“If 70.1% of high school graduates enroll in a college or university, how does a college degree give you an advantage over the rest of the population? Back in the early 1960s, Americans didn’t need to go to college. We were a creditor nation with a strong manufacturing base. With an unemployment rate of only 5%, jobs were available to almost everybody. Less than 50% of American high school graduates enrolled into college. For those who did attend college and graduate with a degree, it was actually something special that made you stand out from the rest of the field, because not everybody had one.”
The situation in a nutshell. In the past, all you needed was a work ethic and a good idea or two; there was plenty of work and plenty of opportunity out there and social/economical mobility was for the first time in forever, easy. You could make a huge amount of money just working in construction and bringing home the bacon was effortless as long as you worked. Degrees were only needed if you were going to become an engineer or a scientist or a doctor or a lawyer. The rest was on the job training or certifications.
“In the past, all you needed was a work ethic and a good idea or two; there was plenty of work and plenty of opportunity out there...”
Correct, with one addition. They used to give IQ tests.
Somewhere in the late 60’s to early 70’s, you could no longer give IQ tests to prospective employees. It was racist.
Fast forward to today, the college system and its requirements are killing what once was a sound and world wide respected education. Now, the ability of those who could use a college education have been reduced to those who can pay OR the minorities are given it for free. For those in the middle, debt slavery. An UNfreeable debt slavery that can not be undone.
The problem of today, there aren’t as many jobs anymore, and the cost of being in debt is no longer worth that college degree.