College Degree Isn't Worth the Debt!

Do you think income potential is the reason people choose careers? If that were true there would not be many paramedics or police officers.I would like to think people choose medicine for more than the income.

For those who say docs don't like a Medicare type system I point you to senior care colorado...a medical practice that takes ONLY Medicare and medicaid patients. In just a few years the practice has grown from a few offices to a dozen or so....one right here in Evergreen. They have some great docs...give terrific service...and in talking to my doc...she couldn't ne happier with the practice.

Hey archer, good point. You should mention that the next time the Federal gov't defends why so many federal employees are paid >100K. They insist the high salaries are needed for gov't service to attract the talent they supposedly need to tell us how to live our lives. Lets cut all the bureaucrats salaries to 60K, let the gov't workers choose gov't for more than high income. I like your idea!

Huh? Aren't the conservatives constantly complaining that Medicare doesnt pay doctors enough? FYI..a single payer system does not mean doctors work for the gov't. But you knew that.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the average college graudate in 1911 will have about $22,900 in loans.

The payment on that kind of debt - about $270/month.

The required salary - about $40,000/yr.

Unfortunately, this year, a freshly minted graduate was offered about $37,000/yr --- about 3,000 too little.

(these are just the averages - there are certainly students who are well outside of the averages - with even less impossible situatioins)

major bean wrote: My wife and I are contributing to the tuition and living expenses of a kid studying at Oklahoma University. She receives support from four other sponsors. Her request for support demonstrated that she had researched the field in which she plans to enter and will most likely be successful in her field. She is a serious student and her GPA reflects this. In lieu of debt she will be obliged to sponsor others as her financial ability allows.

This is how it should be done. And in some cultures, how it IS done.

"It takes a village," as the Liberal saying goes...

I am not working in my degree field and not making as much as my degree but I still think college was worth the expense, it was an awesome time and learned a lot from how to fence, to philosophy, religion and a lot more that had little to do with my major.

And I still have that knowledge wheras the auto people buy for 50K and sell for 5K or the home they buy for 500K that now is only worth 300K. I think college is still a great investment.

We could also return to the days of allowing doctors, engineers, teachers and other professions to take on apprentices to educate instead of sending them off to an overpriced university to get an education. The apprentice can help around the office for a nominal wage and actually earn some money instead of accumulating debt through federal loans that would have to be paid back and continue to allow the subsidized universities to charge far more than most can afford. A benevolent doctor could take a poor child under their wing and impart to them an education that will allow them to rise far above the station into which they were born - all without a single dime of tax being collected by the government and without the apprentice paying a single hour's worth of usurious tuition at a university. End the government subsidy for universities and they would be faced with either charging tuition that was within the reach of most families or seriously cutting back their operations - both of which would save most people an awful lot of money, either in tuition or taxes - not to mention public union employee benefits and pensions, the latter of which is another unfunded liability that the government doesn't want to talk about that could easily become the next financial crisis most state governments face.

One wonders why no one is outraged about the tuition rising faster in cost than even medical care has?

PrintSmith wrote: One wonders why no one is outraged about the tuition rising faster in cost than even medical care has?

You don't think every parent of every child who is about to enter college isn't outraged at the high cost of of getting a college degree?

I understand what you are getting at with the apprentice....and that may work for some professions......but I would prefer my neurosurgeon or even my general practitioner have a better education than being an apprentice to someone else......there is more to modern medicine than one person can teach. If you get an uneducated electrician, maybe your lights won't work, you get a doctor who doesn't know enough and you could die.

bailey bud wrote: According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the average college graudate in 1911 will have about $22,900 in loans.

The payment on that kind of debt - about $270/month.

The required salary - about $40,000/yr.

Unfortunately, this year, a freshly minted graduate was offered about $37,000/yr --- about 3,000 too little.

(these are just the averages - there are certainly students who are well outside of the averages - with even less impossible situatioins)

Uhhh- 1911? I hope you have your year wrong.

a salary of $37K is NOT an average for a new graduate. Most make much less. MY ex husband is very much in the technology field, and his job was "downsized" - he was replaced with two recent college graduates making under $30k each, and that was still less than his salary. Though likely less than his skill set too.

Which student receives the better education? The one who is given personal attention to each and every aspect of their education or the person who sits in a 500 seat lecture hall? Someone who wants to be a doctor already serves an apprenticeship archer - it's called residency - and it comprises at least 3 years for a family physician in addition to the 8 years of university education. A doctor who is licensed to practice medicine is perfectly capable of teaching an apprentice anything they learn in their first 8 years at the university. Some people are better teachers than others to be sure, but I'm thinking that only a doctor interested in teaching would be taking on an apprentice anyway. The apprentice would still have to pass all of the exams that a university student would, would still be required to serve a residency (paid apprenticeship) with another doctor before being turned loose to practice medicine on their own. The only thing that would be missing is the massive amount of debt, an average of nearly $300K, that the doctor starts out with once they do get that license to practice medicine. Think that might help lower the cost the doctor charges patients for their services?