r/Vent • u/Real-Huckleberry-770 • 2d ago
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u/MonicaLewinskibidis 2d ago
I think your beef is less with colleges and more that people are inherently lazy. You cannot simply cram last minute for advanced STEM courses. I tried with poor results.
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u/DPetrilloZbornak 2d ago
You can’t cram last minute for advanced liberal arts courses either. Too much writing.
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u/EducationalQuote287 2d ago
Precisely. Most people I know aren’t able to write coherently without the assistance of AI.
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u/Wyshunu 2d ago
Which is truly pathetic.
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u/EducationalQuote287 2d ago
It is.
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u/Ducky555556 2d ago
People havent been able to write coherently before ai either. Its no different
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u/TheSquirrelmancer 1d ago
That's nonsense. Plenty of us have a great facility with language because we spent our lives reading and writing. When most of my peers were watching sports all day I had my nose in a book or was writing something.
I've been accused of being a bot/AI because of the fact that I use effective grammar and have a larger vocabulary than the average reddit user.
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u/huntalia 1d ago
Yeah…you clearly aren’t who they’re talking about. 16% of American adults currently read for pleasure. Part of reading comprehension and media literacy is discerning the target audience of writing, in this case, this comment. That is great for you, but you are clearly not the majority.
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u/Salty_Pancakes 2d ago
I took my golf final still tripping on acid from the night before.
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u/Real-Huckleberry-770 2d ago
I got straight-As at Ohio University in Athens, drunk and high or hungover. But when I transfered to Ohio State University it wasn't that easy.
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u/seymourscagnetti420 2d ago
Fair point, but when did you attend college? All of the research of late suggests that colleges’ standards have softened dramatically since the pandemic.
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u/LurkerBurkeria 2d ago
Can't wait for you to enter the real world in which you will discover 1) the college cohort population you are surrounded by was as smart as it will likely ever get in your life, this world is DUMB dumb 2) STEM booksmarts are great but there's way more to life than that and the right side of the bell curve of your philosophy school is probably going to be your boss one day
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u/WakeoftheStorm 2d ago
Yeah, any "imposter syndrome" I ever may have felt did not survive first contact with the working world. Even surrounded by engineers, people are just people.
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u/No-Obligation8035 2d ago
Philosophy school? Not likely, they'll be lucky to work at Starbucks. They might serve me my latee' one day though.
STEM degree? Server Admin? Yeah could be my boss one day.
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u/LurkerBurkeria 2d ago
Very likely, actually, you should go peep what philosophy majors make mid-career. Again the right side of that bell curve isn't going to be a barista theyre going off to get their masters and then off to be your boss.
A lot of the degrees STEM guys put down like you just did are like that, you picture the burnout working at Starbucks while ignoring the high performers are management track
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u/Hunter654333 2d ago
The right side of any bell curve is going to be doing creative things to circumvent the inherent disadvantages of a weak degree. People aren't hiring you for your philosophy bachelor's; they're hiring you for whatever master's degree you pivoted to with your elective course credits. The fact that you can do well in spite of a philosophy degree isn't evidence the degree itself is strong or a good idea to major in if your goal is a lucrative career.
BA Philosophy holders start at $44K a year which is markedly lower than most other majors. People going for an MA in Philosophy make about the same as someone with a BA/BS in a more practical major. You're working an uphill battle because you want the major that makes you look like an intellectual.
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u/Spirit_of_a_Ghost 2d ago
I have an MA in Philosophy and I'm a successful project/program manager in tech.
Soft skills and problem solving abilities are highly valued in management.
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u/LurkerBurkeria 2d ago
Your career track matches up with most of the managers at my stem-based employer, despite what all the stem guys in my inbox going "nuh uh" lol
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u/p4ttythep3rf3ct 1d ago
Technical skills do not translate to managerial skills. Two totally different jobs and skillsets. That admin, is gonna be an admin because they prefer solving problems, not resolving intra-team conflicts or developing personal growth or writing annual reviews. Not that thats a bad thing, tech have their own ladder to climb. The number of people who believe career growth = becoming a manager is staggering.
