hey thanks for the list overman. Roark is my favorite character of Rand's as well.

A degree is essential for some depending upon the field one wishes to make ones living, because some fields are far too knowledge intensive to learn on the job. These are actually quite few in the real world proportionate to all employment opportunities. The notion that we all need degrees is absurd. The government elitists do not see it this way and have a vested interest in expanding the dependency on financing. There will always be people and jobs that don’t require it. What good is a degree to the guy who mows your lawn or fixes your plumbing?
Ultimately the end goal of a degree is to give one an education that is attractive to employers in your field of interest. As an employer who has hired many people over the years, I have been impressed by the inconsistency of the real world abilities of those in possession. Until the Universities teach common sense, real world critical thinking and problem solving I expect to see more applicants who can regurgitate copious amounts of data, have an inflated sense of their worth, but don’t have the common sense, or the work ethic of a common soldier. Of course there are exceptions, but the indoctrination which is prevalent in so many of our learning institutions is making this a rare occurrence. I have found I can teach anyone with average intelligence, general knowledge, common sense and a proper work ethic the particulars. Ex-military, honorably discharged always get my attention.

this post is getting confusing! I meant that for five dollar, since he teaches at the college level. but your response is interesting as well :)

no I saw it. I was trying to be Sheldon.

I think it depends on what direction you intend to go in. I probably could do what I'm doing, ie. fine art without it, but the interior design degree, no. I had to take structures classes, trig for lighting calculations, etc.

It was supposed to post under uncommon's remark. It got bumped!

I hear ya until you get to the last point. potential only goes so far. actually, US students tend to be more creative. well, let me make a correction slightly. In studies they find Japan the most creative, but the Japanese do not see themselves as creative at all, nor do they feel pressure to be creative. The US is second, but they think of themselves as first. and, 80% feel urgency to be more creative. feel education and jobs don't allow for that creativity. this is where you start pooping out entrepreneurs. I get that a couple of the big start ups have foreign creators. But that is not the norm. Our culture until recently encouraged innovation and our kids picked up on that (not necessarily from formal education). here is a ranking of the most innovative countries. Some rankings will shock you. But look at US. still number 1 but when you look at the breakdown of why, you will see we have fallen behind in several places, including now ranking 6 (in the world) for patents.
http://www.bloomberg.com/slideshow/2013-...
Thank you AIA. awful legislation that took our best system in the world to number 6. (sorry for the rant)

so I guess that means you are in the "for college" camp :)

I don't get it

The cost of a college education currently is astronomical! It has gone up disproportionately to salaries, and is a daunting prospect to those of s who have kids who will be making the foray into higher education in the not too distant future.

My husband and I both are emphasizing that if you want to have a direct bearing on your livelihood, be an owner. That has its own onerous problems, as many here can attest to, but can also bring great satisfaction. That may be a pipe dream at this point....

It has caused angst. :-)

Here's one for you both!

http://www.snorgtees.com/t-shirts/dear-m...

I'm in a unique position with regard to this topic having placed kids at both Ivy League and state schools, and teaching at both private liberal arts colleges and community/technical colleges. No offense to senior colleges, but I see many people with Bachelor's, even Master's, degrees coming back to 2-year schools to learn a skill that will result in a good-paying job. One of my current students had a network TV sports gig and gave it up and he wants steady income without having to travel 250-300 days a year. The other point I would make is that some colleges have crossed the $60,000 per year threshold in comprehensive fees. Many others, and I don't just mean the Ivies, are well into the $50,000 range. I don't care how great their endowments are; this is not sustainable. This "arms race" in fees will start to bankrupt the less prestigious colleges, much like keeping up with "star wars" helped bankrupt the USSR. Getting back to the original post, Yahoo should look for creative people wherever they come from. A lot of smart people graduate from the Stanfords of this country, but it doesn't mean they are any more creative than someone "off the boat." Of course, if they aren't looking for creative people, then Google will continue to eat their lunch.

I think it's afterward that we take the orders... like "one Big Mac and a large fries please" ;-)

That's true, and given you're an artist, I'm guessing you might have experienced that conundrum at some point :-)

And thanks, it's nice to stop past when I get time. Someone mentioned me? How sweet! :P

Those two issues are often in direct opposition to each other. Were your ears burning? Nice to see you, if only briefly. :-)

>>> "College is good if you want to learn to take orders."

Not sure what makes you say that. In my nine years at university, I never once received an order.

I would say that for a technical field college is needed to gain specific skills. But much more than that becomes redundant, and an overpriced scam. Rand's characters either dropped out of college or didn't go at all, as in Howard Roark, which is my favorite character in all her novels.

This link is one of the most popular on my site. It's a list of the most successful people who didn't go to college and it is very long. Interesting information.

http://overmanwarrior.wordpress.com/2010...

College is good if you want to learn to take orders. But it won't do much for an individual trying to learn how to step out of the herd and do something new.

Thanks :-) I've been really busy with the boring administrative aspects of finalising my PhD, and balancing my long-term goal of having a fulfilling career with my short-term goal of paying the rent and eating ;-)

:) That's funny. Remember, what happens in Vegas, goes on youtube. :D

see? it's shit like this which gets all american no-brainers to love Big Bang. the Bain of my existence. :)

did you count cards and take field trips to vegas?

hey, lost, where ya been? missed you

lol pirate. in some of what you say. I would tell people to get all 101s from jr colleges. usually the teacher works in the real world and has had jobs in the private sector (i know, redundant, but bases have to be covered). also, it is less cost. same material, third of the cost. DO IT! unless you have a full ride or daddy warbucks.
her qualifications will not be her degree in psych from even the biggest crony schools. her qualifications will be everything else she's done or accomplished outside that. yes. let that sink in. we all know this is true.

My stats lecturer suggested that a good pick-up line would be to tell a buxom young lady that she had a nice bimodal distribution ;-)