College is not where you find a career. College is where you have fun and drink beer

[Clodfobble]

I think it's less about if you go, and more about what you study. The majority of those in community college are not majoring in English, or Theatre, or History, or the worst, Undeclared. They are generally a few years older on average, paying for it themselves, and are studying nursing, or teaching, or some other useful thing, because they've tried the real world and want something better.

If you go to a four year university and study engineering, you'll probably be okay. Study something without a lot of career structure underneath, like economics, for example, and you're going to be unemployable compared to the guy who became a lab tech at the local community college.

You have to go to college for a reason, not just because college is the thing you're supposed to do.

[Lamplighter]

So many people think that college/university degrees are job training.
From a "job" perspective, I think it's better to see them as "union cards".
They are the credentials that get your foot in the door; after that it's up to the individual.
Without that degree, those doors are forever locked.

UT's link above reports that those with a Bachelor degree eventually catch up and pass (> $50k/yr)
those limited to just a community college or high school graduation.
More importantly, I believe college degrees are about life experiences for the future.

Any job will get boring and generate dissatisfaction.
A salary increase has a satisfying effect for only about 6 months.
So if $ is all there is to go on the "job" becomes "work", not a "career".

John Adams' recent thread is a good example...

[glatt]

College degrees are absolutely union cards. They probably shouldn't be, but they are.