College education offers more than just better job prospects. It helps you find direction and opens doors you never thought possible.
    • Universal MonkOPEnglish
      2·
      1 day ago

      Really? Can I ask why you think that?

      To be honest, I thought that way my whole life, and for a long time, it worked. My career was built on the strength of my resume, interview skills, and experience—until about five years ago when I hit a huge roadblock. Suddenly, HR departments wouldn’t even consider me because I didn’t have a degree.

      The real eye-opener came when a former boss—someone I had worked with before—wanted to hire me at her new company. She interviewed me, told me I was her top choice, and said she was excited to work with me again. The next day, she called to confirm her team had chosen me. But the day after that, she called back with bad news: HR and upper management refused to approve the hire because I didn’t have a degree—even though I had 15+ years of experience in the exact role.

      So while I used to agree with the idea that a degree wasn’t necessary, I can’t say that anymore. My advice now? Go to college—but do it as inexpensively as possible. I went back and got my degree (from Pierpont Community and Technical College), and eventually, I was able to land a job with that same boss who couldn’t hire me before.

      Maybe things are different in fields like programming, but in many industries, I’m seeing firsthand that a degree is becoming a non-negotiable requirement—regardless of skill or experience. I don’t agree with it, but that’s the reality.

      I recently retired, and now I am going for my bachelor’s degree. For no other reason that I just want it. :)

        • Universal MonkOPEnglish
          2·
          1 day ago

          I agree. But that’s how the job market it going. I was pissed when it happened. But now I see it at as a good thing, cuz it spurred me to finish my degree. And I did it debt-free, so I’m happy about it. But man, at the time, I wanted to lose my mind. lol

      • nick@midwest.social
        2·
        1 day ago

        Well, I guess specifically in my industry it doesn’t really matter.

        I work in tech and am entirely self taught; I dropped out of college (majoring in English) because of untreated adhd. Got a computer and learned to program and learned Linux.

        Meanwhile I see a lot of fresh out of school college grads show up and don’t know their ass from a hole in the ground when it comes to actually writing software for the real world.

        They learn over time, but college doesn’t teach them anything of practical value for programming… afaict.

        • Universal MonkOPEnglish
          3·
          1 day ago

          Yep, I was wondering if you were in tech. That seems to be a fairly common story in tech. Tho I heard that’s changing for the upcoming generation of hiring.

          I personally think it should just be based on experience. But I’ve talked my son into going to a low-cost school, and to do it without borrowing money, because I think the job market is getting more difficult these days.

          I still don’t agree with going to college if it means a shit-ton of debt though. Community colleges and low-cost pay as you go school is the way to do it.

  • CubitOom@infosec.pubEnglish
    1·
    1 day ago

    It gave me an excuse to stop living with my mentally and financially abusive mother and talk to people that were genuinely interested in things I was into.

    This is something a close network of friends could also helped with, but I didn’t have that at the time.