Is there an alternative to college?

[mwmorph]

I'm trying to figure out if there are any decent alternatives to a college education in Business or Engineering. College just isn't for me and I want to know what my options are besides the 2 I've been looking at, joining the Army and picking up a trade(in my example, Automotive Technician).

Also for those without a college education or dropped out, do you find people, especially family look down on you?

 

[OhSnap688]

You can try online courses that allow you to get your degree online and you won't have to step foot in a classroom. I'm not a dropout, I go to college. But my parents would be disappointed in me, but not ashamed of me. But it really all depends on your family and the way people are.

 

[Crono]

The armed forces offer a lot of different specializations (including Automotive Technician), will train you in that field, and offer money for college afterwards. I have a friend who isn't too sure what he wants to do, but didn't really have the grades or money to go to a decent college, so he joined the Air Force. He's going to basic training in about 3 weeks.

 

[Injury]

It all depends on what you want to do for the rest of your life. If you want to go into business or engineering, then there really isn't an alternative to college for the respective subjects.

You might want to look into community college as many of their classes are more "Hands-On" and not much different from high school courses.

 

[BigJelly]

Originally posted by: mwmorph
I'm trying to figure out if there are any decent alternatives to a college education in Business or Engineering. College just isn't for me and I want to know what my options are besides the 2 I've been looking at, joining the Army and picking up a trade(in my example, Automotive Technician).

Also for those without a college education or dropped out, do you find people, especially family look down on you?

I'm a college grad and have a masters, but I feel i can answer this question:

Sure family, especially parents, like to brag about thier son's/daughter's degrees; however, they will love and respect you either way. If not, they are not your friends or do not love you. As far as other people, who the fuck cares about them and what they feel about you.

Yes that's corny but in my eyes it's true.

You have to do what you want to do--you will be working for 30-40 years make sure you like your job/field. I could have gone into other fields with higher salaries but I'd kill myself if I was in a cubicle/desk for 40 years.

 

[huberm]

i dropped out of college after a year and pursued some goals in the military. I have definitely had certain family members look down on me ever since.

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: mwmorph
I'm trying to figure out if there are any decent alternatives to a college education in Business or Engineering. College just isn't for me and I want to know what my options are besides the 2 I've been looking at, joining the Army and picking up a trade(in my example, Automotive Technician).

Also for those without a college education or dropped out, do you find people, especially family look down on you?

Geesh.... I have an EE degree and my whole family is looking down on me because i cannot find a job. Everytime we have a family get together, I feel like a bum because I am jobless. My advice is to do what you have to do to get a job. If that means going to a trade school, then do it. You just have to do something that gets your foot in the door.

 

[MixMasterTang]

I think everyone I know judges people more about their success rather than if they have a degree or not.

 

[BigJelly]

Originally posted by: MixMasterTang
I think everyone I know judges people more about their success rather than if they have a degree or not.

QFT

 

[misle]

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: mwmorph
I'm trying to figure out if there are any decent alternatives to a college education in Business or Engineering. College just isn't for me and I want to know what my options are besides the 2 I've been looking at, joining the Army and picking up a trade(in my example, Automotive Technician).

Also for those without a college education or dropped out, do you find people, especially family look down on you?

Geesh.... I have an EE degree and my whole family is looking down on me because i cannot find a job. Everytime we have a family get together, I feel like a bum because I am jobless. My advice is to do what you have to do to get a job. If that means going to a trade school, then do it. You just have to do something that gets your foot in the door.

If you want to live in Kansas City and work for a power company, my company is about to start looking for 19 electrical engineers to design power distribution systems.

How long have you been looking?

 

[Parasitic]

If you are Asian then the only alternative to college is suicide.
As a matter of fact, the only alternative to Ivy League and top 25 schools is suicide.

 

[RedCOMET]

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: mwmorph
I'm trying to figure out if there are any decent alternatives to a college education in Business or Engineering. College just isn't for me and I want to know what my options are besides the 2 I've been looking at, joining the Army and picking up a trade(in my example, Automotive Technician).

Also for those without a college education or dropped out, do you find people, especially family look down on you?

Geesh.... I have an EE degree and my whole family is looking down on me because i cannot find a job. Everytime we have a family get together, I feel like a bum because I am jobless. My advice is to do what you have to do to get a job. If that means going to a trade school, then do it. You just have to do something that gets your foot in the door.

How can you not find a job with an EE degree? I got a job w/ a computer engineering degree. Granted its not computer engineering, but i'm happy with it, and it is a job. there are some companies/industries, looking for people wiht technical backgrounds just so they can train them in what ever they need em for.

 

[RichardE]

Originally posted by: misle

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: mwmorph
I'm trying to figure out if there are any decent alternatives to a college education in Business or Engineering. College just isn't for me and I want to know what my options are besides the 2 I've been looking at, joining the Army and picking up a trade(in my example, Automotive Technician).

Also for those without a college education or dropped out, do you find people, especially family look down on you?

Geesh.... I have an EE degree and my whole family is looking down on me because i cannot find a job. Everytime we have a family get together, I feel like a bum because I am jobless. My advice is to do what you have to do to get a job. If that means going to a trade school, then do it. You just have to do something that gets your foot in the door.

