Rant #2

[Triggerfish]

I hear technical schools like ITT and Devry are better investments than college.

 

[Kizzy]

In the early 90’s, I had just had surgery and wasn’t walking too well. I needed to get to the college and get my books and I remember that semester, my tuition was around $900. The cashier said “that will be $337.00,” so I handed him my Visa card and went boom right on the floor. I passed out.

A week later I'm sitting in class and the instructor asked everyone if they had a text book. He started making jokes and said, yeah the prices are so bad, I heard a student passed out when they told her the amount. Looking back, that was pretty funny, but of course, it wasn't the price of books, it was that I was trying to do too much too fast, but anyway, I remember that amount was for 5 classes. My last semester in college, which was in the year 2002, I paid close to $400 for 3 classes, and about 5 times that in tuition cost.

 

[Triggerfish]

Science classes can be a biatch.....I think I paid over $200 for used books and lab items.

 

[marianne]

It depends on what you want to do and how you define success. The book "Millionaires Mind" is based on a study of 1,000 millionaires and answers the question of what made them millionaires. Almost all millionaires had bachelors degrees and they said it was essential to their success. Surprising very few had gone to ivy league schools or had post graduate degrees. I'm not saying you need to be a millionaire to be happy or successful but if you're defining "doing well" with $ then there's a strong argument to be made that a bachelors degree is worth it. BTW, if I remember correctly, a lot of these millionaires ended up working in fields that differed from their college major. What made it important was that they were able to tackle going to school and *finishing* a four year degree. A lot of them said the biggest thing they got out of college was finding it within themselves to finish something so challenging.

To answer your direct question, my current & past employers only hire people without a bachelors degree for administrative positions (i.e., secretary, receptionist, mail room personnel, etc.). I've always worked in think tanks though so multiple degrees are requirements for higher-up positions. I imagine different types of employers or job types have different expectations with regard to education qualifications.

 

[BuddyLee]

College books for four classes cost about as much or more than you pay for taking one class, at least at CSM. I usually try and save a good hundred by checking the ISBN # at the book store and then looking for the cheapest one on www.half.com.

 

[Triggerfish]

I usually go to Amazon for used books...unfortunately the ISBNs for the textbooks that I need for one of my fall semester classes doesn't show up in any used textbook sites.

 

[Railroad]

Virginia just raised their college tuition fees by an average of 8% across the board. The average annual tuition is now something like $12,000 a year, which isn't bad when you're talking about benefitting the rest of your life.

But I'm curious how many of you feel that your college degree was really worth it? Lots of people do well in life without a degree (I'm one of them) so I'm wondering if you really needed a degree to hold the job you have now.

The next thing I'm wondering is how federal assistance will change to accommodate rising tuition costs. Will this make it harder for poor kids to go to college, or will the rest of us be kicking in with our tax bucks to help fund them? Which I don't mind, frankly - that's one of the things I gladly give my tax bucks for, so some kid from nowhere can make a better life for himself. MUCH better deal than welfare and stupid crap like that.

But why raise tuition? Why not cut expenses instead? State colleges get federal money anyway, so I'd like to know why they raised tuition rather than just hitting the feds up for more $$$.

I don't have a degree, but I wish I had. I'm doing well without one, but I can readily see that there would be MANY more opportunities for me if I had a degree.

As far as tuition issues are concerned, I think the states need to shoulder more of their burdens on their own.

 

[marianne]

Here's a really good report about this subject:
http://www.researchcouncil.org/Repo...rEducation/EconomicValueofHigherEducation.htm

"Conclusions: Research has found that higher education is associated with substantial earnings premiums in the job market. The rate of return on education, however, varies with such factors as family background and innate ability. During the next century, higher education will become increasingly important for landing high-paying jobs. But for [now], many jobs will require no formal schooling beyond high school. Returns vary greatly across programs of study. Unfortunately, such programs as computer science and computer engineering often turn away many highly qualified applicants – applicants whose skills upon graduation are greatly demanded and compensated. The state should expand access to these programs. In instances where the programs are particularly expensive for the schools to offer, it is appropriate to charge students higher tuition. Students of ability from economically disadvantaged backgrounds might decline to invest in higher education because of financial risk. The state should give such students grants and tuition subsidies."

 

[Mikeinsmd]

It's not that selling cars is such a bad job, it's that he didn't need to spend all that money on college to do it.

I have a niece with a 4 year degree in criminal justice knocking down mega bucks selling cars (I'm sure the fact that she's cute as a button helps).

Not true. Tell him to call various publishing companies, newspapers and other media outlets. Also the Recorded Books place up in Prince Frederick is always hiring artists for their covers. Tell him to contact the advertising agencies as well. His pickins will be slim in SoMD, but up in DC he'll be golden. PS, he should start his own business for RE agents and builders, doing renditions of houses that they can use in their marketing materials. I keep telling my ex-wife she should do this and she keeps putting it off. If I could draw more than stick figures, I'd have done this a long time ago.

Remember I work in Rockville. She said he worked for the National Gallery downtown, they let him go and he cannot find a job. I will pass along your suggestions though.

"Conclusions: Research has found that higher education is associated with substantial earnings premiums in the job market. The rate of return on education, however, varies with such factors as family background and innate ability. During the next century, higher education will become increasingly important for landing high-paying jobs. But for [now], many jobs will require no formal schooling beyond high school. Returns vary greatly across programs of study. Unfortunately, such programs as computer science and computer engineering often turn away many highly qualified applicants – applicants whose skills upon graduation are greatly demanded and compensated. The state should expand access to these programs. In instances where the programs are particularly expensive for the schools to offer, it is appropriate to charge students higher tuition. Students of ability from economically disadvantaged backgrounds might decline to invest in higher education because of financial risk. The state should give such students grants and tuition subsidies."

I still believe you need a degree in something tangible. For instance, as an electrical contractor, I'll hire an electrical engineer with a 4 yr. degree over a post graduate degree in "supersize me" anyday. Same applies to a law firm hiring an electrical engineer.... they have no need for them.

As a side note.... tons of "book sense" does not compensate for lack of common sense.

 

[czygvtwkr]

I hear technical schools like ITT and Devry are better investments than college.

Let me tell you about places like that. While they do teach you good skills many students think they are getting an engineering degree they do get a degree but they are not accredited and nobody will hire them as an engineer. We have two people that work for us as techs that went to Devry thinking they got the same degree I got, its three years instead of 4 but other than that it costs about the same.

When I took the FE (Fundamentals of Engineering) exam to begin my path to become registered as a professional there were a ton of people in there from tech schools taking it for their third and fourth time. Everyone I went to school with passed it their first time.

 

[Triggerfish]

I didn't believe that they gave college degrees. I thought they gave some sort of certification to be technicians. Some useful info there. Thanks.

 

[czygvtwkr]

Its actually a bit disappointing because talking to these guys they had a good base, probably about 70% of what an accredited school would need to teach to pass the process. Unfortunately none of their classes would transfer anywhere else. They did turn out a couple of very good techs though.