Comments on: This Week’s Blog Carnivals

By: Monroe on a Budget » Carnival of Personal Finance May 19

Monroe on a Budget » Carnival of Personal Finance May 19 — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 00:43:49 +0000

[...] that topic discussed on the national level. It got noticed quickly because the post has already been picked up at Poorer than [...]

By: Sarah

Sarah — Mon, 19 May 2008 22:56:29 +0000

Thanks for the shout out and kind words! It’s so refreshing to find other 20somethings who advocate for frugal living.

By: Zack

Zack — Mon, 19 May 2008 20:12:54 +0000

I think the overvaluing of the bachelor’s degree comes directly from our super-accommodating public school system. There are people who graduate high school who have no business graduating for any reason other than that the school needs to keep its numbers up. Because of this, employers can’t count on a high school diploma meaning anything other than “you didn’t kill someone while attending high school.” It means nothing about the capabilities of that person.

That role has been taken over by the Bachelor’s degree, which is now a measure of “can you perform under pressure.” Professors can still fail you and force you out of your program (and ultimately, college altogether) if you’re no good. Barring all the arguments about how “college doesn’t test for the right things” (most of which come from people who don’t understand the true benefits of a college experience) and etc, that’s the best measure an employer has.

Now, this doesn’t mean that you should be spending ridiculous amounts of money on the best of the best degrees or you’re not going to get a job. We need to keep the focus of these degrees on weeding out people who can’t think for themselves rather than handing them out to anyone who can afford one, lest it become a more exclusive high school degree.

By: Monroe on a budget

Monroe on a budget — Mon, 19 May 2008 19:36:07 +0000

Thanks for the link!

I agree, it’s frustrating watching the campaigns encouraging high schoolers and young adults to get a college degree … when even a college degree cannot guarantee steady employment.

But the job my daughter would like to have does require a college education. So that goal keeps her focused and studying while we search for all possible financing options.