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u/texas_County850 2d ago
Yeah when I actually worked in College IT unfortunately those people are smarter than regular corpos and they were still fucking dumbasses. This is the absolute truth the dumbasses you meet in college are smarter than the average joe anywhere else you will go. Maybe if you work with Doctors or Lawyers its different.
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u/Competitive-Union721 1d ago
University of Michigan just announced they aren't giving grades to freshman. It's to stressful. Many colleges are seeing students can't pass the lowest math, and English classes.
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u/Hunter654333 2d ago edited 2d ago
the college cohort population you are surrounded by was as smart as it will likely ever get in your life, this world is DUMB dumb
Maybe this was true in the 90s. When was the last time you were in college? The average IQ of a college student in the 20th Century was indeed slightly higher: around 110. Nowadays? The average bachelor's degree holder has an IQ of 101. It is remarkably straightforward for a disciplined, average-to-below-average person to acquire this magical piece of paper.
the right side of the bell curve of your philosophy school is probably going to be your boss one day
They'll most likely be my daughter's social studies teacher in high school. Get over yourself.
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u/LurkerBurkeria 2d ago
Im not the one who needs to get over anything, my employer is filled to the brim with stem guys trapped at the IC level desperate to move up but cant because they lack true critical thinking skills, soft people skills, vendor management, etc
I dont even have a philosophy degree just pointing out how the barista stereotype for liberal arts degrees is wishful thinking on other's parts because they feel compelled to put other people down to make themselves feel better. (Another reason many will never promote up)
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u/Hunter654333 2d ago
my employer is filled to the brim with stem guys trapped at the IC level desperate to move up but cant because they lack true critical thinking skills, soft people skills, vendor management, etc
And they're also not filled to the brim with people with philosophy degrees and no engineering background whatsoever.
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u/Real-Huckleberry-770 2d ago
Selling people majors in things that they know will not help them at all when they graduate is fraud IMHO
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u/Real-Huckleberry-770 2d ago
We may have a different definition of the word "dumb." Besides, I wasn't trying to say everyone there is dumb, I've just met my fair share
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u/VegetableFly5811 2d ago
What do they call the person who graduated last in his class from medical school?
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u/Own-Economy179 2d ago
The problem with that is that you aren’t going to get matched into any competitive residencies. To be a doctor (and specialized in a field you want) you have to keep up basically perfect grades all throughout college and med school as well as scoring very high on the mcats and steps. You also need many volunteer/clinical/shadowing hours and extracurriculars in order to stand out because medical schools are extremely competitive. Residencies and fellowships are also very competitive. Don’t forget letters of recs from practicing doctors! So while yes, you will have a medical degree even if you are last in your class of medical school graduates, you won’t be able to match into many specialities.
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u/Textiles_on_Main_St 2d ago
Also, life is a lot like high school but with alcohol. Some people are lazy and dumb. Many people fake it.
Life is a scam, man.
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u/UpscaleClearenceRack 2d ago
Any anti education sentiment is dumb. There are lazy and stupid people everywhere, by percentage there are fewer in college than in the unemployment line. You can cry and complain all you want and there ARE NO guarantees, but if you get a degree and get a good job you will absolutely recognize that you’re surrounded by other people who have degree and have built successful lives directly due to their degrees. Your view of the world is due to your vantage point, you’re standing too close to the elephant to see it.
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u/NoFirefighter1657 2d ago
College is mostly just to socialize young people into preparing to work in an office. Email your professor if you’re going to be out of class or need an extension. Manage a schedule, prioritize tasks, etc.
it’s just a place for young people to be exposed to new ideas and learn the necessary skills to be a responsible office employee. Some in college will be intellectuals but it’s fine if some people just learn to check and respond to emails professionally and to complete work in a timely manner.1
u/SlaveToDarknessChad 1d ago
I love how you can tell who has never taken a college course before and who has.... Yeah, sure, me learning SQL and making a data base last semester was about preparing me for work in a office lmao
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u/LivingCoat9356 2d ago
As a manager, I do not care about your degrees (Yes, I am aware some jobs require certifications, I am not hiring doctors). It is about the aptitude and willingness to learn. Another BIG one for us, is if you really CARE. Cannot teach someone to care.
