Is college important?

[KarenWitty]

Do you think college is important?

[Nancy5]

Yes.  In order to get a good high paying job a degree is necessary

[njla88]

I think i really want a trade not a degree.  I think a trade will go get more money quicker. I dont think college is that important

[sherryinutah]

College is important for SOME people.  Credentials are necessary to obtain certain careers.  If you want to compete with potential employees for a specific position where you would be hired.....

College is important.

For me, College would be a waste of time because I'm right brained and intuitive.  It's a better choice for me to learn a trade and develop some skills to manage my own business.  I'm also a person who wants to experience the sense of freedom by being self employed and I don't need a college degree for that.

 

[countrygirl12]

Depends on who you ask and what kind of job you are wanting.  If you want to be a doctor then yes college is important.  But I know people who are making more than a person who graduated from college because they knew the right person and was handed a job.  I also know people who paid a ton of money to earn a degree and they are working in fast food or Walmart making min wage or a little above because they can't find a job.

Our area HR manager was recently in and caught a few of us in the break room and the one guy said he wanted to one day own his own business.  The HRM said "well what are you doing here" and he replies "to get experience and goes on to say he has a degree in ***" and she tells him his degree is worthless.  It's all about job experience.  SHE is an upper management HR manager.  And she said she doesn't hire by if you went to college.

So basically there is no way to win.

[ancmetro]

       Yes! It is very important. You can take all the education you have any place in the universe. It is a matter of survival.

[mgint]

yes for certain fields math computers doctor lawyer.

[Getinonthis]

Yes, these days without a degree or a college education it seems hard to earn a decent income.

[aharr1]

I think college is very important for this generation and the one below mine, it is very hard to get jobs without a college degree anymore.

[moonangel]

yes but you can learn almost anything on the internet

[lvstephanie]

No... but an education is important. All too often you see people going to college because they think they have to in order to get a good job. But then they waste their time because the college education isn't necessarily in the field where they want to work; for some they'd be better off getting their education from a trade or technical school instead of a college. And companies are beginning to realize too that a college diploma doesn't mean that the person learned anything relevant while at college; they'd rather hire someone that has the education and / or experience in the field they want to work in rather than someone with a college degree but no real understanding of the job that they are applying for.

If you actually look at many of the leaders in industry, several never graduated from college (in fact some never even went), yet no one can doubt their intelligence (esp. in their specialized field) or their business acumen. Here are a few well known people that never graduated from college: Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook), Steve Jobs (Apple), Bill Gates (Microsoft), Albert Einstein (although received a PhD, never actually received an undergraduate degree. Moreover, the PhD was obtained at a vocational school, not a liberal arts college), Thomas Edison (Inventor), Ben Franklin (Inventor), Carly Fiorina (HP), F. Scott Fitzgerald (Author), Henry Ford (Ford), John Major (PM of Britain), David Murdock (Real Estate mogul), Jim Skinner (CEO of McDonalds for several years), Steven Spielberg (Director / Producer), etc. And I didn't even mention the plethora of musicians, athletes, artists, writers, etc. that also never graduated with a college degree.

[bowrunner]

It totally depends on where your abilities and your interests lie.  If you're good at mechanical things college may be a total waste of time and money.  If you want to be a doctor or a teacher then college is the way to go.

[sgluckadoo]

It is very important. There is much evidence to show it advances thinking and many other skills no matter what the degree. I do not think everyone has the abilities necessary to attend college successfully and one must honestly evaluate ones priorities. If the question is whether college makes you more money that is an entirely different issue. In general yes, if you can be smart about degree options and not saddling yourself with loads of debt.

[heypeg]

It depends on the situation and what your strengths are. We will always need people in the trades as well.

[phoenixashesrises702]

Yes because it opens up new opportunities in relevant careers. However... Lots of people hardly get a HS diploma anymore. Its all GEDs... Sad.