Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire ‘Elitists, crybabies and junky degrees’: Education advocates see growing disdain for unive

The University system is mostly run by academics that have zero grounding in the real business world. In order to be a professor they should require 5-10 years employment in the real world. Aside from that, I'm against public tax payers money funding for university's, they should sink or float on their own merit. The free lunch is what is breaking the system. No more guaranteed student loans back by tax payers, no more tax payer money into the system.

My daughters have degrees in accounting and physical therapy, both occupations that are in demand. They had no problem finding employment upon graduation, in fact the CPA had her position secured before graduation at the firm and salary level she wanted. What I don't like about most colleges and universities is the alcohol culture that flourishes. While the girls did not fall in with the wrong crowd, their friends and roomates drank at nearly every meal. Where the money came from to pay for all this alcohol is a mystery to me. The drinking has slowed down some since they're now working but their refrig. and liquor cabinet are nearly as well stocked as a liquor store. Some of the inventory has come as gifts from friends but still they have a fair amount of money tied up in alcohol.

There are plenty of professionals that want to work and put in 50-60 or sometimes 90+ hour weeks. They are also husseling to find the best job and to gain the skills and experience to be highly compensated.

Cream rises no matter what the job sector.

Government controlling costs like healthcare, are you out of your mind????

4 year degrees will be 1/2 million in a blink of the eye of the government gets involved.

I chase people who default on thier student loans for a living. I can tell you the most common employers for people who went to school for "liberal arts" (if they have a job) is usually Walmart, Lowes, Cosco, or any number of resturaunt chains. These folks were screwed before they ever started by the big lie that you HAVE TO HAVE a collage education to make it out there. It's nice to see some folks are waking up.

I have a good friend that is finishing up his doctorate in Cello performance...... He is an awesome person, But how many jobs in this world are there for a half black, Brazilian Cello major. He will wind up being a music teacher. He has been in school for many years..............

Bingo Jim you have hit the nail on the head. Cheers NC

Where we live in Iowa the skilled trades are the bread and butter. Have lots of friends my age(31) that did the 4 year degree and still live at home and can’t make more than 12 bucks by working at the gas station or fast food joint. I joined the service after getting tired of welding for a few years out of high school and guess what. Got out and the welding exp along with military time got foot in the door. Took some basic tech classes and now make in top 5% household income in the state. We get to write our checks. And yet I have friends who refuse to do anything to help themselves. Unbelievable

Working as a Tool & Die Maker I made 2 1/2X more than my BIL with a Phd., you do not have to go to college to earn a good living.

+100

while we're all pretty much in favor of shuttering the doors of many of the colleges, etc., let's don't forget that with the kind of economy we have, we're going to need well trained professionals to run this technocracy. there's no way around. sure, we need plenty in the trenches making good money, but we need to fill all areas with qualified people.

there's no tellin' how many people in my neighborhood happily joins the hordes on the expressway headed to work a day nirvana. it's just the way it is. it's the system.

but, what are we going to do with all the unemployed and less than fully employed folks? put them in the retail stores helping sell xmas? seriously, in an automated economy plenty of workers will be needed, but still not nearly enough jobs to supply everybody with one. it's going to be one of the challenges of gov't (us) to figure out how all of this is going to sort out.

and yes, motivated workers will find a way. motivation...what a concept.

I'm all for people getting a broad, well rounded education. If you can afford one, I highly, HIGHLY recommend it.

But.

Why are we (i.e. the Government) guaranteeing 150K in student loans for someone to get a four year degree in Gender Studies?

60K to become a mechanical engineer? 80K to become a CPA? Even 250K to become a doc? Sure, I'm good with that. But 100K for a degree in African Studies?

Maybe we should rethink funding some of this nonsense.

I've found the same holds true in the working world.

American universities need a stiff dose of govt money ischemia and rigorous market place exposure.

I think you've pointed out the real problem. Everyone biches about not having a job, but none of them want to work. They've been brainwashed into believing that they are owed something and they try and coast down the path of least resistance starting with some of the bullschitt subjects that the institutions of higher-indoctrination offer in their so-called "degree" programs. Their preparation for real life is based on a lie which started when they stepped across the pre-school threshold.

