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[soundguy]

Dear colleagues,

I was inspired to start this thread by the article in today's Chronicle Review (http://chronicle.com/weekly/v55/i33/33a00105.htm?utm_source=at&utm_medium=en) about those in academe whose children decide not to go to college. It got me to thinking about why it is that we think that college is the best path for our children. I haven't heard a lot of people question the President's assertion that we need to get more people into college.

Certainly we've all encountered students in our institutions that really don't belong there. Or perhaps we've been that student ourselves, stuck in a school or program that was a poor fit. At the very least, we need to be able to answer the questions, "Why should I come here? Why should I go anywhere for college?" rather than just assuming that everyone agrees that it's a good thing.

So what about it, folks? Are there people who are better off not going to college? And I'm not talking about lack of ability, here, but rather a conscious choice that it's not the right direction for their life.

Inquiringly yours, SoundGuy

[mended_drum]

Sure.  My brother-in-law was better off not going.  So was my cousin, who is now a successful master carpenter.

But it really depends on whether or not you consider "college" to be job training or something else.  I think that most people with the intellectual ability benefit from a genuine liberal arts education; however, not everyone wants that, and some people are happier and more successful choosing a different path altogether.

[erzuliefreda]

I, for one, loved college.

[juillet]

Yeah, I think so.  My younger brother skipped college (or rather, delayed).  He went for a semester, paying for it himself, and realized that he didn't want to be doing this.  He couldn't care less about philosophy or Great Books; he just wanted a job, and so after working odd jobs (hosting at a restaurant; loading trucks with UPS) he went to an 18-week job training program and got a job as an electrical line worker.  He likes his job, and they pay pretty well for the area that we live in.  And - bonus for him - they're paying for him to earn his bachelor's degree, so he's attending community college part-time and then intends to switch to our state's technical university.

I think we as a society need to have more opportunity for students to get different job training straight out of high school than just heading to college.  There are a lot of people who belong there and really love it; there are some people who have rocky starts, but really grow into it.  But there are some students who just don't want it, and high schools are not doing enough to educate students on viable, successful alternatives to going to college.  We'll always need carpenters, plumbers, electrical line workers, nurses (with 2-year degrees), medical assistants, occupational/physical therapy assistants, paralegals, dental hygienists, customer service representatives, transit workers, manufacturing laborers, and all kinds of other skilled and unskilled labor that doesn't require a college degree...I knew more about options outside of college because neither of my parents nor anyone in my family had a college degree, and so they weren't really expecting me to get one.  So I was already looking at jobs that I could do without a college degree until sometime in 11th grade when my English teacher suggested I consider college.  Right now my sister's in a 4-year BSN program and she's sort of unhappy -- she just wants to be a nurse.

[businessman2]

I do not think that college is always the best answer for everyone but I feel that most people are better off going and getting a degree. I also agree with erzuliefreda.....I personally loved college. It was the best four years of my life. There

[sciencephd]

Absolutely not !  Why is this not obvious ?

[locutus]

Absolutely not !  Why is this not obvious ?

I think it is obvious that it isn't always the best thing. The real question is when it is, when it isn't and why?

I will say this really depends on the job/SES situation of the student (and their family) and their goals. College is helpful for some goals, perhaps not others.

[kedves]

Undoubtedly it's not always best, but this article is about professors' children.  (The free link is no longer available.)  It's often extremely frustrating to academic parents when their children don't go to college or don't graduate.  I have some experience with that in my family.

[businessman2]

Yeah same here. Most parents expects four years and a degree and to them there is no other option.   

[forest1227]

It is difficult to determine how much education is right for someone: high school, college, or PhD? I think this depends on the supply and demand. Currently, there is an oversupply of talents as so many people have got college degrees. As a result, elimination is inevitable, either at the stage of university entrance (as in some countries) or in the job market. Obviously, getting more education could make someone more competitive on individual basis, but this will not solve any problems at the macroeconomic level.

[sciencephd]

"Elimination is inevitable"...where did I hear that recently ?

[systeme_d_]

"Elimination is inevitable"...where did I hear that recently ?

Probably the same place where you heard about the "oversupply of talents."

[barbaracarol006]

Some times we feel college life is something similar to our personal life, but when we have start our collage life then realize, its quite difficult and challenging.

[mondamay]

I grew up in a large family and only have one sibling that is attending a university. I cannot imagine my other siblings doing anything other than some sort of vocational training, which is not to say that they are not intelligent enough to. It is just that their interests lie elsewhere.

College is not the answer for everyone, however the idea of lifelong learning may be more applicable here.

One of my siblings, with whom I have heated debates about the value of a college education, partakes in vocational training for hu trade. I think part of hu opinion is derived from the fact that hu didn't have to take the traditional liberal arts course load to earn a position in a trade and make over six figures a year. Not defining success solely on the financial aspect, hu is one of a limited number of people with the specialized knowledge and skill to be considered one of the best in hu field, hu often gets called to different parts of the country to perform hu job because there isn't anyone else available. While I like to brag about my sibling, the point is that hu accomplished this not with a college degree but rather with specialized technical training.

To get back on point, I think there is a need to redefine education with respect to lifelong learning and the changing needs of the workforce. It may be that ccs, technical colleges, and community education programs will play an increasingly larger role in education.

[infiniteloop]

No, there are many other ways to garner life long learning.  While that piece of paper is important, it is not a ticket into the professional world even though it is advertised as such.  The problem is that most of the youth today refuse to learn unless they are forced to learn.  In a generation of Myspace, Twitter, Facebook many of the youth have no desire to pick up a book or go to an apprenticeship.  Unless someone makes them learn a skill they won't because we have enabled someone to pick up their slack in the future. 

A very good friend of mine tried for many years to fit into college, he couldn't because he was too hands on and always wanting to learn beyond what could be taught in a classroom.  In his desire for additional knowledge he inevitably found work that fascinated him that made going to college impossible.  He finally gave up the dream about getting a degree and headed into the real world, he was greatly benefited by the fact that he refuses to stop learning and is now happily employed by a company that continually challenges him.  The problem is finding people like my friend is becoming harder, where most would throw their hands up in the air and accept defeat he will take it as a challenge and find a solution.