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It's because the purpose of college is more about signalling than about career training. The things that keep people out are what make it valuable. If you make

It's because the purpose of college is more about signalling than about career training. The things that keep people out are what make it valuable. If you make it more accessible then it loses it's value.

JamesBarney 7y ago
This could be said of masters degrees as well though.
vecter 7y ago
I see this trope oft-repeated on HN and I just don't think it's true. I certainly hope that that wasn't your college experience. My experience was incredible, both academically and socially, and it truly changed the way I think. The level of abstraction with which I approach the world now is way higher than when I entered college, and I credit that to the math classes I took.This abstract thinking makes me a better problem solver in every part of my life. I also walked away with a handful of friends that will be my best friends until the day I die. College was the crucible that forged those friendships, and I haven't found a substitute for that since. To you point about "career training", I don't see college as a vocational school. The best point of college in my opinion is to learn not only a lot of facts and specialize in an area of study, but more importantly, to learn how to think and solve problems. If you learn a lot of facts and rely solely on the facts that you've learned, then obviously you won't adapt well to the real world where most of the problems you encounter are situations with imperfect information and no clear best solutions. However, if you choose your college degree wisely and learn how to learn, then you'll be able to tackle most challenges that come your way later on in life, both in your job and outside.
barry-cotter 7y ago
This conflates the signaling value of certification and training, or to put it another way, selection effect and treatment effect. A qualification can be valuable for what it says about those who got in (Harvard, Yale, every other élite institution with low to non-existent drop out/failure rates) or it can be valuable for what it tells you about those who attained the qualification. Getting an A.S. in Computer Science from a California Community College tells you a lot about the recipient but knowing someone was admitted to a CC tells you nothing. Some qualifications are Harvard, some are that you passed a hard exam. One is much cheaper in time and money than the other.

JamesBarney 7y ago

This could be said of masters degrees as well though.

vecter 7y ago

I see this trope oft-repeated on HN and I just don't think it's true. I certainly hope that that wasn't your college experience. My experience was incredible, both academically and socially, and it truly changed the way I think. The level of abstraction with which I approach the world now is way higher than when I entered college, and I credit that to the math classes I took.This abstract thinking makes me a better problem solver in every part of my life. I also walked away with a handful of friends that will be my best friends until the day I die. College was the crucible that forged those friendships, and I haven't found a substitute for that since. To you point about "career training", I don't see college as a vocational school. The best point of college in my opinion is to learn not only a lot of facts and specialize in an area of study, but more importantly, to learn how to think and solve problems. If you learn a lot of facts and rely solely on the facts that you've learned, then obviously you won't adapt well to the real world where most of the problems you encounter are situations with imperfect information and no clear best solutions. However, if you choose your college degree wisely and learn how to learn, then you'll be able to tackle most challenges that come your way later on in life, both in your job and outside.

barry-cotter 7y ago

This conflates the signaling value of certification and training, or to put it another way, selection effect and treatment effect. A qualification can be valuable for what it says about those who got in (Harvard, Yale, every other élite institution with low to non-existent drop out/failure rates) or it can be valuable for what it tells you about those who attained the qualification. Getting an A.S. in Computer Science from a California Community College tells you a lot about the recipient but knowing someone was admitted to a CC tells you nothing. Some qualifications are Harvard, some are that you passed a hard exam. One is much cheaper in time and money than the other.