Quote:
Originally Posted by schoy
He didn't say that college was the only place to build character, give knowledge, discover things or give a different perspective on the world around us. His point was that those attributes, among others, can be gained in college.
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College is one of many places where you can gain those attributes. It's also one of the most expensive places to gain them, especially when you factor in the opportunity cost of not working, not just the tuition cost itself.
If you get a degree in something practical that pays the bills, then that high cost is worth it.
If you get a degree in something like art history, then that high cost can follow you around for many years, unless you have wealthy parents who pay your way, so you dont graduate under a mountain of debt. Perhaps the opportunity cost is not so bad if rich daddy will give you a down payment on your first house or something. If you are not so lucky, then choosing to gain those attributes in such an expensive way can be a very poor choice. (and thats assuming you gain those attributes at all, which in my observation is not a given)
We went thru a large and complex office move, so a cross-functional team was put together. Among others, we had a person (from marketing, of course) who had a fine arts degree, as well as a person with no formal degree, but had served many years in the Navy. Neither had training or experience with the tasks of an office move, so they should have been equally disadvantaged for the tasks they were asked to assume.
When things started getting hairy, guess who quickly earned a reputation for getting shit done, despite their lack of relevant experience? Sadly, the marketing guy was almost "rewarded" for his uselessness because people stopping going to him for anything, so his load was far less.
Show me someone who insists that formal education is always a good idea, and I'll show you someone who hasnt been paying very close attention.