Was your college degree worth the cost?

[darnelled]

I consider my self fortunate with no current debt from my education. I worked my hard in high school to get a scholarship and lived at home for undergrad. I entered med-school with no debt and attended an in-state school. After completing a 5 year residency, I took a job that was a part of the NHSC program providing medical care in an underserved area in exchange for gradual loan payoff. For me it was absolutely worth it.


Just read this article and thought it would be interesting to hear about others- from www.msnbc.com

College grad: ‘I wish I’d gone to prison instead’
Posted: Tuesday, May 12 2009 at 05:00 am CT by Bob Sullivan

Hernan Castillo is treading water, trying to survive under the weight of $5,200 in credit card debt and $30,000 in student loans. He’s making payments on time, but the Orange County, Calif., resident sees little hope for getting out of the warehouse job he holds and landing a job as an accountant, the field in which he earned his degree. And forget about saving money for a home or retirement. He now firmly believes the money he spent earning a college degree was a waste.

"Every day I wish I had never gone to college,” Castillo said. “It has been the biggest mistake of my life. Sometimes I wish I had gone to prison instead of college. At least I would have learned a trade or two and started being independent once I got out."

[escobar929]

for me is too early to tell

i am only starting my second year at this job (my first one out of college)

so far i would say, yes, total waist. At the restaurant i was working last, i was quickly moving up and i no time i would have became a manager, making a lil over 80k. i could have dont this kinda job w/ no degree.

my debt is similar to the case you pointed out, i hope to be done paying it w/ in the next year or two. so far the only thing i got to show for it, is that i got laid a lot in college, thats bout it

maybe in 5 years or so, when i start making decent money then it might be worth it but as of now it kinda sux

[GJBenn85]

For the example originally posted: I know it is a poor economy but accountants are in short supply across the country. A four year degree will not always cut it, however. Companies want to see masters and CPAs, which cost even more time and money. People with only a bachelor's degree in accounting face stiff competition from qualified bookkeepers with no formal education and lower rate/salary requirements.

[roneski]

I never actually finished mine (Electrical Engineering). I've been making more money as a technician than my engineers make for years now.

[IVRY PRL]

Complete and utter waste of my time and money. I wish every day I could go back and take another path.
Edit:

Originally Posted by roneski

I never actually finished mine (Electrical Engineering). I've been making more money as a technician than my engineers make for years now.

And this is the reason why.

[twin001]

I'd say I have used about 5% of what I learned in college in my 5 years since I graduated. It's a stepping stone though, without the degree there's no way I could have landed the job I have.

[jkuo]

For me it was worth it even though I have never actually used any of my degrees. I have an undergrad in Chemical Engineering and was also pre-med. I ended up doing neither. I also have my MBA in marketing with a minor in finance. Don't really use that one either. Well I sort of did when I owned my own business for about 6 years.

But without going to school and getting those degrees, I would have never know what I did and didn't want to do. Also, even though my job doesn't require any of the degrees (financial services) I wouldn't have been able to get it without my background. People always say "don't you consider all that schooling a waste?" To me it's not because overall it was a great experience that helped define me. And I made the choice not to go into those fields, it wasn't that there were no jobs. Plus I make much more now than I would have as an engineer. Also, I don't really have too much debt, took out a small loan getting my MBA only because the rates were so good, like 2.5%. So overall I think it was well worth it. Then again I think I come from a family of professional students. My parents have 3 masters between them, my brother has 2 undergraduate degrees, and my other brother is getting a phD.

With all of this being said though, not everyone should go to college. Many, many people in college simply aren't cut out for it and if you major in a useless field or go to a crappy school, they might as well have saved the money and not gone. Often I see the people complaining about their degrees not helping being the same ones who majored in say philosophy, communications, or any number of liberal arts. If someone truly wants to learn about those fields to further their minds, that's great. But don't complain if the degree doesn't get you a decent job. Also, a degree from Lower Bumpkin County college is meaningless in the job market as well. Or any school that advertises on TV. It's so sad to see people run up huge amounts of debt to get a degree that is barely worth the paper it's printed on. They're doomed from the start.

I wish we'd emphasize more in high school that college isn't for everyone and that just because you don't go to college it doesn't mean you're not smart or won't have a good job. A good professional trade (plumber, electrician, welder, etc.) will often times result in salaries that are very comparable to white collar professions. I know so many guys making 6 figures who are plumbers or do HVAC repair. Instead our system trying to fit square pegs into round holes and doing many young people a tremendous disservice.

FWIW, considering that there's a shortage of accountants nationwide the guy profiled in that story probably isn't very qualified. I have a lot of accountant friends and at the moment, all of them are employed and some recently switched firms for better salaries. Noticably absent from that story is where he went to school. It looks like they just cherry picked someone to make their case.

[S2020]

I make good money doing what I do.
hospitals are weird. They require people to go to school for many years before allowing them to do eye surgeries on patients.
I guess it was worth it

[RPL]

As others have said, it's too early to tell for me as well. However, I believe it will the best investment I've made in my life. Tangibly, it has yet to paid off. Intangibly, it's priceless.

[SilverII]

absolutely...

i worked full time to pay for school and lived at home....so no debt when i graduated...

[redlude97]

you don't go to school for the solely for the money. It is to get an better overall understanding of the world and life in general. Life isn't about making money either, it should be about doing something that you WANT to be doing.

[redwillow]

it sounds like there may be some unrealistic expectations about the current value of a 4 yr degree.....

4 year degree (in most fields) now is about = to the old high school diploma. It is not a guarantee of a 100k + job the day you graduate

[Blackedout]

College is about life experiences, you will never be around so many people having fun your age again. Enjoy it while it lasts.

The education part, meh, I've learned more in my current job being here a year than I did in 4 years of college.

Get your degree so you can get a first job, after that its just a checkbox for job's.

Do you have degree? Yes/No.

Get it just to pass that test.

[jfizz313]

What if living at home is not an option?

I don't need to be paying of loans when im 30.

[ShanesG]

Didn't go, have a great job! Only thing why I regret not going is for the partying haha. I honestly feel I can do most jobs better than most people with degree's. Most jobs require more "common sense" moreso than what your accual "degree" says you can do. Most people are lazy fvcks!