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When people can make middle class livings again without being shut out of a job for lack of a college degree. My previous job I worked at required a Bachelors

When people can make middle class livings again without being shut out of a job for lack of a college degree. My previous job I worked at required a Bachelors in business of any kind. I got it because I worked at the company and basically beat out external candidates even though I didn't have a degree. Know what it paid? $15/hr. This is why people are duped into college degrees.

strix_varius 5y ago
I don't have a degree, but I have an excellent job, and I used to consider myself lucky to be a tech-based outlier. But given how much I've paid this year for refinishing hardwood floors, installing gas lines, plumbing, and electrical work, I now wonder if tech is really that unique. The contractors I talk to are booked out for weeks, and I need their expertise much more than they need my business. I'm not convinced that lacking a degree shuts people out of good jobs. My cynical take is that there's a mismatch between what people are willing and able to do, and what activities are valuable. Most people aren't willing to work inside peoples' mouths all day. Dentists make bank. The HN crowd notwithstanding, most people would hate carefully crafting digital products all day. Software devs make bank. Most people aren't willing to crawl underneath houses to hook up potentially-dangerous electric/gas lines. etc.
- MeinBlutIstBlau 5y ago
  > Most people aren't willing to crawl underneath houses to hook up potentially-dangerous electric/gas lines. etc. In a past life, I tried the general laborer gamit and it's impossible to get a job there too. Simply cause nobody hires you unless it's by word of mouth. So it's even worse than being shut out for not having a degree. So overall, it's no so much that people don't believe that they need a degree, it's the path of least resistance since you can at least get your foot in the door through a company once you pass the minimum qualifications. General labor stuff, good luck getting a job in a specialized field. I tried breaking into HVAC and I couldn't even get an unpaid apprenticeship cause people just won't do it.
nsxwolf 5y ago
You're making the case that you don't actually need the degree. You're far better off without it, if you're going to end up with a job that pays the same regardless. The problem seems to be no one is being properly warned before making the decision, or those warnings aren't being heeded.
- MeinBlutIstBlau 5y ago
  It is exactly that. Schools just want people to churn and nothing more. They don't care even if you graduate. The worst part is that everybody thinks education is the lifeblood of happy people so you can't tell these schools to screw without some insane liberal screaming you're trying to disenfranchise the poor. The thing is, most kids go to school not knowing what they want to do. If that is the case, going to college is the absolute worst possible decision you could ever make. On top of that, you might even be going into a field you despise but can't back out now.

strix_varius 5y ago

I don't have a degree, but I have an excellent job, and I used to consider myself lucky to be a tech-based outlier. But given how much I've paid this year for refinishing hardwood floors, installing gas lines, plumbing, and electrical work, I now wonder if tech is really that unique. The contractors I talk to are booked out for weeks, and I need their expertise much more than they need my business. I'm not convinced that lacking a degree shuts people out of good jobs. My cynical take is that there's a mismatch between what people are willing and able to do, and what activities are valuable. Most people aren't willing to work inside peoples' mouths all day. Dentists make bank. The HN crowd notwithstanding, most people would hate carefully crafting digital products all day. Software devs make bank. Most people aren't willing to crawl underneath houses to hook up potentially-dangerous electric/gas lines. etc.

MeinBlutIstBlau 5y ago
> Most people aren't willing to crawl underneath houses to hook up potentially-dangerous electric/gas lines. etc. In a past life, I tried the general laborer gamit and it's impossible to get a job there too. Simply cause nobody hires you unless it's by word of mouth. So it's even worse than being shut out for not having a degree. So overall, it's no so much that people don't believe that they need a degree, it's the path of least resistance since you can at least get your foot in the door through a company once you pass the minimum qualifications. General labor stuff, good luck getting a job in a specialized field. I tried breaking into HVAC and I couldn't even get an unpaid apprenticeship cause people just won't do it.

nsxwolf 5y ago

You're making the case that you don't actually need the degree. You're far better off without it, if you're going to end up with a job that pays the same regardless. The problem seems to be no one is being properly warned before making the decision, or those warnings aren't being heeded.

MeinBlutIstBlau 5y ago
It is exactly that. Schools just want people to churn and nothing more. They don't care even if you graduate. The worst part is that everybody thinks education is the lifeblood of happy people so you can't tell these schools to screw without some insane liberal screaming you're trying to disenfranchise the poor. The thing is, most kids go to school not knowing what they want to do. If that is the case, going to college is the absolute worst possible decision you could ever make. On top of that, you might even be going into a field you despise but can't back out now.