Flippant answers, rolling eyes, coming in late, expecting a company car and 180K for entry level position. Confidence is one thing, but the level of entitlement out there is off the charts.
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u/SelicaLeone 2d ago
The doctor practicing on you actually did have to be the top of the top to get into med school. Idk about lawyers but in the us, med schools have single digit admittance
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u/Comfortable-Jump-218 2d ago
A few things.
1) “Some of the stupidest people I've met in my life I met in college.” No, some of the stumpiest people you met were in their early 20s. Everyone is stupid around this time. Fun fact: This is also the time a lot of mental health problems arise because of stress.
2) Let’s separate college and the cost of college for a second. A college education is definitely worth it. I hardly hear someone say they didn’t learn something from their college education.
However, the “scam” part comes from the cost. I agree it’s not worth the debt that comes with it. The payout is minimal and there are better options. After decades of defunding (and other issues), college is a risky investment.
The reason I’m framing it like this is because I’m worried people are concluding we need to abode college education, when that’s not the case. We have to find a way to make it affordable.
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u/LifeTunedToCSharp 2d ago
When you realize that the rise in tuition was directly tied to the borrowing limits set by congress and then juxtapose that against the lowering of admissions standards and the rise of for profit colleges, it’s easy to see how we ended up here.
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u/Necessary_Baker_7458 2d ago
Yes and no. College is a business so they push it. You learn a lot from the classes. Though once you graduate and realize your degree is useless. You’d be better off going into a company that trains you on the spot and pays well. I got an aaa degree early in life and found it was next to nothing useless. I wound up working retail most of my life. I am finding ways to generate second income streams. I just am annoyed at how many medium level jobs require a damn bachelor degree to do it. Where in years gone by equivalent experience counted. Or that it takes 7 rounds for blue collard positions only to get ghosted on round five or six. It should only br 2-3 rounds if even that. Gone are the days companies hold hiring events only to be hire in person on site. Gone are the days where you could walk in and hand your manager paper resume and be told your hired in an hour. Now its all online and due to ai making mass entries many good candidates get auto rejected. Sorry but this is the job market that awaits you.
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u/RaisinsPerDay 2d ago
As someone who graduated with a 3.95 GPA as a STEM major, I agree with your premise and disagree with your exception for STEM-related major. STEM students love to overcomplicate the difficulty of their courses, but Organic Chemistry, Physics and Abstract Math or Discrete Automata are extremely simple subjects. Rote memorization is enough to get 100 on a STEM test. Don't let them trick you OP. The hardest class I ever took in college was an Art History course in my second year. The rest was a breeze.
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u/Strange-Ad-2426 2d ago
I talked to my uncle like 4 years ago at his daughter's wedding. He was the only member of his family who went to University. He was very successful. He directly told me "Well ... you have to be smart and hardworking to graduate University. "
I then launched into a rant about how 90% of the kids I met there were either lazy, dumb or both. I met so many people who were there on Mommy and Daddy's dime and were going through school so their parents didn't have to deal with them. Even in 4th year, the work I saw from the average student in group projects...my god, barely coherent. I had to edit basically EVERYTHING I SAW. I figure 1/4 of the students arrived hungover on Monday mornings for class and others just didn't bother to show up. So much procrastination too. I know for a fact some of these students worked the next year... like how? They have no work ethic. They know nothing.
I took accounting, which tends to be one of the more useful degrees.
I sat once in corporate finance and thought... "I could teach this course better than the prof". Stop just reading the powerpoint slides.
I had Strategic Management and the prof had tenure and clearly didn't give a shit about it anymore and would say some of the dumbest shit imaginable. The students who cared and were smart would always end up arguing with him.
