Successful and Independent without a college degree?

[Anonymous]

I talked to my HVAC technician a couple weeks ago. He was a young guy in his 20s. He went to community college HVAC program. He told me it was a two year program.

Some of the trades still have a fair amount of education involved.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I talked to my HVAC technician a couple weeks ago. He was a young guy in his 20s. He went to community college HVAC program. He told me it was a two year program.

Some of the trades still have a fair amount of education involved.

All the trade jobs require learning a skill. There are apprenticeship programs where you may be paid to learn (or CC classes)...but you still will have to study, take tests, have sufficient math skills, etc. However, you are only learning your trade and not forced to take general education or other random classes as you might in earning a college degree, and it is much more hands-on learning.

[Anonymous]

My house painter has an Ivy degree. He does not share that information when he goes to make estimates.

[Anonymous]

My uncle owns a construction company and has stealth wealth. People want their contractor driving a pickup truck and wearing blue jeans. They don't want to know about the 8-figure family trust that he's built or the plane he flies to the family’s ranch. No college, but worked very hard, found good mentors, and took risks along the way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are plenty of blue-collar jobs that can lead to success and independence. A white-collar option might be an IT position that only requires certifications for different hardware and software platforms, but not necessarily a degree.

Problem is that the tech industry is currently overly saturated at the moment - so much so that even CS majors are competing for IT help desk roles. Just 3-4 years ago, you could go to a cyber bootcamp and get a decent job as a cybersecurity analyst - not so much now.

Still, I think getting certifications is the way to go to get into IT (without a degree).

[Anonymous]

Op here - thank you for all of the great replies. I’m hopeful that the stars will line up for this wonderful young person and either a desire to pursue more education, or the confidence to work towards a technical skill or certification will give them the life they want. They work hard, are enjoying life, and their restaurant group does offer benefits like health service and 401K so I’m thankful for that. They are also sober 2 years and that is another huge accomplishment. Nobody has mentioned real estate, and that is another option they have mentioned as a fallback but Idk how realistic that is, or how to break in, although they do have the looks and personality for sales.

[Anonymous]

Not everyone has IQ, discipline, support, guidance, resources or circumstances to achieve higher education or work at a desk job.

World wouldn't work without everyone using their own strength to strengthen collective fiber of human society. Everyone matters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:60% of all adult Americans don’t have a college degree. Do you think they all depend on their parents?

Excellent point. Most people here live in a tiny bubble.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not everyone has IQ, discipline, support, guidance, resources or circumstances to achieve higher education or work at a desk job.

World wouldn't work without everyone using their own strength to strengthen collective fiber of human society. Everyone matters.

Your first paragraph sounds stupid. Successful business owners need all those qualities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have an AC who chose to start a business in the tech sphere straight out of HS. On the one hand I'm sad about it, because I value education for much more than career prep. I also think that college is such a special time and if you start several years later, it is a totally different experience. On the other, he's making a lot of money and is enjoying himself immensely. I hope that he will go back to school eventually, but that's not for me to talk about anymore.

He was born wanting independence. He's living his dream and I am just (silently) a bit behind in feeling the joy of that.

I grew up in a country where college experience was rarely anything special (only if you went to one of the few select colleges in the capital of the country). The rest were (and I think still are) commuter schools where young people do socialize but you can go to one city college and be friends with people at another.

I think the whole hoolabaloo about the college experience in the U.S. is winding down, unless you are at like Harvard or something. More and more decent kids aren’t stellar enough or don’t get enough financial aid to go the proper college route and end up at CCs and commuter schools, so college experience is not some rite of passage anymore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - DC is 27 and dropped out of college due to depression and anxiety. Doing much better after years of therapy, but is now 27 and currently has no interest in returning to school. Works as a server at a very upscale restaurant, makes decent money and lives with friends and seems happy. I worry about their future, and while I want them to enjoy this chapter, I would like to have ideas if they ever come to me with thoughts for a path forward. Sales would definitely be an option - they and have a very outgoing personality and are organized, also perhaps working in management in the restaurant industry. Not sure what else.

Honestly he can get into subsidized housing (where I am it is quite decent, you can get a rent stabilized unit at a luxury apartment complex even) and live a good life. If he stays within certain means he will have a free health insurance too. He can save aggressively via his Roth IRA too. It may be less stressful than a corporate job tbh.

[Anonymous]

My nephew joined the air force after 1 semester of college. He has re-upped for now and bought a house! If he chooses to leave he’ll be very employable as a mechanic for an airline.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an AC who chose to start a business in the tech sphere straight out of HS. On the one hand I'm sad about it, because I value education for much more than career prep. I also think that college is such a special time and if you start several years later, it is a totally different experience. On the other, he's making a lot of money and is enjoying himself immensely. I hope that he will go back to school eventually, but that's not for me to talk about anymore.

He was born wanting independence. He's living his dream and I am just (silently) a bit behind in feeling the joy of that.

I grew up in a country where college experience was rarely anything special (only if you went to one of the few select colleges in the capital of the country). The rest were (and I think still are) commuter schools where young people do socialize but you can go to one city college and be friends with people at another.

I think the whole hoolabaloo about the college experience in the U.S. is winding down, unless you are at like Harvard or something. More and more decent kids aren’t stellar enough or don’t get enough financial aid to go the proper college route and end up at CCs and commuter schools, so college experience is not some rite of passage anymore.

Yes, I am only half American and understand the different experience. My son is American, the American half of our family has mostly attended a college that is small and the traditional experience continues. It isn't that he could not get in, he chose not to go. He is successful in his business and happy. I wish he hadn't given up the opportunity he had but it's his choice.

[Anonymous]

My 27 year old dd droped out of college because it wasn't for her. She is now a operations manager for Ulta making almost 6 figures and gets 3-4 weeks of time off a year.

She still lives at home but pays all her own bills, is able to save money and take 2-3 vacations a year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know whether this is fortunate or unfortunate, but my friend's son is raking it in with his YouTube channel. He also does video editing for other YouTubers. I have no idea how long someone can sustain this "career" but if a kid has an entertaining skill such as gaming or building stuff, other people may want to watch it online.

😂 no this is not true

Do you not understand how many utters there are and the metrics for this

I don't quite understand the utters part but the kid is bringing in six figures, which is common for highly successful YouTube channels. (TikTok also pays for views but not nearly as much.) It's enough to live on his own (he's mid-20s and a college dropout). There are TONS of people trying to build a YouTube audience and most of them will fail because they suck at videos. This kid is apparently pretty good, although my Gen-X eyes don't appreciate the content as I am not the intended audience.

My nephew caught the Youtube wave early and has 6M viewers, is asked to consult, and could have retired at 25. Probably could have been wealthier if he hadn't been focused on graduating college. But that was almost a decade ago, and like I said, he tells everyone that he "caught a wave" and not to assume any of his cousins can follow his path.