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Education and the Next Generation

I saw where she was coming from. No one in my family had gone on to complete college before I did. I suppose, in a way, I had become the great hope of the family.

But now, after having graduated with a four-year degree, I notice that less emphasis is being placed on getting a college education today. Instead, the buzz seems to be that getting a certificate or degree from a technical school is more beneficial.

"What's a four-year degree but a piece of paper?" my fiance, who graduated from a technical school with a nursing degree, said to me one day. "What would I have done with a bachelor's in political science right out of college?"

He made a point, I thought.

After all, it seems that those who pursue degrees, such as political science, women's history, English literature, etc., have it in mind to continue on to a master's or above with the intention of teaching one day, not to graduate in four years and find a job in their chosen fields.

But for someone who just wants to go to college for four years and then enter the work force immediately following, is going to a traditional, four-year school ideal?

I read an article on aol.com that discussed how qualifications other than a bachelor's can be beneficial when job seeking. A lot of those seemed to place heavy weight on experience. But for those just getting out there, the site also listed a link to jobs that don't require degrees but, instead, training.

Perhaps in the past, those with college degrees had a better opportunity to get employment right after graduation, as new jobs in the information/technology industry demanded such and were widely available.

But now, with so many out there getting college degrees and competing in the same markets, the jobs are scarce.

Not only that, but also with so many baby boomers reaching retirement age, it seems that more pressure is being placed on the next generation to be trained to take over in trades requiring skill so that those industries can continue into the future.

I don't regret completing my four-year degree. I was lucky enough to get into a field where I could find a job soon after graduation. But I think those encouraging trade schools have the right idea.

Students should be given a better picture of what is going to be available to them in their futures instead of being told that a college degree is their only door to success. The more people learn, in any school, the better off they'll be.