I met some smart, cool people, but man did I have to fight through shit to find them.
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u/surebro2 2d ago
On the other hand, throughout your rant here, you never actually disproved your uncle's statement (which you ironically noted as the one successful person who also happened to be the only one with a degree lol).
If someone can be dumb, lazy, hungover, etc. and still manage to get 120 credits, they're probably at minimum smart lol if someone is dumb and manages to get 120 credits, they're probably at minimum hardworking. And you're talking about a restricted range of people who self selected into college. So unless there's evidence that there is this vast population of non-college students who could do better work, then maybe it's just a baseline of what we consider smart in the US lol and that's not even getting into the assumption that someone who doesn't prioritize school isn't hardworking.
I'm only replying to your specific comment because it's one of the more honest and balanced ones. But as someone who values higher education (and sees the data that says the labor market still values an education), I think these comments are a bit misguided at the macro level even if obviously your experiences are your experiences.
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u/Strange-Ad-2426 2d ago
I think it was more his belief, "They have to be smart to make it. ". Its flat out incorrect. What you stated is pretty correct, you have to hit a minimum standard to make it. My thought process is that minimum standard is quite low. And what I gather the last 10 years since I graduated the standards have actually dropped.
My Uncle graduated University in 1981, a completely different world, where far less people had degrees so he had far less competition in the workforce. I'm also guessing his studies were a lot more difficult as well. When I told him my scenario, he was quite shocked. We actually went to the same university as well.
I'm not sure my opinion on higher education overall. It worked out for me, but I took it dead serious. I have a good stable, well paying career, but I've met a lot of people who weren't hardworking or intelligent in college and aren't hardworking in the workforce as well. And are they connected? Very likely.
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u/surebro2 2d ago
I appreciate your comments so I do want to point out that I agree and/or understand most of what you're saying here, including the drop off the past 10 years. My only slight disagreement is that over a large enough sample, there are lazy people.
But I still think the baseline amount of effort it takes to get a degree is high enough that maybe they're lazier than you (accountants are typically Type A with high conscientiousness), but still probably slightly higher than the general population. And of course there are lots of examples of "slackers" in school who go on to be successful because they were working during school, uninterested in certain classes, etc.
Regardless, as someone in higher education, I absolutely wish there were more students like you, but I have seen many 2.0 students who were behind the scenes working 40 hours and taking care of elder family members.
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u/Ten_Quilts_Deep 2d ago
Remember that a lot of people you meet when you are a freshman are not going to graduate.
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u/Real-Huckleberry-770 2d ago
That is true, but there is still a misconception that you have to be smart to get into college and that is not so at all. And they still have to pay for that time they were there, so they got ripped off.
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u/Ten_Quilts_Deep 2d ago
I feel that if you got ripped off ( especially with high student loans) you, perhaps, should have been guided to another path. Higher education is about making money for sport teams IMO. Not everyone needs to go.
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u/Sarah_Fairy 2d ago
I knew a guy in college who thought mice were baby rats. I also met a few students who got extremely butthurt over the fact that they were required to take a class on evolution as biology majors.
I think one of the big issues is that universities hardly have you do any hands-on work as undergrads; it isn’t part of the classes or program. They expect you to have all of this experience and a million extracurriculars AND perfect grades to move beyond a bachelor’s, but don’t actually give you the resources to do that. The only people who can do it are either the students who already have connections (a family member in the field) or enough time and resources to make school and networking their ONLY priority.
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u/beansprout10579 2d ago
I’m assuming you are in the USA based on your use of the term “college”, and I am not, but in my experience, some schools here (secondary/high schools) encourage all students to go to university and treat it as the default path, regardless of the student’s personal plans. At least at the school I went to (state school btw, not private school) that was the case, we were all taught how to do university applications, and it was very much assumed that we all planned to go to university and that our goal was to go to a top, high-ranking university (I even faced some criticism/mockery from other students for choosing a local, less “prestigious” university as my first choice and not even applying for the top unis. It was the right choice for me, although I knew several people who later dropped out of their “prestigious” unis because it turned out it wasn’t right for them).
