Reply to High school senior daughter asked me "What's the point of all this?"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Your daughter is correct.

There is no point to an elite college.... Unless your intention is to have rich friends.

The point to life is to be a good person, have good friends, be kind to strangers, give back to your community and (hopefully) have a close family.

A surgeon from Penn is no happier than a plumber, if you can afford a house, food, have close friends.

Once you have a certain amount of money, happiness does not increase  with more money and eventually declines.[/quote]

dcum's love to laud plumbers and blue collar trades without actually being blue collar themselves. there's a reason why blue collar moms and dads also push their kids to college. blue collar people (god bless them) pay with their bodies at age 50+.

[/quote]

+1000.

I grew up in a blue collar family and have lots of family/friends who work in trades.  There is a difference between blue collar work in which you work for a large company (like at a steel mill) and a trade in which you are self-employed (like a plumber or electrician).

My friends/relatives who work in trades self-employed are doing well.  Their skills are in demand and always will be.  They aren't at the whim and fancy of CEOs and union bosses who don't necessarily have their best interests in mind.

Many people who work self-employed at trades reach a point by age 50 in which they have enough business to support hiring people to work for them to do the more physical work.  They are much better positioned than white-collar workers at 50 who face getting replaced by younger professionals who are willing to work 60 hour weeks for half the pay.

If I had a child who seemed to have a knack for trades, I would encourage them to go into that field.  They can still go to college, but I would want them to get certified in their trade as well.

Heading into the future, the people with hard skills (in trades) will have far more options and mobility than white collar workers in the rat race.

I'd still encourage college, but I wouldn't emphasize an Ivy or even an expensive school.  The best path a high school senior could take right now to position himself or herself well for the future is to get a bachelor's from a less expensive school coupled with a trade.  Even going to community college for two years and taking classes in a trade (in order to get a certification) and then going nights at a state school to finish for a BA is a good path.

I think that the current employment climate favors certifications over degrees.[/quote][/quote]

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