Higher education's bubble is about to burst

[Heracles 417]

That may be a tough job to pursue here. RMIT may have something available. They're probably the most legitimate university here. I seriously doubt she could pursue that degree via distance learning.

RMIT?

[Gemmie 142]

My husband's biggest regret is going to the college he went to. He paid $36K for an Associate degree. He was only on campus once a week sometimes, and what's worse is that his degree is in Multimedia and no one is interested in that. It's not a transferable degree, so he's pretty much screwed, and has had to take jobs that are entry level in other fields (right now he's an office worker). One day he hopes to go for his BA, but knows it's probably unrealistic because of the field he chose.

ETA: my BSc degree was worth every penny. 9K (GBP) and you don't make repayments if you make below a certain amount after graduation, or stop working, etc.

Edited June 9, 2010 by Gemmie

[Teacher Mark 53]

RMIT?

That didn't take long.

http://www.rmit.edu.au/browse/About%20RMIT%2FCampuses%20and%20maps%2FRMIT%20Vietnam/

[Heracles 417]

That didn't take long.

http://www.rmit.edu.au/browse/About%20RMIT%2FCampuses%20and%20maps%2FRMIT%20Vietnam/

hehe I thought I knew that school.

My husband's biggest regret is going to the college he went to. He paid $36K for an Associate degree. He was only on campus once a week sometimes, and what's worse is that his degree is in Multimedia and no one is interested in that. It's not a transferable degree, so he's pretty much screwed, and has had to take jobs that are entry level in other fields (right now he's an office worker). One day he hopes to go for his BA, but knows it's probably unrealistic because of the field he chose.

ETA: my BSc degree was worth every penny. 9K (GBP) and you don't make repayments if you make below a certain amount after graduation, or stop working, etc.

9K? That's almost free.

[IndigoSkies 168]

There is nothing wrong with higher-ed, the problem is with $60K plus tuition costs after four years. Personally, I think anyone who pays over $40K for a college education has lost their mind. After all, no matter what college you attend, 1+1=2.

People who can afford $40K, with their own money, can definitely afford to borrow $20K. Contrarily to what you believe or are led to believe, where you go to school does matter. If not for the prestige and the recognition, then for the invaluable networking you get whilst in the institution. Joe College from back countries of North Carolina doesn’t get as much exposure as something a little more well-known like say UC Berkley. Spending $60K in Harvard makes more sense than spending $40K in a community college.

The question you have to ask is “am I getting my money’s worth?” Something are worthwhile for $10K, some things are worthwhile for $75K. You just have to figure it out.

[Gemmie 142]

Yeah, in the UK we pay just over 3K a year for tuition (A Bachelor course is just 3 years, so your final bill is 9K). I lived away from home, so also took out maintenance grants/loans (6K a year - but if you come from a poor family like me... they give you a few grand for free).

It's do-able! I have no credit card debt and only worked summer jobs, and still managed to pay for US flights.

Edited June 9, 2010 by Gemmie

[Niels Bohr 72]

I disagree.

I worked in Draper Laboratory/Lincoln Laboratory at MIT and worked with many people who transferred from community colleges to large university systems. These people gets paid so much, you have no idea.

Some even had a GED, went to community college, and then o state universities.

I do agree, however, that networking is also a good tool.

People who can afford $40K, with their own money, can definitely afford to borrow $20K. Contrarily to what you believe or are led to believe, where you go to school does matter. If not for the prestige and the recognition, then for the invaluable networking you get whilst in the institution. Joe College from back countries of North Carolina doesn’t get as much exposure as something a little more well-known like say UC Berkley. Spending $60K in Harvard makes more sense than spending $40K in a community college.

The question you have to ask is “am I getting my money’s worth?” Something are worthwhile for $10K, some things are worthwhile for $75K. You just have to figure it out.

Edited June 9, 2010 by Niels Bohr

[Heracles 417]

People who can afford $40K, with their own money, can definitely afford to borrow $20K. Contrarily to what you believe or are led to believe, where you go to school does matter. If not for the prestige and the recognition, then for the invaluable networking you get whilst in the institution. Joe College from back countries of North Carolina doesn’t get as much exposure as something a little more well-known like say UC Berkley. Spending $60K in Harvard makes more sense than spending $40K in a community college.