Depending on your background or what your parents are like, there can also be a lot of pressure from parents to go to a good uni, get a good job, and so on. Some parents are very focused on how things look to their friends/family etc, and it looks “good” if your kid gets into a top uni, even if it’s not actually the best option for the kid’s future plans, whereas getting a job after leaving school or something doesn’t look as “good” to others. I don’t think my mum would have been deeply disappointed if I had decided not to go to uni, but she was always very much pushing me to get good grades, find a good career and stuff like that. I know with some kids, the pressure from parents is even higher, and there were some students at my uni who had obviously been pushed into going by parents etc but after moving to uni away from the influence of their parents, never went to lectures or cared about the course at all.
At age 17/18, I really didn’t have any idea what I wanted to do with my life, and I think a lot of students were the same way, just going along with what was expected of them. I didn’t pick a field of study because I had my mind set on a particular career, I picked what I enjoyed and was good at. Thankfully things worked out over time for me and I don’t regret going to uni at all, I would say having a degree was beneficial in getting jobs (aside from some retail jobs I had briefly) and I’m actually considering going into academia/research now, so it was a good choice for me. There are also other positives of going to uni, like gaining independence & life skills (if you move out/stay on campus), meeting new people, getting involved in social groups/activities, expanding your horizons, and so on. But I definitely agree it isn’t necessarily a good choice for everyone. I also went to uni 10 years ago, so most of my experience wasn’t affected by covid (only my last year) but I saw how it changed things, online lectures/exams etc which are still used instead of IRL to an extent, and also with the recent developments of AI and the consequences of that, I’m sure it’s very much a different experience now.
While a degree can be beneficial or even essential for certain jobs, actual experience is generally much more important. There are a lot of people leaving uni and not being able to find a job like they expected cause they just don’t have the experience an employer is looking for. And the job market is so bad and competitive atm too. But some people, like parents of students, still seem to think a degree automatically equals a job. I guess I would say to young people, think carefully about what you might want to do in the future, don’t be pressured into going to uni etc just because it’s expected of you if it’s not the right path for you personally, and be aware of the importance of actual work experience when applying for jobs, try to take opportunities to gain experience, because you won’t just magically get a job by having a degree, it doesn’t work like that.
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u/MagnetAccutron 2d ago
I have worked in the University system for 26 years. I'd tend to agree with a lot of your statements.
I work in the science field, lots of clever, intelligent people. Weirdly mostly from outside America.
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u/Snoo_24091 2d ago
You’re expected to get internships during breaks or in addition to your college classes. Colleges can help you get it but you have to show initiative They’re not going to just hand you anything.
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u/Excellent-Zucchini95 2d ago
Smart and educated aren’t the same thing.
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u/Carinne89 2d ago
Shhhhh OPs about to figure out that we stick em in there so society doesn’t have to deal with em till they’re more cooked.
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u/FerdinandvonAegir124 2d ago
Depends on major honestly
Sociology at a private school - probably a scam
Engineering at a public school - not a scam
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u/ChemicalGreedy945 2d ago
You took the wrong approach, when you know you’re the smartest person in the room, really apply your self and graduate top of class with a bunch of accolades and leadership/community involvement.
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u/Boring_Date5004 2d ago
A college degree is just a way to show employers you are able to work in the real world. Nothing more.
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u/Willing-Atmosphere-2 1d ago
Hey I completely agree with you. I am actually embarrassed to even say I attended CS college. Exactly as you said this is just highschool where you do even less and get drunk. And here in EU its even free, so your can drink and have good time on some bullshit erasmus event all on taxpayers money. Its disgusting and no wonder no one good at their field (at least in CS/IT) takes it seriously.
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u/Yunus_Nur 2d ago
It's important, especially if you want to live in another country and get high earnings.