It all started going downhill when the scumbag hippie protesters of the 60s and 70s entered into the "education" arena and started teaching my generation. The stake was driven through the heart when the feral govt govt got in on the act with the Dept. of Education.

you have to go where the jobs are.

Nothing against Iowa or any other location, but I grew up in a relatively small town that had one industry and a few supporting companies that provided decent jobs as a result of the one industry.

Many of my friends went to college to get a job with the idea they'd be working at the plant or one of the handful of supporting companies. That plant shut down about 15 years ago and killed the area. The only decent paying jobs are a few factories 20 miles away geared toward union blue collar workers , a government job or the health care industry. Other than that, your best hope of gainful employment is to be a manager in retail or services unless you want to farm.

I told my daughter she needs to go to a large college that attracts a large number of employers and has multiple job fairs by degree or industry and then go where the job takes you, When we hire college grads, I train them for 3 months. Part of my advice to them is telling them what makes them valuable to us - and whats makes them valuable (to us and other employers) is they are mobile. I tell them while its none of my business, early in their career they shouldn't get locked down with a mortgage, a pet, a significant other, kids - at least until they have it all figured out. Chances are they are going to quit, want to move or have some other major life changing event that makes their current situation undesirable if not untenable. We consider ourselves lucky to have a 45% retention rate after 5 years with a college grad. Often if I can hire a college grad with a couple of years experience, I'm going to give them a hard look if I don't have to worry about them selling a house or waiting for the school year to end , whatever - If they can throw what they own in the back of a UHaul trailer and get here in 2 weeks, they are valuable to future employers.

While I sometimes miss my hometown and the friends/family I grew up with, I never regret my decision to move away from my town that offered little in terms of employment options. Out of college I bounced around thru a handful of jobs until I found one that offered me a good fit and some longevity. It sucked in the sense that I never had that family/friend base to help with housing, moving, babysitting , car repair - those types of things, but the tradeoff was I was able to have a life that wouldn't have happened in my hometown.

Its not just getting a college degree, of course its getting the right college degree, its choosing the right college (doesn't have to be one of the top name ones, matter of fact there is little difference in earning capacity for a college grad from a "named" college and a state school), getting the right experience when you are in college and then pursuing the right company. Its all about the opportunity you create with your choices.

There have been many times on here where I read or see pictures of where some of you guys live and wish I had made that choice, but I have always lived where work took me or the jobs were offered. Maybe if/when I retire I will finally get to choose where to live on my terms, but when I hear about college graduates living in their parents basement working at a restaurant or department store, I always wonder - did they pursue the right degree and is living at home where the jobs are? Are they maximizing their opportunities or are they choosing family/friends and their comfort zone of living at home?

My hope for my kids is that I live in a location that offers them the best of both - a chance to have meaningful employment and the ability to stay in their hometown if they choose.

What the academics need is a good dose of what we got in the precision machining and tool and die trade.
CAFTA or free trade with chi-coms.
You spend your whole working career learning how to be the best you can be and then your government,owned by special interest,signs a deal with people that work for 50 cents an hour and there government supports all there efforts.
China graduates more english speaking phds than we do.Education paid in full by the chi-com party.
These chi-com phds work for pennies on the dollar and ideology wise, arnt that much different from american academics.
You could dramatically reduce the cost of a college education this way.
it was good enough for manufacturing.
why not education.?

dave

It's not the schools. It's the curriculum offered. That's why trade schools are coming to the fore again. Four year degrees will always be there (I have one) but people trained specifically in a trade have much more to offer from the get go. One of my last jobs in a major manufacturing company was screening for new hires. I sought out and generally hired those with two year degrees that fit our profile. As I recall, having earned an Eagle Scout award got my attention, right now.

Ain't that the damn truth.

A young man in America who wants to make some money these days should get certified in both Industrial and residential electrical work. $80 to $90K a year is available if you get good at it,...and you won't need to bury yourself in student debt.