Education is a sacred cow for cultural reasons and probably a gigantic waste of resources on the whole. I think it would help to step back (rather like an anth

Education is a sacred cow for cultural reasons and probably a gigantic waste of resources on the whole. I think it would help to step back (rather like an anthropologist) and ask fundamental questions regarding the social, cultural, and economic functions of education in a given society or economy (or globally) and go from there. Regarding practical, real world questions on the value of a college education, I can only say this: as much as I dislike German-style educational tracking, the so-called 'dual system' in Germany does produce interesting results, and provided the right conditions, something like it could be put into practice elsewhere. At the very least it provides workers with the necessary technical skills to do their jobs while shielding them somewhat from competition from outsiders (this protectionist function should in theory help buoy up wages and add job security, though collective agreements and general employment law contribute to both) without without sending them to college. One can and should of course debate the merits of general education and its putative political, social, and cultural benefits, but if we are talking about the bare-bones technical skills and practical experience needed to do a job, a parallel apprenticeship and vocational training system as exists in Germany is a viable alternative to university. I could say a lot more, but I will leave it at that for now.