Not going to college

[Anonymous]

OP, if you're in DC there is this:

https://does.dc.gov/service/apprenticeships

[Anonymous]

Plumbers and electrons are making about 300/hr around here so I think there is a good living to be had in the trades. It's getting worse every day - you cant find anyone.

[Anonymous]

There is no cost benefit analysis of going into unreasonable debt to go to college. Instead there is fear. Fear shared by countless kids that if they don’t go to college, they will never amount to anything. And it is only getting worse!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Plumbers and electrons are making about 300/hr around here so I think there is a good living to be had in the trades. It's getting worse every day - you cant find anyone.

My brother is in HVAC and got his master's apprenticeship, so he makes good money. But, it is very hard on your body. He is 45 and is tired and struggling to keep up.

[Anonymous]

My HS senior is applying to a few schools just to keep options open but I don’t expect them to go. My kid is smart and savvy but hates being a student. They are in year two of the FCPS vet tech academy and it’s been a changing thing for them. I can’t say enough good things about the program, it’s incredibly well run and my kid has a clear understanding of the career options available. So that’s probably the path they will follow and I’m feeling good about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Plumbers and electrons are making about 300/hr around here so I think there is a good living to be had in the trades. It's getting worse every day - you cant find anyone.

My brother is in HVAC and got his master's apprenticeship, so he makes good money. But, it is very hard on your body. He is 45 and is tired and struggling to keep up.

I believe it. The trades are hard on the body, particularly as a person ages. Now folks will chime in about how everyone moves to management or opens their own, wildly successful, business as they get older & more experienced. This is true in some cases and far from true for most. The skill set required for entrepreneurship is much different than being a productive worker & most do not have it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Plumbers and electrons are making about 300/hr around here so I think there is a good living to be had in the trades. It's getting worse every day - you cant find anyone.

My brother is in HVAC and got his master's apprenticeship, so he makes good money. But, it is very hard on your body. He is 45 and is tired and struggling to keep up.

Yeah, that can be a downside. Many skilled trades are hard work and hard on the body (and I say this as someone with extended family members who work in construction, lay carpet, etc.). If my kid went into one of those, I would tell them to save very aggressively for retirement. But a skilled trade that can't be outsourced has some advantages, too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Plumbers and electrons are making about 300/hr around here so I think there is a good living to be had in the trades. It's getting worse every day - you cant find anyone.

My brother is in HVAC and got his master's apprenticeship, so he makes good money. But, it is very hard on your body. He is 45 and is tired and struggling to keep up.

I believe it. The trades are hard on the body, particularly as a person ages. Now folks will chime in about how everyone moves to management or opens their own, wildly successful, business as they get older & more experienced. This is true in some cases and far from true for most. The skill set required for entrepreneurship is much different than being a productive worker & most do not have it.

I wrote the earlier carpenter post and this is exactly what I was talking about. I have a graduate degree and have a "white collar" primary job, but my dad was a carpenter and I grew up among tradespeople, and I did a trade on the side professionally for the first half of my adult life. Carpenters interact with most trades in any building project so you end up knowing a lot of different tradespeople. And, depending on your trade, your body can start feeling it in your late 20s early 30s. And the successful switch to more managerial roles or owning your own business is just not that common. If you go into a trade a) front load your extra capital in retirement accounts or brokerage accounts as much as you can; b) take community college courses beyond the initial trades courses that involve reading/writing/business from the get-go while you're still fairly close to high school so your intellectual skills don't get rusty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Plumbers and electrons are making about 300/hr around here so I think there is a good living to be had in the trades. It's getting worse every day - you cant find anyone.

My brother is in HVAC and got his master's apprenticeship, so he makes good money. But, it is very hard on your body. He is 45 and is tired and struggling to keep up.

I believe it. The trades are hard on the body, particularly as a person ages. Now folks will chime in about how everyone moves to management or opens their own, wildly successful, business as they get older & more experienced. This is true in some cases and far from true for most. The skill set required for entrepreneurship is much different than being a productive worker & most do not have it.

I wrote the earlier carpenter post and this is exactly what I was talking about. I have a graduate degree and have a "white collar" primary job, but my dad was a carpenter and I grew up among tradespeople, and I did a trade on the side professionally for the first half of my adult life. Carpenters interact with most trades in any building project so you end up knowing a lot of different tradespeople. And, depending on your trade, your body can start feeling it in your late 20s early 30s. And the successful switch to more managerial roles or owning your own business is just not that common. If you go into a trade a) front load your extra capital in retirement accounts or brokerage accounts as much as you can; b) take community college courses beyond the initial trades courses that involve reading/writing/business from the get-go while you're still fairly close to high school so your intellectual skills don't get rusty.

On a dialy basis, I probably work with more tradespeople/others who have pursued other paths than college more than most of the people here. One thing that strikes me are their poor communication skills (reading and writing), lack of critical thinking, not able to easily learn new processes/systems.

We need these people in the workforce. I'm so grateful they chose this path in life. But to think they will easily be able to move into management/open a wildly successful business?Those are definitely few and far between.

[Anonymous]

My plumber is in his 60’s. He has one partner and one apprentice. He turns away business. He could retire tomorrow but he loves what he does. He talks about these four year degree college types who have tons of book smarts but zero street smarts. Some of them are Ivy League grads with tons of debt and are house poor. They are keeping up appearances and trying to out do everyone else.

My plumber just laughs all the way to the bank!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Plumbers and electrons are making about 300/hr around here so I think there is a good living to be had in the trades. It's getting worse every day - you cant find anyone.

My brother is in HVAC and got his master's apprenticeship, so he makes good money. But, it is very hard on your body. He is 45 and is tired and struggling to keep up.

Yeah, that can be a downside. Many skilled trades are hard work and hard on the body (and I say this as someone with extended family members who work in construction, lay carpet, etc.). If my kid went into one of those, I would tell them to save very aggressively for retirement. But a skilled trade that can't be outsourced has some advantages, too.

Yes, agreed that would be the best approach. I read the other thread with interest (about other professions that don't require college) and while everyone seems to be fixated on money there are other considerations. Like someone pointed out that driving trucks is very hard when you have a family.

[Anonymous]

My kid is working as a car mechanic. We tried to steer him to college and it just didn't take. He is intimidated by his peers heading off to elite schools on the coasts and doesn't believe that he could cut it.

Maybe it will become trendy to say "I'm a last-gen college graduate"?