But in an evolving world, the Voc/Tech/Trade path is better for MOST. The data proves it, too.
The College route is great for some.
But..
The Voc/Trade/Tech route is better for most.
Yet we still teach kids that the world cares about pieces of paper it doesn’t, to get 9-5 jobs that don’t exist.
We should preach the alternative path with the same vigor & intensity.
-Ray Zingler on X
I am not against higher Education in the slightest.
I am probably the most Pro-Education person you’ll ever meet because I believe education produces opportunity.
What I am against is heavily systemized, time bound, schooling.
And “schooling” & “education” are as different from each other as apples and car parts.
Schooling doesn’t translate to success in the real world. Education does.
And education doesn’t always mean “degree”, in fact, it rarely does, especially in today’s world where 19-year-old’s on YouTube accidentally earn more money in one day than the teacher who told them they were going to be a failure earns in a year.
“Voc/Tech/Trade is better for MOST!? Wow, that’s a bold claim.”
Trust me, it’s not my opinion, the only reason I said it is because there is an abundance of data that proves it’s statistically true.
If you want to work in the Medical, Law, Engineering or Teaching fields (and yes there are a few others) go get you a college degree.
If you can go to a Note Dame, Virginia, Duke, or an Ivy League, go. I will say, the networks that come from these prestigious places are far more valuable than the degrees themselves, though.
If you want to play sports beyond high school and experience college athletics, by all means, leverage your opportunities. I’ll be in the stands clapping my ass off for you.
Lastly, if you want to go to college, go.
Just make sure it logistically makes an abundance of sense. But, going (or forcing your kid to go) so you can tell your neighbors who don’t care about you that your kid is going to <insert undifferentiated college> to get an <insert undifferentiated degree> just “because” is the reason our kids are unfulfilled, crippled with student debt, and start “life” behind the 8-ball, and often never catch back up.
Fewer than 18% (and falling) of job postings on Indeed require a 4-year degree.
44% (and falling) of “Career-Based” jobs require a bachelor’s degree.
And only 46.5% (and falling) of working-age adults have college degrees.
So yes, the alternative route IS the better route.
It’s just not a popular thing to say out loud.
It’s time we start living in the real world and start pushing truth to our kids.
(Data sourced from Forbes.com, Indeed.com, and HigherEdDrive.com)
