area.</p>
<p>The article is pablum, regurgitated already-known stats for a study that we taxpayers paid for. ‘National Center for Education Statistics’, indeed.</p>
<p>But…in order for a college graduate to make that transition into the job market, they need, in order of importance: 1) diploma; 2) competitive GPA; 3) interviewing skills. Without #1 & maybe #2, you will be weeded out before the interview stage. And without upbeat, eyes-locked-in, one-on-one personal skills, you don’t stand much chance either. Like the prescient article says, too much supply, not enough demand.</p>
<p>Too many students are starting college but not finishing. Some of these students would be better off with work experience and without the debt. </p>
<p>A number of students would be much better off at trade schools than studying impractical majors at mediocre colleges. We are graduating way too many drama majors, etc.</p>
<p>There is a real need in many parts of the country for skilled blue collar workers, including persons working in higher tech types of manufacturing. Too many with math, science and computer skills only want to work in an office.</p>
<p>charlieschm, I agree about the skills. I live in a rural area, where if the kids don’t go to college they end up working at Walmart or competing for the $12.00 dwindling factory jobs, because they don’t know anything else to do. </p>
<p>I try to steer those kids to our community college which has partnered up with several area corporations. The CC costs less than $5,000 a year. They spend 2 years taking Gen Ed and getting hands on training. If they graduate, they are practically guaranteed a $40,000 -$50,000 dollar a year job. These companies then offer further training to move up. One has an engineering tech path that gets it’s employees up to $70,000 - $80,000 after 2-3 years.</p>
<p>@YankeeBelle,</p>
<p>Your post reminded me of this article from the WSJ: Bachelor’s degrees may not be worth it, but community college can bring a strong return
[Are</a> Bachelor’s Degrees Worth It? - WSJ.com](<a href=“http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324874204578440901216478088.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_Careers_PublicSearch]Are”>http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324874204578440901216478088.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_Careers_PublicSearch)
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