A much better education would be found at successful companies doing apprenticeships. I don't know if that system is prevalent in the US or not but if say Microsoft took on 100 youngsters for 3 years and taught them, they would have a much more practiacal experience than a college with outdated ideas. They would also have the opportunity to cream off the best of these students for themselves.
McDonalds comes to mind. They grow their own managers and operators. All of their corp training earns college credits.
The problem with STEM degrees these days is that there are still many more steps to get a foot in the door into a real career. Students or recent grads need apprenticeships, entry level positions. Some state schools are filled with older instructors who are based on tenure still teaching outdated material sometimes 30 years old which also results from low prioritized budgeted degree major programs But corporations don't offer as much in the way of training as they used to. A lot of the entry level jobs have been outsourced and shipped overseas already. So the news keep reporting that there are jobs but "companies have a problem finding qualified and experienced candidates. As for the rising costs of education, a major part of that resulted from too much government aid, loans and grants and schools unscrupulously taking more of the pie. If all that aid was cut off , schools would have to compete again but it's probably too far down the road to ever change now without catastrophic effects.
I would argue that if you're in the US and cannot get in to a top school then go to any school overseas (asia, europe, ...). That shows you have some balls. I have seen so many big 10 people (less nw) who are just cubicle workers; they're smart but are happy with 9-5 paycheck
Loans are not the problem. The problem is the loans don't discharge in bankruptcy. Which means the loans are guaranteed yield by the government. Remember that from 2008? Guaranteed bailouts from the government, it's the same deal with student loans. If you sell a loan with 5% its basically risk free unless the person goes MIA.
Yeah... so I worked my butt off to pay back my student loans and you should get a free pass while my taxes increase to pay off your loan. I think not.
All the greedy little bastards like to whine, "my debts should be forgiven", "I should get free tuition", "I should get free health care", "soak the rich so that I don't have to pay", "I should be given a well-paying job with benefits and a long, paid vacation each year"... Amazing... what the entitlement society thinks they "deserve" Liberalism run amok... (Grandpa used to tell me that I wasn't even entitled to EAT unless I worked... harsh, but that ethic is what made America great.)
Being in the midwest and graduation from the University of Wisconsin Madison, i definitely agree with this statement here. A lot of smart individuals, especially the women, but most of them are content with that 9-5 paycheck, even if its 25-30k. Most of them are very afraid to take on risk, must be a Midwestern thing though. Im from the East coast. Try telling any of them about starting a business and your looked at like your crazy. Lol.
Just heard another one. Distant relative with Masters degree in forestry. No job. Living with parents for last 5 years. Again, a competitive advantage can be had by avoiding college and debt.