College vs. trade school/vocational school

lion paw

lion paw

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..When i was in school,my counselors pushed the idea of college and rarely adressed vocational/trade school type education.
 
trade school is a good idea for certain people

a lot of university students would be better served going to trade school
 
We've never seen a thread like this in Mayberry. I can't blame you this time since the search function is broke.
 
I think most counselors are bias towards college education unless they work for vocational/trade schools.
 
The trade school infrastructure in the US sucks compared to the rest of the developed world. It's a perfectly viable path...not everyone is going to like college, succeed in college, or enjoy the sorts of jobs college prepares you for (when it prepares you for any...I'd much rather be a master electrician than a new grad with a degree in women's studies or some other useless field). I think counselors should push it more for people who aren't interested in going to college to study any particular discipline...the value of a non-vocational college education ain't what it used to be. Plus, if you aren't motivated to go to and finish college you can easily end up with tons of debt and no degree, which is utterly useless. Saw a ton of that when I was working in education finance, it really cripples people financially for years. If you like working with your hands, learn to be a machinist or something, just be careful about proprietary schools (ripoffs, and I did the financial analysis for a very large student lender to prove it), if you can find a good apprenticeship program that's probably the best way to go.
 
just got a $10 raise today all thanks to doing a trade and passing an exam. So I believe trades is very good route to go.
University makes sense if you are doing something you enjoy.
 
I saw something on the news the other day that the fastest growing jobs are for those that do not require a four year degree, only two year or vocational, and in many cases are making more money. I have my BA but if I was to go back to school it would be for a new two year technical degree, not my masters.
 
There was bad stigma with trade schools the past couple of decades because people are retards.

I think that is starting to change.
 
Unless you are going into the medical or engineering field, learn a trade.

Better yet, get into an apprenticeship.
 
without thinking too much about it, i would say college if you do well in school.
but definitely keep in mind the tuition and overall cost.

for instance, tuition plus 4 years lost wages (if you wont be working while in school).

basically, college is super expensive these days, so any ideas of frat house nonsense without doing well in class should be forgotten.
 
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Uchi Mata said:
The trade school infrastructure in the US sucks compared to the rest of the developed world. It's a perfectly viable path...not everyone is going to like college, succeed in college, or enjoy the sorts of jobs college prepares you for (when it prepares you for any...I'd much rather be a master electrician than a new grad with a degree in women's studies or some other useless field). I think counselors should push it more for people who aren't interested in going to college to study any particular discipline...the value of a non-vocational college education ain't what it used to be. Plus, if you aren't motivated to go to and finish college you can easily end up with tons of debt and no degree, which is utterly useless. Saw a ton of that when I was working in education finance, it really cripples people financially for years. If you like working with your hands, learn to be a machinist or something, just be careful about proprietary schools (ripoffs, and I did the financial analysis for a very large student lender to prove it), if you can find a good apprenticeship program that's probably the best way to go.
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yup,I gotta few friends who are in student loan debt(all over 40k)luckily I did community college.I got tired of it and went into the workforce.those vocational school commercials you see on tv,rip offs.My friend did one and couldn't secure work.if I could go back and change it,I would.
 
I love seeing people in careers telling people to go into trades, like, it wasn't good enough for them, but being a plumber is good enough for you.

I'd take the pay cut to not dread going into work every day.
 
lion paw said:
yup,I gotta few friends who are in student loan debt(all over 40k)luckily I did community college.I got tired of it and went into the workforce.those vocational school commercials you see on tv,rip offs.My friend did one and couldn't secure work.if I could go back and change it,I would.
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Those vocational schools are a ripoff because it's the same as college except you're paying alot more because there are no standards for entrance, they only care that you have money to pay. If you're applying for a job against someone from a normal university, they will be looked at in higher regard than someone with vocational school background because it's deemed inferior. But like anything it really depends on what you studied if you studied some bullshit bachelor arts degree it better be from a good school or you will have a hard time finding work any where, at least you have the credentials of your school to bail you out. I assume you're talking about Devry or ITT Tech.
 
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WorldofWarcraft said:
Unless you are going into the medical or engineering field, learn a trade.

Better yet, get into an apprenticeship.
Click to expand...

This

I've done both and I can say for sure I liked the trade route much more. My pay is better now and I enjoy what I'm doing for a living. Made a lot of good friends and connections only drawback is way fewer chicks in trades. I have met a couple of really hot women that were picking up welding(sadly not my trade) but that's about it.
 
lion paw said:
..When i was in school,my counselors pushed the idea of college and rarely adressed vocational/trade school type education.
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I think trade school is underrated and not encouraged enough today. Today so many people go to college without obtaining useful skills. For example, how useful is a communications degree from some unknown state school? I believe most people who achieved success in a communications centric field later on did it not because of what they learned in school, but because they were already very socially skilled.

Contrast that to a trade school vocation like an electrician. Would most electricians, if any, be adept at circuits without trade school? I doubt it.

A degree in communications costs the same as a degree in engineering(assuming you complete both in the same number of years). Given that a college education costs much more than a trade school education, I think high school counselors should encourage trade school more to some students. Even a degree in biology isn't worth it unless you go to med school.
 
pittelp said:
I think most counselors are bias towards college education unless they work for vocational/trade schools.
Click to expand...

High schools get to tout their college acceptance rates to prospective students' parents.

If you are going to attend college with a clear career in mind and a plan on how to get it off the ground, or a aptitude for the hard sciences/accounting then college should have a higher ROI than trade/vocational school. If you do not know what you want to be when you grow up then your ROI for college deteriorates rapidly. That doesn't necessarily mean that vocational school is the default winner, but studying something like communication studies at a 20K/year school is only going to give you debt, not a career.

The dearth of tradesmen means that skilled plumbers, carpenters, etc can make a good amount of money, so it's a viable alternative. Research it though.

Disclosure - BS in Math, MS in Math, MBA in progress, MPH TBD. I'm obviously pro-higher ed but I'd like to think I'm presenting it objectively.
 
TheHegemon1 said:
This

I've done both and I can say for sure I liked the trade route much more. My pay is better now and I enjoy what I'm doing for a living. Made a lot of good friends and connections only drawback is way fewer chicks in trades. I have met a couple of really hot women that were picking up welding(sadly not my trade) but that's about it.
Click to expand...

There's no chicks in STEM either. In my company all of the hot chicks are in marketing (OMFG they have some dimes over there).
 
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