Posted on 12/24/2010 6:20:07 AM PST by SeekAndFind
payscale.com has some interesting calculators for this type of comparisons.
Maybe you should find a more successful company?
In the 1970’s the California State College tuition was about $50 per quarter. Add a parking fee and books. That makes a year of college well under $2,000. I finished in three years by challenging courses and taking an extra course in the summer. I don’t understand how the costs got so out of hand and why it takes 6 years to get a 4 year degree. And there were no “studies” degrees at that time. It was a simple proposition.
absolutely, i've always said you get as much out of school as you put into it... you can get a good education at state schools and with a little extra effort, usually as good as or maybe even better than the privates for one hell of a lot less money
RE: Nor does college have to cost anything remotely like $25K per year.
True if:
* You have a scholarship.
* You have received substantial financial aid ( be sure you qualify financially ).
* You go to your own state college or university
* You go to a college that does not receive government aid and is able to be independent on its own (Grove City College is an example ).
RE: Mandarin Chinese is handier.
That, and a good study abroad program.
yup... might as well send them your CV written in crayon as you'll get the same response
Everyone should go to at least a Junior College to learn a vocation.
“What always amazes me is how most educated people lump all degrees and all different types of colleges and university into one pot - called “college”. To me somebody goes to college to get a degree in something, college is just a tool.”
I agree with your statement. Everyone needs training and education after high school, perhaps renewed every few years after an initial period of training and education. The questions are what level of training, what types of training/education, and how to deliver it in a cost effective manner. The current model is broken both from cost and types of training/education perspectives. The current approach has degenerated into a local cottage industry focused on perpetuating its own existence with an unsustainable cost model.
Here is a symptom of the broken nature of higher education. In my field (information systems), the market for professors has been in a tail spin since 2002. Before this period, it was easy to get a position at increasing salaries. Since 2002, the supply has far outstripped the demand. Normally this condition prompts a decline in salaries espcially at the entry level. However, this decline has not occurred as salaries have continued to increase. Last year, none of the graduates from a very strong program were placed. Every position has hundreds of applicants with a very strong core of applicants (perhaps 50 to 100) for every position. As I understand, starting salaries exceed my salary (mid 130s). One school is offering $185,000 for an entry level professor. In a working labor market, you could hire an entry level professor for a third of this level.
RE: Since 2002, the supply has far outstripped the demand. Normally this condition prompts a decline in salaries espcially at the entry level.
So, what do you think makes the market for professors different ?
IMHO, it’s that aura of “special knowledge” people tend to put around them ( even when there’s really nothing there ).
Eloquent Race baiters who write and speak well, like Cornel West for instance have Harvard and Princeton competing for him for their black studies program even when he has produced really nothing but racial division in his career as professor.
As long as we as a society continue to project this aura on people like these (and there a lots of them), you will always have this broken model you observe.
RE: hmm... my college degrees and my wife’s make us plenty of money.
And what did you and your wife major in? I bet the answer to that question makes the difference.
And they should only be for majors which lead to employment - no basket weaving, surfing, etc (sarc)
RE: Public moneys and guarantees for college loans should only be permitted for state universities - no Harvards, Stanfords, etc.
As I noted in other threads, Colleges like Grove City and Hillsdale have proven that you need not depend on government subsidies, loans, etc. for your college to thrive ( and still afford reasonable tuition with great education).
The problem is not many people see this ( yes, even conservatives ).
agreed
I agree. A business degree with a minor in Mandarin or the reverse would be useful. A friend’s daughter is doing that. Living in Tokyo for 1 year as part of her business major.
The underlying cause is a lack of competition. The higher education model should have been radically transformed by advances in computing and communication technologies. The same competitive pressures in the media industries should be happening to higher education. Instead higher education (both public and private) have remained stuck on a cottage industry model.
The reason for the stagnation is barriers to change particularly government subsidies for higher education, accreditation, and high resistance to change of the public. Government subsidies have allowed rapid increases in tuition.
Professor salaries have a similar pattern to salaries of other top government employees. Government salaries never decrease. Federal government salaries for the higher pay grades have increased sharply in the last 10 years. The federal government has grown relentlessly in the last 10 years with a large spike in the last 2 years. Universities as part of government are in a bubble. The bubble will burst perhaps because external forces intervene.
business, education and medical... useful tools for a world full of screws
If you had a guy and his girlfriend/wife both having their trucking licenses, they could roam the country as a pair, pulling over for a nookie-break at rest stops whenever they felt like it. An interesting way to spend a year or two.
It is hard to find a wife that opened minded.
I was thinking more of newlyweds. Spend a year on the road, living in the truck, banking the bulk of your earnings, and then you settle down in a stationary job and buy a house.
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