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by t0ddbonzalez 2377 days ago
It's funny reading comments from Americans on the perceived lack of value of a college degree. I've never heard this nonsense repeated in any other country on the planet.

Then again, I don't think any other country on the planet shackles its young to such huge levels of debt in the name of education. Is there a 'fox and the grapes'-type situation going on, where people are hating on something they can't have?

Having a Bachelor's degree or higher means that you're less likely to be unemployed, you earn more money, you have better health outcomes, you're more involved in your children's education, and perhaps most importantly, society benefits from your education.

And the people who say "I don't have a degree and I make $150k per year at Google"? You're a statistical anomaly. The average salary for a high school graduate is $37k per year. (https://smartschoolsusa.org/blog/the-average-salary-by-educa...)

1 comments

It is probably because of the immense costs of many US colleges. I wouldn't consider my college years wasted if I wasn't saddled with tens of thousands of dollars of debt from it, and im not even one of the worst off.
Using the figures in the link I posted, a graduate with a Bachelor's degree will make $61k per year on average. So yeah, you may need to get into debt to get a degree, but you also earn more money with which to pay off the debt.

Being a naive European, I think education should be free just like universal healthcare - both of these things benefit society immensely. The sad thing is that those who have paid (or are currently paying) for the privilege of education or healthcare seems to be determined to maintain the status quo. Free stuff for other people is tantamount to communism in some people's eyes.

>Using the figures in the link I posted, a graduate with a Bachelor's degree will make $61k per year on average

Ha! Here in Indy a 4-year degree will get you 13-16$ an hour to start.

>>$61k per year on average

>Here in Indy a 4-year degree will get you 13-16$ an hour to start.

Doing what?

Most of the stuff a random bachelors degree will get you, office work.
lol...if you say so. Five minutes on Indeed.com shows that you can get a $24k per year office job with a GED, so maybe you need to set you sights a bit higher.

Maybe the statistics are wrong and you're right, but I doubt it