Academia

[#HBC | Acrostic]

Thread Question: If you found out you were going to make the same amount of income with a high school diploma as you would with an advanced degree, would you still bother to pursue an advanced degree keeping in mind the years and tuition required?

Addendum: Would be interesting to include your current level of education and the final degree of education that you would be satisfied with achieving at the moment.

 

[SkylerOcon]

Right now I'm a junior in high school and I really want to at least get a Master's degree.

And really, this depends on a lot of factors - if the college experience was still the same, then yes, I'd still go to college. Of course, it probably wouldn't be, because nowhere near as many people currently attending college would go to college, but lets not get into that...

But a lot of people do see college as some of the, if not the very, best times of their lives. So yeah, why not? As long as I could afford it, I'd do it.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

I edited the thread opening statement to reflect the criticism you posed on the validity of the question (even though the question itself requires an assumption of a hypothetical condition). Thank you for helping me make the question more coherent.

 

[victra♥]

if you'll get a job that you think you'll want to do for the rest of your life from just a high school diploma, then by all means pursue that path.

but if you want a job that requires higher level education, then it's likely that they'll go to the lengths to achieve it, regardless of the pay equivalence in the long run.

For me personally, I'll do the second choice. I'll still go on to post-sec and get an advanced degree to do something I think is interesting. As well, your career is likely going to be a lot less labor intensive which is a plus XD

 

[Mic_128]

Even if you were going to apply for the same job, if they have the choice between a guy who's gone through university and a guy who's just done highschool, they're going to go with the guy with the degree.

 

[SuperBowser]

In my ideal world, I wouldn't have a job and would still have all the money I need to make a decent living. Since that isn't possible I settled for the path I thought I'd enjoy the most.

I'm now in my 5th year of university. On track for 6 years. I study for these qualifications because a) I need them or b) they will significantly improve my future job opportunities. Perhaps I'll do a masters a few years down the line, but only if I need to.

Most people do not learn for the sake of learning. The idea of blindly spending large sums of money to study a subject you like is simply foreign to me. If I am unable to apply this hard-earned knowledge to some tangible aspect of my life, I am not interested in paying for it. Having said all this, I enjoy being a student. Definitely the best years of my life so far

 

[Dragoon Fighter]

If I could make the same amount of money and get a job then no, I would go to collage but only because I made a promise to my parents that I intend to keep. If I did not make such a promise my answer would be a no. I love my education and I normally have some educational show in the back ground such as history channel or the like. I like to learn but only what knowledge I wish to learn. (Like History and Science.)

 

[D20]

The amount of knowledge you will gain from attending a college or a university cannot, in my opinion, be measured in dollars and cents. Quite simply, the life experience that is college is priceless. While you may initially lose money on it, you will undoubtedly gain friends, develop skills, and be exposed to new ideas.

I am in my 5th year of college, I and will be graduating with a BA in English and a BS in Education this semester. I hope to go on to get my Masters in English and, ultimately, my PhD.

 

[Jim Morrison]

Nope, I wouldn't do it right after finishing high school if I can just make exactly the same wage. I would build up some sort of base for myself and study sometime later in my life.

I don't know how to express my level of education in Americanish, so I won't.

 

[Trent Reznor]

I dropped out of college to pursue music, and now I'm a millionaire.