How Higher Education Got High
Has anyone else sensed that something about a college degree has changed fundamentally in the last 30 years?
People in my parent's generation were in college and decided to attain a degree in liberal arts, with the knowledge that they'd (probably) struggle the rest of their lives to find steady work. Majoring in philosophy has always been pretty speculative.
That's not what I'm talking about. The more certain degrees, like engineering, business, or anything else your parents might have encouraged (pushed) you to study, don't seem to offer as much security as they used to. More importantly, the rise in the cost of tuition has outpaced the rise in wages.
A lot of students are opting not to go to college, either at all, or they're waiting, opting not to go immediately after graduating from high school. Me, I think all the people making this choice have a point.
I wasn't interested in going to college right away. My father gently urged me to do so, because he felt I'd be better off in the long run. In hindsight, he was probably correct, but he did spend tens of thousands of dollars for me to get a degree that I'm not currently using. (At least, not in any direct way...I'm sure the education I received opened other doors for me.)
The face of the retail world has changed significantly in the past few decades as well. Look at stores like Sears or Macy's...what if I led you blindfolded into the men's clothing department, took off the blindfold, and asked you to tell me which store we were standing in. Eventually, you'd be able to determine which one...but ignoring any signs reading "Sears" on them, how long would it take you?
The race to the center of the bell curve has led to a kind of bland homogeneity. People aren't looking for middle-priced goods of middle quality. What they want instead is to shop at Wal-Mart (super cheap) or small specialty boutique shops (super special). People want stuff to cost very little. And what they are willing to pay for what feels like an exclusive experience. K-mart offers neither...and that's why they're in bankruptcy.
Mediocrity has no place in the retail world. Sears isn't very cheap, and the stuff they sell is mass-produced. Why bother?
The bulk of higher education seems to have raced quickly into the same space that K-mart and Sears occupy. Some companies are able to establish value and then scale up (Starbucks). But people are not products, so it's immensely difficult for a university to establish value and then scale up quickly. But most universities haven't been cautious. On the contrary, they've scaled up with reckless abandon, trying to get as many students into their doors and then back out again. They've become mass marketing machines. Which means more and more students with a standardized education are entering the labor market. In an era of commoditized applicants, it's no wonder employers are not rushing to pay more.
You'd think college students would get some kind of volume discount. Nope...tuition costs are on the rise.
My thinking: if you're looking to get a degree, is to go for an uber-cheap degree to avoid going into insurmountable debt, or, if you can do it, get into a really prestigious school. If you're going to get an MBA, get the best in-state deal you can at a local community college, or go to a great school like the Ross School of Business. Do either "cheap" or "special", but avoid the middle, where colleges seem to be in a race to be like one another.
Or, if all else fails...try Harvard.
People in my parent's generation were in college and decided to attain a degree in liberal arts, with the knowledge that they'd (probably) struggle the rest of their lives to find steady work. Majoring in philosophy has always been pretty speculative.
That's not what I'm talking about. The more certain degrees, like engineering, business, or anything else your parents might have encouraged (pushed) you to study, don't seem to offer as much security as they used to. More importantly, the rise in the cost of tuition has outpaced the rise in wages.
A lot of students are opting not to go to college, either at all, or they're waiting, opting not to go immediately after graduating from high school. Me, I think all the people making this choice have a point.
I wasn't interested in going to college right away. My father gently urged me to do so, because he felt I'd be better off in the long run. In hindsight, he was probably correct, but he did spend tens of thousands of dollars for me to get a degree that I'm not currently using. (At least, not in any direct way...I'm sure the education I received opened other doors for me.)
The face of the retail world has changed significantly in the past few decades as well. Look at stores like Sears or Macy's...what if I led you blindfolded into the men's clothing department, took off the blindfold, and asked you to tell me which store we were standing in. Eventually, you'd be able to determine which one...but ignoring any signs reading "Sears" on them, how long would it take you?
The race to the center of the bell curve has led to a kind of bland homogeneity. People aren't looking for middle-priced goods of middle quality. What they want instead is to shop at Wal-Mart (super cheap) or small specialty boutique shops (super special). People want stuff to cost very little. And what they are willing to pay for what feels like an exclusive experience. K-mart offers neither...and that's why they're in bankruptcy.
Mediocrity has no place in the retail world. Sears isn't very cheap, and the stuff they sell is mass-produced. Why bother?
The bulk of higher education seems to have raced quickly into the same space that K-mart and Sears occupy. Some companies are able to establish value and then scale up (Starbucks). But people are not products, so it's immensely difficult for a university to establish value and then scale up quickly. But most universities haven't been cautious. On the contrary, they've scaled up with reckless abandon, trying to get as many students into their doors and then back out again. They've become mass marketing machines. Which means more and more students with a standardized education are entering the labor market. In an era of commoditized applicants, it's no wonder employers are not rushing to pay more.
You'd think college students would get some kind of volume discount. Nope...tuition costs are on the rise.
My thinking: if you're looking to get a degree, is to go for an uber-cheap degree to avoid going into insurmountable debt, or, if you can do it, get into a really prestigious school. If you're going to get an MBA, get the best in-state deal you can at a local community college, or go to a great school like the Ross School of Business. Do either "cheap" or "special", but avoid the middle, where colleges seem to be in a race to be like one another.
Or, if all else fails...try Harvard.