If you want to live in Kansas City and work for a power company, my company is about to start looking for 19 electrical engineers to design power distribution systems.

How long have you been looking?

This is why ATOT rocks

 

[effee]

How can you possibly, not have a job if you have a degree?

 

[Reckoner]

Originally posted by: effee
How can you possibly, not have a job if you have a degree?

Degrees are a dime a dozen.

 

[halik]

Originally posted by: PaulNEPats

Originally posted by: effee
How can you possibly, not have a job if you have a degree?

Degrees are a dime a dozen.

i guess from a no-name school and/or abysmal gpa?

 

[TruePaige]

Originally posted by: PaulNEPats

Originally posted by: effee
How can you possibly, not have a job if you have a degree?

Degrees are a dime a dozen.

I have a few friends who have degrees, 1 in horticulture, 2 with degrees in political science, who don't have very high level jobs. It's just not that easy sometimes =p

 

[BarneyFife]

Originally posted by: PaulNEPats

Originally posted by: effee
How can you possibly, not have a job if you have a degree?

Degrees are a dime a dozen.

Some are.

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: Parasitic
If you are Asian then the only alternative to college is suicide.
As a matter of fact, the only alternative to Ivy League and top 25 schools is suicide.

I was waiting for this comment, haha. Silly Asian families!

personally, what should matter is how much you are bringing home at the end of the day

 

[JS80]

Originally posted by: PaulNEPats

Originally posted by: effee
How can you possibly, not have a job if you have a degree?

Degrees are a dime a dozen.

And how about non-degreed individuals?

Fact is it all depends on what you want to do, but for business and engineering, a degree is the minimum pre-requisite to getting you foot in any door.

 

[dpert1]

Originally posted by: Parasitic
If you are Asian then the only alternative to college is suicide.
As a matter of fact, the only alternative to Ivy League and top 25 schools is suicide.

thats a QFT

 

[Fenixgoon]

Originally posted by: TruePaige

Originally posted by: PaulNEPats

Originally posted by: effee
How can you possibly, not have a job if you have a degree?

Degrees are a dime a dozen.

I have a few friends who have degrees, 1 in horticulture, 2 with degrees in political science, who don't have very high level jobs. It's just not that easy sometimes =p

problem found

 

[chusteczka]

Originally posted by: mwmorph
I'm trying to figure out if there are any decent alternatives to a college education in Business or Engineering. College just isn't for me and I want to know what my options are besides the 2 I've been looking at, joining the Army and picking up a trade(in my example, Automotive Technician).

Also for those without a college education or dropped out, do you find people, especially family look down on you?

Community College
Trade school (for mechanics?)

Military - Join the military on a basic four year enlistment. During this time you will get a break from school, be able to work, and gain experience in life and an occupational trade. By the end of your enlistment you can re-enlist or obtain an honorable discharge and return to school. Except now, you will have motivation to succeed in obtaining a degree, probably in mechanical engineering, and you will have financial aid.

Many states offer 4 years of free college education to returning veterans with at least three years honorable service. Illinois and Texas are the two states I am aware of that provide this benefit. However, you must enlist in that state and then return to that state within 6 months after discharge. Check the educational benefits that your state offers. If your state does not offer free four years tuition reimbursement, then find a relative or friend in Illinois or Texas and use their address while processing into the military, in that state.

I enlisted for six years and after the first year, wanted only to get out of the Navy and return to school. Every day I woke up hating life but telling myself just get through that day and I will be one more day closer to my discharge and school. This provided extreme motivation for school that pushed me from the local community college through a highly ranked engineering college.

For someone wanting to learn mechanics, the Navy has ship mechanics (I was one as a Machinist Mate) and diesel mechanics. You can learn how to operate the ship's propulsion machinery by working on the following; steam boilers, steam turbines, reduction gears, water purification, hydraulics, air compressors, refrigeration and air conditioning, diesel engines, and air generation and purification systems. Learning how the mechanical systems on a ship interact with each other is excellent preparation for an engineering degree.

The Navy offers the Nuclear Power Program if you are interested. This program has a high attrition rate since most people fail out of it and some point in the training. I failed out of it exactly half-way through the program but continued to build a solid foundation for a career as a ship's mechanic (Machinist Mate). However, I wanted to get out and go to school.

 

[SoundTheSurrender]

Originally posted by: effee
How can you possibly, not have a job if you have a degree?

Easy, get a degree in psychology and you'll be jobless, or work at Famous Footwear.

People need to get demanding degrees to do something with their degree.

 

[JEDI]

Originally posted by: mwmorph
I'm trying to figure out if there are any decent alternatives to a college education in Business or Engineering. College just isn't for me and I want to know what my options are besides the 2 I've been looking at, joining the Army and picking up a trade(in my example, Automotive Technician).

Also for those without a college education or dropped out, do you find people, especially family look down on you?

who cares what others think. walk your own path.

military and trade (mcse/ccnp) are the 2 i came up with too.

auto tech-> specialize in emmissions. pays well ($60k), and you get to sit down most of the time looking at the screen.