The question you have to ask is “am I getting my money’s worth?” Something are worthwhile for $10K, some things are worthwhile for $75K. You just have to figure it out.

That was the same mentality for sub-prime, buyer should read the fine print but the lender can push and BS as much as they like.

Actually, Duke in NC is ranked higher than Berkley - ranked 14th in the world.

Without room and board, Tuition costs of Harvard approach $148K. Second best in the world - Uni of Cambridge UK - costs about £13K in total; with Oxford being a tad less.

Edited June 9, 2010 by Booyah!

[Jenn! 918]

Actually, Duke in NC is ranked higher than Berkley - ranked 14th in the world.

Yeah, ain't nothin' wrong with Duke, even though it is in NC!

[Heracles 417]

Yeah, ain't nothin' wrong with Duke, even though it is in NC!

hehe

Berkley is actually ranked 30th in the world versus Dukes 14th.

http://www.usnews.com/articles/education/worlds-best-universities/2010/02/25/worlds-best-universities-top-400.html

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

College has gotten a lot more expensive. A recent Money magazine report notes: "After adjusting for financial aid, the amount families pay for college has skyrocketed 439 percent since 1982. ... Normal supply and demand can't begin to explain cost increases of this magnitude."

Consumers would balk, except for two things.

First -- as with the housing bubble -- cheap and readily available credit has let people borrow to finance education. They're willing to do so because of (1) consumer ignorance, as students (and, often, their parents) don't fully grasp just how harsh the impact of student loan payments will be after graduation; and second, a belief that, whatever the cost, a college education is a necessary ticket to future prosperity.

Bubbles burst when there are no longer enough excessively optimistic and ignorant folks to fuel them. And there are signs that this is beginning to happen already.

But bubbles burst when people catch on, and there's some evidence that people are beginning to catch on. Student loan demand, according to a recent report in the Washington Post, is going soft, and students are expressing a willingness to go to a cheaper school rather than run up debt. Things haven't collapsed yet, but they're looking shakier -- kind of like the housing market looked in 2007.

So what happens if the bubble collapses? Will it be a tragedy, with millions of Americans losing their path to higher-paying jobs?

Maybe not. College is often described as a path to prosperity, but is it? A college education can help people make more money in three different ways.

First, it may actually make them more economically productive by teaching them skills valued in the workplace: Computer programming, nursing or engineering, say. (Religious and women's studies, not so much.)

Second, it may provide a credential that employers want, not because it represents actual skills, but because it's a weeding tool that doesn't produce civil-rights suits as, say, IQ tests might. A four-year college degree, even if its holder acquired no actual skills, at least indicates some ability to show up on time and perform as instructed.

And, third, a college degree -- at least an elite one -- may hook its holder up with a useful social network that can provide jobs and opportunities in the future. (This is more true if it's a degree from Yale than if it's one from Eastern Kentucky, but it's true everywhere to some degree).

While an individual might rationally pursue all three of these, only the first one -- actual added skills -- produces a net benefit for society. The other two are just distributional -- about who gets the goodies, not about making more of them.

Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columns/Sunday_Reflections/Higher-education_s-bubble-is-about-to-burst-95639354.html#ixzz0qC90msTc

I will pay for all my sons education's until they have masters degrees. 2 down, one more than halfway and the other yet to start. No loans needed, cash in advance works for me. Y'all can decide what to do with your children's future. My kids will need people to work for them.

[DEDixon 39]

terrible.

[DEDixon 39]

I will pay for all my sons education's until they have masters degrees. 2 down, one more than halfway and the other yet to start. No loans needed, cash in advance works for me. Y'all can decide what to do with your children's future. My kids will need people to work for them.

LOL!

[Niels Bohr 72]

The reality is...even if you have a master, you may still be managed by someone who has a bachelors. I know a Chief Engineer who just have a Bachelors at TI. Many of his subordinates are Ph.Ds.

However, Ph.Ds are better candidates for hire than Bachelors.

[Heracles 417]

I will pay for all my sons education's until they have masters degrees. 2 down, one more than halfway and the other yet to start. No loans needed, cash in advance works for me. Y'all can decide what to do with your children's future. My kids will need people to work for them.

Gary was it you who pays for his health care outright again?