College for everyone?

[Anonymous]

I am a parent of teens, one of whom may not be the typical college bound kid, and may be more employable (which is a major goal!) not going the college route.
The author makes some good points about our education system:

http://www.co-opliving.com/coopliving/issues/2011/February%202011/images/food%20for%20thought.htm

[Anonymous]

I don't think that every young adult needs to go to college. I do think that every young adult needs to be able to make that choice for themselves. When a child reaches 18 and doesn't have a choice to make because he/she doesn't have the skills and credentials to apply to college, that's a big problem.

[Anonymous]

Not everyone can fit into the square hole. Some people are different shapes and that's perfectly alright. They will fit nicely into their proper hole.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, OK, I agree and I even have at least one of these kids. But, it's hard to imagine your kid not going to college. Even for me when none of my siblings went.

[Anonymous]

It's very difficult for those kids who don't go to college. There are almost no decent paying jobs for those with only a high school degree. In this area you can't live on the money you get from a job that pays minimum wage or even a little more than that. I have a nephew who isn't going to college and he can't get a job. Even if he did he wouldn't be able to live independently.

My children will not have a choice, if I have anything to say about it. They are all pretty smart and I want them to develop their brains and they WILL go to college, I'd let them take a year off but their earning potential would be so limited and their career choices so limited without college. Now paying for it is another issue.

[Anonymous]

I dunno. I know people who did not go to college and have done pretty well. Eg, an elevator repair guy who makes 6 figures. And another guy who makes over 200k doing car body repair work. And others who went to college and graduate school who are paid significantly less and have been unemployed and underemployed for long stretches of time.

[Anonymous]

I'm a lawyer, and if I had to do it all over again, I'd have become an electrician.

[Anonymous]

I also worked in the legal and tech fields and if I could do a redo, I'd go into plumbing.

[Anonymous]

I agree, some other fields like electrician and masonry (not so sure about plumbing) look more rewarding, in both personal and financial ways, than my current field which requires an MA or PhD.

However, a lot of jobs available to those with HS degrees just pay minimum wage. In "Nickle and Dimed," Barbara Ehrenreich had to work 2-3 minimum wage jobs to afford her crummy apartment.

So you're talking about technical training, if not college, to work as a plumber or electrician or mechanic.

[Anonymous]

Not everyone is a good enough or focused enough student to go to college. Some people are better with their hands. There used to be trade schools for people like that. Unfortunately, there aren't enough good trade schools anymore.

[Anonymous]

There is a major difference between skilled and unskilled labour. It is the skilled jobs that can command premium pay and many of those professions still take apprentices to learn the trade.