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by dragonwriter 3061 days ago
“All good jobs require degrees” does not support that college is job training, only that it is used by employers as a filter. But the fact that it is used as a filter does not mean that it is indicative of needed skills, and even if it was that wouldn't mean it was training for those skills. It could be neutral impact as training but still tend to fail out unsuitable candidates, which would make it a useful skill or aptitude filter without being job training.

And, of course, it could be conmonly used as a (cargo cult) filter without actually being a useful skill/aptitude filter at all.
1 comments
TheAdamAndChe 3061 days ago
Yet an IT graduate is unlikely to be hired as a book keeper, right? And I bet a Law graduate would have a hard time getting a job involving direct healthcare. That association between college program and career does indicate that some job training is involved and necessary for career growth.
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smsm42 3061 days ago
Bookkeepers, lawyers and healthcare professionals require very specific and specialized training and in many cases it is not even legal to be employed as, say, lawyer or doctor without having specific credentials. But many jobs aren't like that - and still require degrees.

> That association between college program and career does indicate that some job training is involved and necessary for career growth.

For some jobs - definitely. But there are plenty of others where degree is just a very rough filter and degrees that do not provide any direct training for the specific job are still required (and accepted).

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dragonwriter 3061 days ago
> That association between college program and career does indicate that some job training is involved and necessary for career growth.

While I'd certainly agree that there are, in fact, at least some career paths for which that is true, but even a job having a preference for certain degrees doesn't have to imply that training is happening; different degree programs could have different filtering effects without being actual training.

And, of course, not all jobs that require degrees are narrowly focussed on specific fields.

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