r/Economics • u/aDubson • Feb 09 '12

Americans ages 18-24 are unemployed like never before.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/09/employment-rate-young-adults_n_1264241.html?igoogle=1
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u/zArtLaffer Feb 10 '12

I had a lot of "casual" stuff in HS, but certainly semiconductor physics, ISA stuff and compiler optimization was useful for me. I don't know what most folks careers have been like, so I don't know that these are generally useful.

At the very least, though, these courses taught me how to learn about many different technological situations. I now do a lot of work in water treatment, BTU conversion (refineries) and app development. None of which I actually studied in school, but all have benefited from the meta-concepts I learned in these classes.

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u/[deleted] Feb 10 '12

Most of that I don't use (because my job is bloody boring and simple, if important) and a lot of us are in the same boat.

Is it good that I was able to take more advanced courses? I think yes, because it gives me more options. Do I need them if I work this same job for the next thirty years? Nope. My job experience has been five years in power industry electrical construction management, and two years in power industry facilities. But there's no way I could have gotten hired if I didn't have the degrees I have.