Reason #6 Why College Is A Lousy Deal
My past five blogs have explained why I think college is not a good idea for many of you reading this. A short summary of those reasons are: 1. The market for college graduates is saturated. 2. Grade inflation has diminished the quality of a
Reason #5 Why College Is A Lousy Deal
This reason escapes a lot of peoples’ notice. Most folks make a distinction between college and vocational education. They think of them as separate entities, i.e., higher education versus learning a trade. Even worse is the widespread conviction among the general public and high school
Reason #3 Why College Is A Lousy Deal
In my last blog, I identified grade inflation as Reason #2 why a college degree doesn’t mean what it used to. I explained that grade inflation started with the anti-Vietnam War movement of the 1960s, when college students were exempt from the military draft and
Reason #2 Why College Is A Lousy Deal
A college degree doesn’t mean what it used to. In my last blog I explained that one reason is because so many people have college degrees nowadays (33% of American adults, vs. just 5% in 1940). As a result, some 37% of recent college graduates
Debt Till Death
Do you love your Mom and Dad? There are exceptions, but I suspect most people reading this would answer yes. If you do, do them a favor. Don’t put them in such a hole supporting your college education that they have to struggle in retirement.
Construction Plagued by Labor Shortages
February 2017 Service firms also cry for trade workers Most of our economy has largely recovered from the devastation of the “Great Recession” that started in 2008. One notable exception is construction. Home building is still at recession levels, and one reason is a lack
Student Loan Debt Worsens
February 2017 College is increasingly a bad buy Last month the news media was filled with a story that ought to send a chill up the spine of anyone thinking of taking out a student loan to attend college. The U.S. Education Department admitted that
Don’t Be Misled About Pay Scales
January 24, 2017 Skilled trades compete well with college grads According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), 68% of high school graduates go on to attend college. Young people face enormous pressure from family and friends to do so. The biggest reason is the
Are You Job-Ready? – Part 4
December 6, 2016 Act like a professional This will be my final blog on the subject of job readiness. The topic is professionalism. What does professionalism mean? One dictionary defines it as “the skill, good judgment, and polite behavior that is expected from a person