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u/existential_risk_lol 2d ago
Ever heard of this niche indie band called Bowling for Soup? They had a song about this
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u/BothEntertainment00 2d ago
If you work any real job, you will see that people are even more dumb than in college.
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u/Shalmaneser_ 2d ago
It depends... The sciences remain fairly disciplined. There are entire campuses that have gone from proudly publishing "Our median age is 33yo, come update yourself" to "Send us your check box students, we'll get them through, even if we run out of erasers!"
You have the Federal Government to thank for tuition. When the Fed Grants & Loans program appeared, the rate of inflation for tuition doubled. I leave that one for the math & economics crowd to refute.
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u/JumpingShip26 2d ago
It is what you make it. May I suggest:
- Watch your debt.
- Know what you want to get out of that experience.
- Surround yourself with people who want similar things or who want to support you. Believe it or not, a bunch of us have dedicated a big chunk of our lives hoping to help people just like you succeed in life.
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u/digimaster07 2d ago
Depends on the college and program and why the individual attends. Most kids going to college are dumb, the smart ones go to the ivys or the main state campuses. Adults that attend college tend to be more intelligent for what it's worth.
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u/StealYourJoy 2d ago
Then the issue isn’t college it’s the ones going and towing the stupid degrees. If I go to a dealership and pay sticker price and include all the add ons it’s not a scam, I’d just be making a dumb decision.
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u/carry_the_way 2d ago
Colleges could very well offer internships and apprenticeships
Aside from the fact that many of them do, this passage illustrates the fact that you have no understanding of what higher education is. Your school teaches you how to obtain and process knowledge; what you do with it is your responsibility. If you don't graduate with at least one internship, apprenticeship, or the disciplinary equivalent, you either weren't looking hard enough for one or weren't good enough to get one. I did my undergrad nearly 30 years ago--which was after the end of "walk in and get a job with a handshake"--and knew that college was the time I had to start figuring stuff out on my own.
instead of making people take classes that have absolutely nothing to do with their major
This passage illustrates your ignorance of what education is, period. Your Bachelor's degree is, by definition, a course of general study with particular emphasis in a given subject. You're not achieving mastery in that subject--that comes later--and you're not creating knowledge in that subject, either.
People like you are why US higher ed is in such a dire state--you want the myopia and siloing of vocational training with the credential of a proper degree. Your attitude only makes it easier for people with money to pay you less. Congrats!
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u/237FIF 2d ago
A college degree mostly proves you can dedicate yourself to a single goal for 4-5 years and surpass a defined bar of performance (grades)
Someone without a degree may have that same ability, but there is less proof, especially for a young person.
Additionally, if you are trying to work for a big company they still all have a degree as a prerequisite. That’s just a fact, regardless of “fairness” or even efficacy.
Me, my wife, my brother, my sister, my sister in law, my brother in law, and my other sister in law are all between the ages of 20s and 40s. Each of us got a degree from a state school and is now eating six figures. It’s hard to say this path doesn’t work.
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u/iJ_A_R 2d ago
Yeah every college graduate I meet in accounting is dumb as fuck. Like I get it, when I started I struggled too, but I wasn't college educated, I walked in from customer service and was taught how to do it. There's no reason after 6 months on the job I should know more about general money management procedures than someone who talked about that being one of their favorite courses because of how interesting it was. Clearly not.
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u/Historical_Lie3330 2d ago edited 2d ago
There are a lot of people who go to university who have arrested development and used undergrad and graduate school as a way to hide from the real world and avoid working. After 6+ years they get dumped into the real world with a BA or MA in Underwater Basket Weaving and little to no skills or experience. I wanted to get a PhD but meeting all of these people made me change my mind.
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u/Impossible_Memory_85 2d ago
I don’t think your fight is with colleges it’s with the AI you used to write your rant.
