Is going to college worth it?

[Armchair General]

So, I've been looking at job listings, partially out of boredom and I never realized how fucked I am. Most of the entry-level positions requires an driver's license (which I don't have), nearly every retail store is asking if I can lift more than what I'm used to, being an auto mechanic, prior experience, or learning Spanish (which ain't happening because people speak it too fast and I naturally tune it out).

Honestly, I was hoping for a desk job, since I'm not exactly "energetic" nowadays, but I figured that having a college degree would get me one. Although, there's an tiny problem called COVID-19 going on and the only thing that's available as an class is the medical field; I suppose it wouldn't hurt for me to brainstorm an way to cheat the system  and avoid wasting my life in an dead-end job.

Edited July 1, 2020 by Armchair General

[AnonymousSpeed]

Find an apprenticeship.

Get your driver's license.

Exercise.

[Armchair General]

23 minutes ago, AnonymousSpeed said:

Find an apprenticeship.

Get your driver's license.

Exercise.

There's an UEI trade school, but I'm not sure if they're open.

Not sure if our fincial situation is set for that.

I'm an asthmatic, fuck my life.

 

[AnonymousSpeed]

41 minutes ago, Armchair General said:

I'm an asthmatic, fuck my life.

[Armchair General]

Honestly, I really hate physically pushing myself. I hate the sensation of being out of breath from walking too fast or occasionally running after my younger brother. And of course, my stepdad bitches at me for moving slower than him. But we already told him what's wrong me and I get part of my entertainment on how dense he is...until I was almost hit by a car a few days ago, but those people weren't paying attention, that time.

[Excellen Browning]

To answer your question about college; it can be worth it if you can get a (mostly) free ride through scholarships, or if your parents have built up a college fund for you, or if you're studying for a field that has a really good chance of getting a well paid job. As a hard rule, don't put yourself into a ton of debt without a plan to pay it back.

You can think of getting an associate degree at a community college, as well. Depending on your state, tuition might even be free. 

I completely understand your feelings re: the situation in the US right now, and yeah, it looks like it'll be a while before things are going to get better. But things will get better, job opportunities will start popping up, and colleges will open their doors again. So in the meantime, just sit tight and figure out what you want to do.

Edited July 1, 2020 by Excellen Browning

[Captain Karnage]

6 hours ago, Excellen Browning said:

To answer your question about college; it can be worth it if you can get a (mostly) free ride through scholarships, or if your parents have built up a college fund for you, or if you're studying for a field that has a really good chance of getting a well paid job. As a hard rule, don't put yourself into a ton of debt without a plan to pay it back.

You can think of getting an associate degree at a community college, as well. Depending on your state, tuition might even be free.

This part here needs repeating 

But I'd also like to add, if you do decide to go to college, please just work on your general education for the first year. I saw way too many people change their minds on what they wanted to do and end up wasting time and money on classes they didn't need like me. I'd recommend taking a couple of electives to see if anything grabs your interest. I know for myself I think I would have preferred agriculture science over what I did, because I took beekeeping as a joke and ended up getting really into it during my last semester of college.

[XRay]

6 hours ago, Excellen Browning said:

You can think of getting an associate degree at a community college, as well. Depending on your state, tuition might even be free. 

I second this. Until you know for sure what you want to do, I would just aim for a generic associate's degree like business or math at a community college. It is so much cheaper and you get to stay near your family instead of being in a dorm, which would significantly drive up costs. I recommend something generic like business or math since the classes you take for those degrees pretty much will help you anywhere.

Business classes have the practical benefit of giving you a better idea on how the economy and businesses work, so it can help you make more informed financial decisions.

Math is crucial in any field that uses math, and having a solid foundation here helps you better analyze data. Business, accounting, science, engineering, healthcare, etc. all use math, and most of the entry level positions (at least for business and accounting) should accept math degrees. Statistics class is the most useful in everyday life in my opinion. If you are interested in a particular field, you would also want to take an applied mathematics class tailored for that field; for example, I had to take applied mathematics for business as an accounting student.

[eclipse]

I'm going to be That Guy and say no.

Not because college is bad.  But that's, like, three steps away from where you are.  The first question you need to answer is "what do I want to do ten years from now?".  The second is "how do I get there?".

[killelall]

If you actually want to work in the medical field that's likely a great place IMO. I always see hospitals hiring. However, I've never wanted to deal with the stress of knowing someone's life could be in my hands.

But you'll need to make sure the college teaches you what you actually want or need to know... but finding out what you need to know in the future can be hard or tricky. In addition, just because you go to college to learn something doesn't mean the college will provide you the education you were looking for. You'll need to make sure they have decent programs... (And unfortunately, I can't tell you how to find out if a college is actually good.)

(Personally, I got a degree in computer programming and analysis... but since my college's programming classes were rather limited in what they taught gave up on working in that industry... luckily being able to fall back on the AutoCAD I learned in highschool.)

 

[SullyMcGully]

I'll back up Clipsey here. If you don't have a plan in life then college will just delay the inevitable while racking up a hefty bill. In general, college is only really necessary if you want to be a doctor or engineer. Everything they'll teach you in a history/art/English class is something you can read about on Wikipedia for free. 

As for getting a job, there are a lot of opportunities out there that don't require leaving home if you're willing to put in the effort. Selling stuff on Ebay or Amazon, creating content and having a Patreon... You could always do what I do and offer editing services through Upwork. There's really a ton of great services you could provide, and a lot of ideas out there that nobody has even had yet. It depends on how entrepreneurial you can be.

If you want to try and get through this without doing anything risky or different, however, then I'll be blunt and say it's gonna be a matter of luck. There are millions of people trying to take the conventional route right now, but the thing about conventions is that an issue like coronavirus throws a wrench into them. The only people who are going to pull ahead during this are the people who think outside of the box. I recommend you try to find your own unique path in all of this instead of taking one that's been laid out for you. 

[MacLovin]

College is fine if you have a set path of any kind. However, there is a degree of flexibility with certain degrees if you do play it right. There's plenty of applications to non-STEM/Law degrees beyond teaching, but it also helps if you make up your mind. Getting a bachelor's degree can be tricky to fund, but getting the right degree does help.

 

[Jotari]

As someone who worked for four years on a college course and now doesn't in any way work in their field of study, I can say college absolutely is worth it. Because it opens doors. Over the past four years I've worked abroad in three different countries on working visas that would have been a hell of a lot harder to get if I wasn't degree educated. I'm now working on jumping straight to a Masters in the field where my career actually is (or rather I was planning that before Covid and a Love Life turned this year into something to be mulliganed). Being degree educated will never be disadvantageous to you short of some kind of Pol Pot uprising happening. However, not anyone needs the options that it will open up. If you want to be a tradesmen or a truck driver and you're sure that's the life path you'll enjoy then that's great. Not everyone needs to go to college but if you don't know what you do want to do, then you might as well get a higher level of education while you're searching. And it'll probably be loads of fun too.

Of course money is a factor in all this too if you don't have education paid for by the state/parents. If you're in a situation where it's going to be a genuine investment then it'd be much better to be certain on what it is you want to work at in life (which is dang hard when you're just out of secondary school).

Edited March 23, 2021 by Jotari