Master’s Degrees Are the Second Biggest Scam in Higher Education

[Neonred 3,577]

22 minutes ago, Nature Boy 2.0 said:

well did they get As

😉

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

some of the dumbest people I have worked with have MBAs from elite universities. I get that you need them to do certain jobs, but I question whether you really learn anything you wouldn't learn by just doing the actual work

[TBoneTX 45,580]

7 hours ago, Dashinka said:

I often wonder how many university counselors suggest to a student that they might be better served by not pursuing a very expensive bachelors, or higher level program?

"Tell me, Mr. Barber -- do I need a haircut?"

[Dashinka 24,634]

3 hours ago, yuna628 said:

I like to think that the average counselor working for a college is going to have the interest of the student at heart, maybe there are some that are bad but I don't think all of them. My husband knew what he wanted when he entered university and there certainly wasn't anyone that was going to change his mind. The problem was there just wasn't a snowball's chance to get a job in his area with those skills, but plenty of other places around the world that would want it. If I'd had the money back in the day I'd have pursued the degree in art I wanted. Likely wouldn't have put it to job use, but can't say for certain, as there's plenty of online entrepreneurship these days. My uncle did the art degree, and it weirdly came in useful for a completely different career. I'd strongly encourage kids these days to try community and technical colleges... the problem is that some of these places are crumbling and don't have support they need. They are having to complete with the bright shiny object of universities that offer the latest, greatest, and flashy experience. Look at it this way - would you want to take a rusted Dodge RAM for a test drive, or a sexy Bugatti? Chances are a kid has no clue what they actually want but the here and now and happenin' looks interesting. Others might not want to be a HVAC mechanic or plumber - where do they fit in?

I guess I am a little more pessimistic given the state of higher education and how it has become a huge money making opportunity.  I am not saying that everyone needs to be an electrician, or HVAC technician, but I suspect there are some that went to a gleaming university that would have been better served learning a trade.  That being said, there is always a value to learning, and universities are a good place to learn, but kids/young adults today often lack the CBA skills to determine if a degree they are pursuing is actually worth the money they are paying for it.  I know in my day, I knew exactly what I wanted to do, and I also knew that to do it, I had to come up with a way to pay for it myself.  Today, many students are eitehr relying on the parents, or the government to hopefully forgive huge loans to go to school, and I think that is a big reason we have a lot of people in college pursing economically worthless degrees.  Whatever, CCs and trade schools today appear on the surface to offer a lot more value for the money spent when compared with Universities (for profit or not).  

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

I would say that in HR departments across the land there are very dimwitted personnel making decisions on who to interview based on the existence of an advanced degree - I once decided not to go ahead with one candidate when I was hiring because there were other candidates that were a better fit and HR's response was "but he's got an MBA from Stanford!"

[LIBrty4all 3,754]

2 hours ago, Trompe le Monde said:

some of the dumbest people I have worked with have MBAs from elite universities. I get that you need them to do certain jobs, but I question whether you really learn anything you wouldn't learn by just doing the actual work

Boy howdy, you dun hit da nail rite dare on da head!!

[Nature Boy 2.0 8,376]

My masters in English has dun nuthing for me

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

5 hours ago, Trompe le Monde said:

some of the dumbest people I have worked with have MBAs from elite universities. I get that you need them to do certain jobs, but I question whether you really learn anything you wouldn't learn by just doing the actual work

I concur with this as well. Some of the dumbest people I met when working at Caltech had Master's and PhD degrees 

Edited July 19, 2021 by Cyberfx1024

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

7 hours ago, yuna628 said:

I like to think that the average counselor working for a college is going to have the interest of the student at heart, maybe there are some that are bad but I don't think all of them. My husband knew what he wanted when he entered university and there certainly wasn't anyone that was going to change his mind. The problem was there just wasn't a snowball's chance to get a job in his area with those skills, but plenty of other places around the world that would want it. If I'd had the money back in the day I'd have pursued the degree in art I wanted. Likely wouldn't have put it to job use, but can't say for certain, as there's plenty of online entrepreneurship these days. My uncle did the art degree, and it weirdly came in useful for a completely different career. I'd strongly encourage kids these days to try community and technical colleges... the problem is that some of these places are crumbling and don't have support they need. They are having to complete with the bright shiny object of universities that offer the latest, greatest, and flashy experience. Look at it this way - would you want to take a rusted Dodge RAM for a test drive, or a sexy Bugatti? Chances are a kid has no clue what they actually want but the here and now and happenin' looks interesting. Others might not want to be a HVAC mechanic or plumber - where do they fit in?

It all depends on the state really. I know NC has consistently put a ton of money into their community colleges.. We see it as a way for people.get the general education credits they need while other people can get the technical training they need with the certification

[TBoneTX 45,580]

3 hours ago, LIBrty4all said:

Boy howdy, you dun hit da nail rite dare on da head!!

You've been infected with the NB2 virus -- quick, quarantine lockdown!

3 hours ago, Nature Boy 2.0 said:

My masters in English has dun nuthing for me

Yew mispelt "massturs" and "Inglish," yoo unedj'macayted hik.

[seekingthetruth 1,248]

5 hours ago, Dashinka said:

I like to think that the average counselor working for a college is going to have the interest of the student at heart,

 

5 hours ago, Dashinka said:

I guess I am a little more pessimistic given the state of higher education and how it has become a huge money making opportunity. 

I think a counselor would be fired if they pushed students out of the school to other avenues.

[seekingthetruth 1,248]

1 hour ago, Cyberfx1024 said:

I concur with this as well. Some of the dumbest people I met when working at Caltech had Master's and PhD degrees 

Around 2005 the company I was working for hired McKinsey & Company and they sent in a bunch of young MBAs to evaluate a possible merger.  I had to deal with them quite a bit for a few months before I escaped to a new job in Germany.  Some of them were bright but others lacked basic common sense.

 

The recommendations they made ruined the U.S. branch of the company.  Millions lost and thousands laid off.  Basically, McKinsey and top management got legally scammed by slick business people on the other side.

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

1 hour ago, seekingthetruth said:

Around 2005 the company I was working for hired McKinsey & Company and they sent in a bunch of young MBAs to evaluate a possible merger.  I had to deal with them quite a bit for a few months before I escaped to a new job in Germany.  Some of them were bright but others lacked basic common sense.

 

The recommendations they made ruined the U.S. branch of the company.  Millions lost and thousands laid off.  Basically, McKinsey and top management got legally scammed by slick business people on the other side.

This the general issue I have seen. These people are smart as a whip and run circles around you within their specialty but once you get them out to the real world then you find out their common sense is pretty lacking. 

[TBoneTX 45,580]

2 hours ago, Cyberfx1024 said:

once you get them out to the real world then you find out their common sense is pretty lacking. 

This proves two truths yet again:

 -- A sheepskin doesn't automatically equate to competence.

 -- You never really know about a new hire until you get him out into the field.

[Dashinka 24,634]

12 hours ago, Cyberfx1024 said:

It all depends on the state really. I know NC has consistently put a ton of money into their community colleges.. We see it as a way for people.get the general education credits they need while other people can get the technical training they need with the certification

I did my first two years at a CC.  I certainly valued that time and I believe the education was on par with any school.  Now that was a long time ago, but that school still seems to be in pretty good condition.  I know the CCs around me are pretty good, my wife took a few ESL classes there and our cousin goes there now.  CCs are certainly a better value for the education, and often you get teachers/professors that are from the local industries in the area so they are not totally academics.