3 ms·
I went to community college for free on Pell grants and then to a similarly priced state school, though not in California. It was a fine option for me and I’m d
by tfehring 4y ago
I went to community college for free on Pell grants and then to a similarly priced state school, though not in California. It was a fine option for me and I’m doing well for myself almost a decade later, but it wasn’t a free lunch. I had a hell of a time getting my first job out of college, in no small part because my community college did absolutely nothing to equip me to apply for internships at the start of my junior year. And missing those years with my eventual graduating class definitely left me with a shallower network than my peers - to this day, I’ve gotten every job I’ve ever had through a cold application. Not to mention the signaling impacts. It’s not hard to imagine these drawbacks costing me six figures in earnings over the course of my career.
For people whose best available alternative is not to go to college at all, I’d recommend community college + 2 years at a state school with no hesitation. In other cases I don’t think it makes sense to paint with such broad strokes - it depends on the particular student’s career aspirations and the particular college’s aptitude at positioning students to succeed in that field.
- Gortal278 4y ago> I had a hell of a time getting my first job out of college, in no small part because my community college did absolutely nothing to equip me to apply for internships at the start of my junior year. I volunteer with a non-profit trying to fix this problem. Check us out? https://mentorsintech.com/ https://mentorsintech.com/
- FrontierPsych 4y agoI did the exact same thing but had no issues. I think the major issue is communication ability, social abilities, and all that. Someone can have the "ideal best" education, but without social skills, it all does not matter. I've risen to the top of many (small, small) organizations because I understood about social skills and finding out who you need to know and get to be friends with in a company. Being friends with the right people gets you far, far, far ahead of anyone else. I've also got all my jobs through cold outreach. I don't care, I'm pretty fearless and have done a shitload of tradeshows, and sales, and all kinds of stuff like that. I think the thing that hold most people back is social skills and political skills and the ways one can become known as the experts in their industry. It's all on youtube, if you look. Social skills, small talk, business politics, dressing appropriately (I spent a LOT of time at high end men's stores and read GQ from cover to cover for years). https://www.gq.com/ https://www.gq.com/ How one dresses is extremely important. Read it for a year or two, go to high end men's stores - Saks Fifth Avenue for example - https://www.saksfifthavenue.com/mens https://www.saksfifthavenue.com/mens - go in, try stuff on. Look around. I have friends that didn't go to university and are making mid to high six figures. If they can, so can you. Don't let your own mind defeat you, make it your ally.