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by dvaun 1957 days ago
I have trouble trusting the claims in the beginning of the article when the source given was not relevant to the author's implication that a degree is primarily for indicating wealth status:

> This comment really infuriated me because this type of outdated thinking—that a college degree from an elite, pricey university means you’re set for life—must die immediately. It falsely signals to employers that you’re better than the average Jane just because you have a piece of paper. In reality, all it really signals is your family’s socioeconomic status.

The source given[0] for this statement states nothing about employers and college graduates. Rather, it discusses the likelihood for a student to graduate from college based upon family income.

Following this:

> I preceded to tell him that it doesn’t matter if you have a college degree anymore to do today’s jobs and that he was basically bragging about his family’s socioeconomic status, not his son’s actual achievements.

I understand the frustration with both private and Ivy institutions hefty price tags. This has been well covered and isn't something I would debate.

After the issue with the first source, I decided to check the source for the infographic (titled "New college grads lack soft skills, employers say") near the end of the article. The Cengage/Morning Consult source[1] didn't have the same figures as purported in the graphic. There is another piece from HRDive referencing this[2] but also does not have the same figures.

Regardless of sources, what irks me the most is the idea that a degree is useless for work. Many forms of work require critical thinking, reading and analytics—someone who is able to earn a college degree (regardless of institution status) is able to demonstrate that they have some abilities in these skills.

[0]: https://www.americaspromise.org/news/pbs-newshour-biggest-pr...

[1]: https://news.cengage.com/upskilling/new-survey-demand-for-un...

[2]: https://www.hrdive.com/news/soft-skills-top-employer-wish-li...