Why aren't the UC schools mapped?
Is College Worth It?
61–70 of 97 posts
Re: Is College Worth It?
#62Given the costliness of most colleges in the US - why not consider getting your degree outside of the country? There are many great universities in Asia, for example, that have a much cheaper price tag. I have not seen very many (if any) US students consider this option. I guess prestige and name-brand recognition is still very important. But really, I am on a semester abroad in Taiwan at the moment, and I have calcu…
Any number of reasons:
1. Not speaking $LANGUAGE. Even if courses are taught in English, that makes living there difficult 2. Most people in your field in the US having heard of $UNIVERSITY. How many people in the US are familiar with NTU? Most of the Taiwanese working in the US did graduate level work at a US institution. 3. Having to live a giant ocean away from friends/family, etc.
There's a fairly compelling argument that much of the benefit of college is social, not educational. Studying in another country would negate a lot of that. Don't get me wrong, Taiwan (and I'm sure many other places) is great, but I think you're dramatically underestimating how easy it is for most people to decide to go spend 4 years on the other side of the world.
Re: Is College Worth It?
#63This kind of BS analyses are exactly the root of the current problems with the higher education system (insane tuition, CS majors who can't do fizbuzz etc.) - because they are self-fulfilling prophecies . For comparison, let's imagine that some evil marketing genius decides to examine the corresponding statistical impacts of wearing a business suit. "Our data indicate that people who wear a business suit to work earn…
You did not read the article all the way through, nor did the people who voted you up. If you had, you would have encountered references to a variety of studies that attempt to control for going to college as opposed to other predictive factors using things like twin studies. They have found that the impact of college is less than simple analyses show, but the largest contribution to the difference between college gr…
A lot of the people here are IMO rightfully criticizing that not more thought has been given to the possibility that being able to get into college and pay for college is simply a good indicator for a lifetime premium in earnings.
The only point I found in this article is the FSU study in which they try to control against factors by comparing students who barely made the cut. They came out with a 11% rate of return. (I looked up the study but couldn't find whether it refers to 11% return on the monthly salary or lifetime earnings)
It's left for us to decide whether this is a significant enough, especially given the option value of college and lack of alternatives to college.
P.S.: 75k (the cost of attending FSU) invested in a currently 3.7 treasury bond yields 118k after 30 years.
Re: Is College Worth It?
#64Payscale subtracts the median wage of a high school graduate... This is a common mistake, and one which completely invalidates the process. The median high school graduate is someone who wasn't able to get into college, and many of the factors associated with that -- starting with low high school grades -- are also associated with lower earnings. You might as well say that purring results in pets gaining legs, becaus…
The article actually deals with this. "One recent study compared the earnings of students who just made the academic cutoff to attend the Florida State University System with those of students who fell just below the cutoff (and mostly did not attend college as a result). We might expect college not to be worth it for these students on the margins of qualifying, yet they reaped returns of 11%." While this does not lo…
When I was in high school, teachers were quite open about adjusting marks if it meant the difference between acceptance and rejection, but you had to put forth the effort to talk with them and make your case.
With that, some studies have suggested that soft-skills, like determination, are what determine future earnings. Someone with average to poor academic performance, but high determination, could ensure that the cutoff is met with a little pressure put on the teachers, while someone less determined would sit back and be accepting of the non-acceptance position.
It is nice to see some other methodologies tested, but I'm not sure this one really addresses the common concerns with the standard interpretation.
Re: Is College Worth It?
#65Earlier quoted context omitted.
You did not read the article all the way through, nor did the people who voted you up. If you had, you would have encountered references to a variety of studies that attempt to control for going to college as opposed to other predictive factors using things like twin studies. They have found that the impact of college is less than simple analyses show, but the largest contribution to the difference between college gr…
A lot of the people here are IMO rightfully criticizing that not more thought has been given to the possibility that being able to get into college and pay for college is simply a good indicator for a lifetime premium in earnings. The only point I found in this article is the FSU study in which they try to control against factors by comparing students who barely made the cut. They came out with a 11% rate of return.…
> P.S.: 75k (the cost of attending FSU)
Don't forget the additional $120K that the average high school graduate will earn during those years, assuming a four year program.
Re: Is College Worth It?
#66if you are talking about the knowledge and degree you got, the answer is no. but college also provie you human relationships, this seems very important for most common people, so the answer is yes
Re: Is College Worth It?
#67This kind of BS analyses are exactly the root of the current problems with the higher education system (insane tuition, CS majors who can't do fizbuzz etc.) - because they are self-fulfilling prophecies . For comparison, let's imagine that some evil marketing genius decides to examine the corresponding statistical impacts of wearing a business suit. "Our data indicate that people who wear a business suit to work earn…
You did not read the article all the way through, nor did the people who voted you up. If you had, you would have encountered references to a variety of studies that attempt to control for going to college as opposed to other predictive factors using things like twin studies. They have found that the impact of college is less than simple analyses show, but the largest contribution to the difference between college gr…
Oh I've read the article, and many like it. I'm not sure you've read my comment carefully though, because you seem to be missing the main point. Such studies are largely invalidated by their very influence on the phenomenon they purport to describe. Do you think the applicants' belief they would earn 45% (or 70%, or 90%) more has no bearing on the labor and loan markets?
Re: Is College Worth It?
#68My wife is an economist and one of her biggest pet peeves is that the idea that a child "must" get a college education has had a dramatic impact on how we perceive trade school or apprenticeship educations. Not everybody needs college.
Certainly, and some people would be better served by not going to college. The point is that you can't just call it a life after high school and expect to earn a respectable (in a financial sense) income. Unskilled union mill work is no longer going to feed a family of 5 and pay for a nice mortgage.
Unskilled, no, but the trades pay reasonably well. By the time you graduate from college you could have been a licensed electrician, for example. And if you were willing to go into enough debt to pay for a four year degree you could start your own business.
Re: Is College Worth It?
#69Why aren't the UC schools mapped?
I found most of them there...any particular ones you're looking for?