Posted on 02/18/2016 4:19:40 AM PST by expat_panama
You are 100% correct.
I'm not sure which Rush you're referring to. I've never heard Mr. Limbaugh disparage the value of going to college to get an engineering, or career-related degree.
I have heard him question the wisdom of getting >$100k in debt to get a liberal arts degree... that, if you're LUCKY ENOUGH to get a job, isn't going to pay more than someone working a trade.
When I got my Chemical Engineering degree 35 years ago, we were #2 on that list... to Petroleum Engineers.. who, now don't even appear on the list? It's been a good profession. But, I work a lot harder for my money than many business grads I see who earn a LOT more than I do now.
I was always pretty well ahead of the Chem Engr" salary curve, because I made it to management, and then to sales. Our pay starts great, but tops out pretty quickly for MOST people. Bankers, Insurance agents, and entrepreneurs often sail past us in earnings.
When I attended my son's college graduation, I watched >2500 people pick "Psychology" degrees.... there were 11 who, like him, picked up "Computer Engineering" degrees... 7 of the 11 were from India.
I wonder which ones are going to make the most money?
He's started well... landed an entry-level position with Accenture foe ~ $60k. His friends all told him he could have gotten much more elsewhere.
The problem here is that too many people think a college degree is only about making money. It is not. It would be nice if people came out of school with a degree in Engineering but also an ability to write clear and precise English, a knowledge of art (horribly deficit among the general freeper population!) and the great thinkers of western civilization.
never heard Mr. Limbaugh disparage the value of going to college to get an engineering, or career-related degree.
Hey guy, we both know that virtually every day one of Rush's favorite rants is that U.S. education's bad because it's been commandeered by liberals as a tool of indoctrination of the youth. He's probably right that political indoctrination in the schools happens and is wrong. He's clearly wrong to go from there to the conclusion that U.S. education is bad.
I rarely ever miss more than an hour or two of Rush every week. Yes, he LOVES to rant about the rampant liberal indoctrination going on at college campuses. How could he not? There is some weird stuff happening there.
But, I don't recall EVER hearing him making the leap you claim, to say "all US education is bad". I've NEVER, in 27 years of listening heard him say one thing bad about engineering schools,or the value of a college education geared toward a professional occupation.
Good to hear from you, I remembered this convo yesterday when he was attacking Bernie's "free" college as he said "who needs a college education?" My foggy memory was his point being a U.S. college could be a good path to excellence but was more clearly (like we said) a tool for leftist indoctrination. True, he never specifically said that a U.S. education was bad, just like he never specifically said it was the best the world had to offer as a path to success.
How about we agree that Rush typically goes on not only about U.S. ed being a leftist tool, but also how the "dumbing-down" of American schools graduates kids that can't read or write. Usually I'd have to consider as "bad" any ed system fitting that kind of description.
Well, I will definitely agree on the first part... The part about "kids that can't read or write".. I don't recall having heard too much. Now that we've discussed this, I'll pay more attention.
When I have heard it, I seem to recall him speaking more about High School.. "young skulls full of mush". It IS a problem. I know, I've hired a number of engineer graduates who couldn't write worth a damn.
So many, I've been collecting material for years... with the thought: When I retire, I might start a personal business teaching a course called: "Basic English for Engineers". I think I could work as many weeks as I chose to.
No it isn't. This whole thread is about the fact that a college degree means higher wages. That means while a college degree doesn't matter to stupid old people it sure does to the market where money's involved. So if we can accept the fact that U.S. university grads are good then let's also face the fact that they all had to first become high school grads. Say what you want about U.S. high schools, but results count.
I really mean that about stupid old people that are too dumb to understand that the young are way ahead of 'em. The fact that human IQ's have been steadily increasing (the so-called "Flynn Affect") is well documented. Whenever I can I help young folks w/ their science homework and I find more and more that they're now being taught stuff in high school that I didn't get until I was in college. Now that I think of it, I'm remembering my parents saying the same thing about me when I was a kid.
This whole thread is about the fact that a college degree means higher wages.
Yes.. it does.. No doubt, or disagreement about that.
So if we can accept the fact that U.S. university grads are good
The fact that a college degree helps kids make more money doesn't inherently mean the colleges are doing a great job. It just means people with degrees have an advantage over people without them. I personally know SEVERAL kids with "degrees" that I wouldn't hire to wash my car.
Say what you want about U.S. high schools, but results count.
What about these results? We have one High School in my city that graduates 42% of its incoming freshmen. 42%. The AVERAGE for the city is 82%. Some schools are at 100%. Several, are in the 90's. That means, a bunch of them stink.
There ARE problems in our High Schools, and colleges... this is a bit of a subject change but,here's one:
Colleges are becoming MALE FREE zones.
Nationwide, the % of college students that are female is near 57%. At Kentucky, girls make up the majority of all ENGINEERING disciplines, except for computer engineers. (Males still reign supreme amongst the super-nerds). I think there are reasons for this, and they start with the elimination of competition in High Schools. My son's high school had 19 Valedictorians...all with perfect 4.0's... Two of them were in the "advanced track", which included many college level course. The rest of them were in "Basic" classes... where a student with a pulse gets a B. They all got equal recognition.
Yes.... Getting a college degree improves a kid's chances of making money. But, that doesn't mean everything is peaches & cream in college land.
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