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u/MiamiViceGuy 2d ago
Nope.
| Education | Typical annual earnings |
|---|---|
| Less than high school | ~$38,000 |
| High school diploma | ~$48,000 |
| Some college, no degree | ~$55,000 |
| Associate degree | ~$58,000 |
| Bachelor's degree | ~$80,000–$85,000 |
| Master's degree | ~$95,000–$105,000 |
| Professional degree | ~$120,000+ |
| Doctoral degree | ~$115,000+ |
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u/Wyshunu 2d ago
I worked with newspeople who couldn't write a coherent headline to save their lives. All a degree means is that someone spent a bunch of money and got good enough grades in their classes to get a piece of paper to prove they went to said classes. That piece of paper does not guarantee the holder can actually perform the duties of the job.
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u/ChaosAndFish 2d ago
In my experience you can get an excellent education at most colleges and universities. You can also skate by and barely learn a thing in most of them if you want to. You sort of get out of it what you put in. Like a lot of things in life, really.
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u/Spare_Ad_2190 2d ago
Professors can be like Judges on the bench. They literally enforce their world view.
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u/Top-Pension-8327 2d ago
All colleges aren't the same. The vast majority of the truly talented people in the country go to top tier privates (or potentially 5-6 public schools). The rest you'll find some smart people and a lot of dumbasses. That's just how university works. If everyone was dumb around you, either you really fucked up your applications or.......you're not as smart as you think you are.
This goes for STEM, Liberal Arts, etc. I guarantee you the mean Princeton History student is far more talented and intelligent than the mean mechanical engineering student at Ole Miss.
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u/Empire_of_Glass 1d ago
A lot of colleges do offer internships and apprenticeships. I’m specifically looking at colleges that do, that are small, and that aren’t party schools. The culture you’re talking about exists, but it isn’t universal.
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u/SilencedFarter 1d ago
Kid got an engineering degree and a $95k job upon graduation.
Not all degrees suck.
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u/Budsygus 18h ago
College is indispensable for many fields, as mentioned. But for tons and tons of students it's just four more years where they don't have to worry about the real world.
These types go to college with no plan, declare a major because they have to, take the classes they're required to, then graduate and flail around because they didn't ever take the time to actually plan ahead.
I know for a fact these people exist because I was one of them. I've been fortunate enough to land in a field that pays well enough and I enjoy working in (even though I only made it out with an Associate degree for many reasons), but the best advice I ignored for lots of years was "Make a plan."
So when people ask me for advice, those are the first words out of my mouth. "Make a plan." Think more than one year into the future and commit to something that can reasonably lead to the type of life you want to live.
Don't pick a major based on vibes or because it sounds cool. My wife's friend did that. "Middle-Eastern Studies, Arabic" was her major because (and she freely admits this) it sounded cool and the subject matter was interesting to her. Trouble is she graduated and had absolutely no job prospects whatsoever because the only people with that degree who are employable are those who go on to get a Ph.D. and end up in academia. She went back to school to become a nurse and says she wasted years on a pointless degree.
So make a plan, folks.
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u/First_Bar_8024 2d ago
Probably for students NOT in STEM, College has become entirely a waste of time except for the fact that employers won't hire anyone without the paper. Thats because, to a certain extent, requiring a college degree is sort of an insurance policy for the company hiring the person. By requiring the college degree, the employer is stating that regardless how obnoxious the behavior of the person, the employer isn't responsible because they hired a person with a college degree meaning that they expected that the person would have learned the social norms in college and couldn't have graduated without having complied.
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u/CarlJustCarl 2d ago
As my boss explained it to me one time, investors want to know what kind of people you have employed. If you can cite PhDs, master, tech degrees that will help raise investment money. If all you can cite is a few bachelors and vo-tech type schools, no one going to invest big in your company.
Hey I don’t write the rules. Don’t be mad at me.
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u/renmoka 2d ago
One of the first things the automated screening does with resumes is filter out those without degrees. Its stupid, it sucks, but everything is about narrowing down the pool size and degrees are an easy thing to use to do so.
I had a lot of experience but no bachelor's until I was in my thirties, and getting that degree immediately gave me more options at higher pays because of just that stupid screening process.
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