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Yes but in this given day and age, maybe a high school graduate can take a year or two off just to focus on creating open source projects or contributing to ope

Yes but in this given day and age, maybe a high school graduate can take a year or two off just to focus on creating open source projects or contributing to open source projects. Heck they can even build some hacky basic hardware + software systems using Pi or Arduino. That will include learning across disciplines beyond computer science like thermodynamics if they work on measuring and controlling thermal outputs. A candidate whose github project is highly starred and forked is a lot more valuable to employer than someone with a paper showing the degree. It will cost less than one fourth of what it will cost to a semester in top US school.

jltsiren 5y ago
Those people are also the ones who would benefit most from higher education. They are learning and doing new things because they are genuinely interested in it. A good university would give them a chance to spend a few years exploring the possibilities without the pressure to do something immediately productive. They would learn from experts, find new interests, and work with peers with similar interests. Any job a bright self-taught recent high school graduate can get is likely a job they should not take. Many bright young people turn bitter and disillusioned, because they made the easy choice when they got an offer for a real job. The job may very well be a local optimum with no good way forward. Because they are too focused on short-term goals, they may never get a chance to stop and think what to do with their lives. The academia has a similar trap further on the road: grad school. If you are a good student who is genuinely interested in learning for the sake of learning, grad school looks like the obvious step forward. For many, it will be the wrong choice.
- tylerhou 5y ago
  > Any job a bright self-taught recent high school graduate can get is likely a job they should not take. Many bright young people turn bitter and disillusioned, because they made the easy choice when they got an offer for a real job. Any examples of this happening? I haven’t seen this to be the case.

jltsiren 5y ago

Those people are also the ones who would benefit most from higher education. They are learning and doing new things because they are genuinely interested in it. A good university would give them a chance to spend a few years exploring the possibilities without the pressure to do something immediately productive. They would learn from experts, find new interests, and work with peers with similar interests. Any job a bright self-taught recent high school graduate can get is likely a job they should not take. Many bright young people turn bitter and disillusioned, because they made the easy choice when they got an offer for a real job. The job may very well be a local optimum with no good way forward. Because they are too focused on short-term goals, they may never get a chance to stop and think what to do with their lives. The academia has a similar trap further on the road: grad school. If you are a good student who is genuinely interested in learning for the sake of learning, grad school looks like the obvious step forward. For many, it will be the wrong choice.

tylerhou 5y ago
> Any job a bright self-taught recent high school graduate can get is likely a job they should not take. Many bright young people turn bitter and disillusioned, because they made the easy choice when they got an offer for a real job. Any examples of this happening? I haven’t seen this to be the case.