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I think the OP is whimsically naive hopes 'n dreams stuff. Some occupations absolutely necessitate college these days.
Most white collar occupations that will pay one well enough to "live the American dream" require that Piece of Paper (TM).
College is what middle class white people do after high school. Dummies and minorities work service jobs, go to the military.
But, hell, you can't even do well as a senior enlisted member in the US military without college anymore. What does that say?
The military used to be the one solid job you could get in the US if you weren't packing the brainpower / money for college.
Really, the only reason I got out of the military was because my enlisted boss (Platoon Sergeant) told me to go to school.
Now, college itself doesn't mean anything in my profession. The ability to read, write, research and communicate do.
The Piece of Paper (TM) is seen as proof of those abilities and puts you in a separate bracket as far as promote-ability.
I wouldn't be where I am making the money I do if it wasn't for the weird combination of credentials. College was a check block.
Instead of avoiding college, I think people should embrace it and milk it for all its worth. It's a great learning experience.
There are so many different degrees, so many scholarships... you can do whatever you want for free if you look hard enough.
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While there are jobs and people out there that didn't require college to be financially successful, they're mostly white picket fence stories.
Avoiding college in the US is like avoiding things that require credit. You can do it but you're putting a tourniquet on your possibilities.
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Also: College in the US is so friggin' easy. I generally feel that college is the modern replacement for high school. College is where you go to learn the things you should have learned in high school but were too busy toking from a bong, hating your parents and being coddled by underpaid daycare providers (teachers) to give a damn. I was one of the typical Old Bastards in Undergrad (TM) a few years ago and this only confirmed my suspicions.
Educational achievement expectations in Amuricah are incredibly low. I think our mediocrity in this area is why we're falling behind other nations.
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Typical Plan9 commentary:
"Taking a year off to travel the world" is such an asinine and cliche statement made by middle class white people everywhere.
Housewives and homeless people take a year off. The rest of us need to feed our faces or pump dough into our Roth IRAs.
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My father's take on the college topic has always been:
"Okay, go to college. Now, what do you have other than college?"
Last edited by Plan9; 05-03-2011 at 10:04 PM..
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