Posted on 10/05/2010 8:06:53 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
It is not so much the cost of an education that is worrisome (education costs were always expensive), but it is the college and university curriculums and the tenured ultraliberal professors that are the REAL problem.
Colleges and universities are turning out a bunch of propagandized, brainwashed, indoctrinated ultraliberal zombie sheep and because of that, these young men and women will not be able to function or succeed in the real world (unless they join the military).
Unions and their leaders are the real reason that schools in America are failing and failing miserably.
cheap and easy student loans = higher tuition costs. It’s not rocket science here. There’s a huge education bubble and too many kids are going to have to default on student loans they can’t afford.
$200,000 in student debt for a communication degree to get a job at $35,000 = bubble
There is a cost/value equation that is reasonable at the service academies, vocational and online schools. I agree with the author that the curricula at most public and liberal arts colleges and universities is ill-suited for the current competitive environment. In many cases, these schools have become vanities for university administrators, wealthy alumni and elite, insular professors. In addition, the value proposition is absurd. Some graduate degrees—like an MBA—cannot be cost-justified (I have one, as well as a JD, but from a more affordable time).
I suspect that the days of apprenticing under a wizard (a well-specified way to learn) will return.
When I was a professor at a state university in the 1980’s, I was full time. That meant ten hours teaching per week, twenty eight weeks per year. No requirements for publishing or research! They rearranged my schedule so I only had to come to campus Tues. & Thurs.
I’ll admit, I was overpaid due to the unionized faculty. I felt guilty taking my paycheck and used to joke that I would never get a real job after this. Problem was, my private practice grew too big and I could not handle the demands of a litigation schedule and be tied to a class schedule, thus I had to quit teaching.
I agree, higher education is a ripoff. However, it is still cheaper than the cost per student for our local high school education that is terrible.
RE: Colleges and universities are turning out a bunch of propagandized, brainwashed, indoctrinated ultraliberal zombie sheep and because of that, these young men and women will not be able to function or succeed in the real world (unless they join the military).
Well what can I say ? Even conservatives get a share of the blame here... where do you think these tenured ultra-liberal professors get their salaries to continue doign what they’re doing ?
Answers: From people who CONTINUE sending their kids to these schools. Even conservative parents who know better scrape and save money in order to be able to afford to send their kids to these colleges that IN MOST CASES, have liberal professors. In other words, by sending our kids to these schools, we are in effect sending them a signal : “Continue doing what you’re doing, we’ll send our kids to your schools regardless.”
It is said that self-identifying conservatives in America outnumber liberals by close to 2-1 ( last I saw, the survey shows something like 43% to 24% ).
The question then becomes — Why aren’t there more conservatives sending their children to conservative colleges ? ( and there are lots of them ).
We ought to first, ask ourselves this question before we complain, because we might be part of the problem.
Reparations.
RE: $200,000 in student debt for a communication degree
What school is that ?
The only one I can think of in New York City is NYU ( tuition plus board close to $50,000 ). But then, a lot are eligible for some form of aid which cuts it down to less than $40,000 per year ( still less than $200,000 after 4 years ).
Exactly, the value of that education is not keeping up with the cost.
Let us not jump straight to hyperbole to explain the university systems in this nation. Not all of the institutions of higher learning are indoctrination mills. As a matter of fact, many universities have so-called neutrality rules that force professors to stick to lesson plans. Unfortunately those lesson plans can be developed to indoctrinate, but in my years at Florida State, I never heard excessive liberalism being spouted.
Also, remember that many college students become enlightened at some point during or after college. I was in the College Republicans and participated in get out the vote drives for Republican candidates in 2000. Some of us cling bitterly to our upbringing, and I personally just took what they said with a grain of salt, learned the materials, and finished with a degree.
However, while I have railed against the naysayers in the past, I am starting to believe that the utility of college education is on the wane. Kids are leaving with liberal arts degrees and no practical knowledge to apply to the job market. Thus, they are remaining unemployed, and the universities are scrambling to place graduates in entry-level jobs. Obviously, they are unable to find jobs for every graduate.
Between the ultra-liberal social politics of university educators and the often nonsensical policies on the books, it is no wonder college is not only becoming financially unobtainable but practically useless for a majority of graduates.
Certainly there is one Economist at one institution who understands Econ 101.
Oh but it makes people feeeeeeel so good to help people get an educaiton.
- when things are tight they build more buildings meaning more maintenance, staff, etc.
- teaching staff get annual raises and assistants, reduced work loads, and more.
- all departments are overstaffed
- they specialize in waste, supply economy is a foreign concept
- and on and on
RE: educators do not know how to reduce expenses:
Are these things also true for those who teach economics, business management and business/public administration?
The only thing a liberal arts degree will get somebody is a one way ticket to flipping burgers at McDonalds.
I have a BA in English, an MA in English, and I’m a data center engineer. Let’s not cast the lowly Lib Arts degree to the wolves so quickly.
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