Is a college degree still worth it?

I’m not sure about the Business Administration part, but a college degree is still worth it. I got my 4-yr B.S. in Engineering in 1986 and have not gone back to college after that. Yet, even now when I go for a job interview, I am asked questions about what I did and what I know and that is the experience factor. It seems no one even cared that I do not have a Masters or any certification in my field of software. The basic Bachelor’s is still a requirement though.

College degree is still worth it. Maybe paying the extra money to go to an out of state school may not be worth it. The most jobs of the future will require a college degree. But the big universities are not that much better than the local school these days for your undergrad degree.

@PG
It seems that for certain specific fields of study, it is not an option not to have one. I know in the business world the MBA seems to be carrying the weight that a BSBA carried a decade ago…

Good quesiton for discussion. I pursued a BS in Buisness and eventual CPA license as a road to riches. Not rich but do make a decent living. Pursing a degree based soley on monetary reasons will leave you empty regardless how much you make. Find someone working with a purpose and you will find a successful person regardless of how much they make or can make

My degree, and probably more important, my college experience, at a State school, was most definitely worth. I love my student loan debt and consider college the greatest learning experience of my life. I would not do it any different…except maybe take more time and enjoy it even more.

I got an accounting degree and enough grad level hours to sit for the CPA. Both have served me well and I would recommend Accounting to anyone who’s serious about getting a job right out of college and never worrying about layoffs, economy, etc.

As for rising costs…I’m sure some of it is warranted. I just hate when they use private or elite East Coast schools as examples. I don’t feel sorry for people who complain about college costs and the job market that go to Holy Cross for a history degree. C’mon, wise up kids.

I think it really depends on your field. In the design world (what I’m familiar with), your portfolio counts much much more than your degree does. If you’re good, you’re good school doesn’t matter, but this is a much more subjective/grey area sort of field.

I’m not sure my degree was necessarily worth it. What I got out of school I think could have been condensed into two years of study and I would have come out about the same. It’s probably different for everyone though. Knowing what I know now I’d do it differently.

This is turning into an interesting discussion - thanks to everyone for commenting… PT, and the others with (walk out of college and get a job degrees) it really seems to be a different thing when you have a broad or more generic degree. The upside is that it may be relevant to more jobs, putting you in the running for more, but the downside obviously is that the degree doesn’t make you a shoe-in for any job.

@Matt
I have had a similar experience - while I did work and learn in college and graduated with 3.7 GPA, I feel like the majority of my “valuable” knowledge has come from my learning after graduating. The books, seminars, magazines I read etc…

My degree has absolutely been worth it. All I could find for work before I went to college were telemarketing and manual labor. I have much better quality jobs and better paychecks. I would be making more if I had experience, but I would be doing a lot worse without that degree.

I agree that most of what you learn in college does not matter in the real world. But college does teach you life skills and tools for the trade that apply to your first job. I am an engineer and i use the problem solving strategies i learned doing projects than the the textbook.

@bob - you are never a shoe-in for any job, its up to you to showcase what you can do for any job in the country. If there is a will, there is a way.

When i graduated from high school i would not be ready for a real job, college helps you prepare for the real world in many ways i would recommend everyone go for at least two years.

The subject that I majored in for my B.A. has not helped me in the least. My associate’s degree has been more useful. But because I have a degree at all has allowed me to start at a higher pay level at every job I have taken. Not a whole lot higher, but any bit helps, right?
I think the EXPERIENCE you gain at college–interpersonal skills, listening skills, creativity, etc.–is worth much more than the actual degree. I am a different (and much better) person because of attending and finishing college. Now, this may be because I attended a small Christian college and had different kinds of experiences than some….but regardless, I would not trade my (5) years of college for anything.

I think it depends on the field - in some areas, a degree is required, while in others, it’s not as much of a requirement.
In engineering, there are many jobs that you cannot get without an engineering degree. That said, the actual experience that you have is more important than the degree when applying for jobs - but you still need the degree.

From my experience, I agree with those comments that college is more about the skills developed than the info learned. Clearly that isn’t the case for many degrees - they actually take most of what they learn and begin using it in their first job, but it definitely is for some. I also think that my most valuable lessons from college were more like learning how to learn, learning how to stand on my own two feet, learning how to get things done under pressure, etc…

Ok, I am obviously a little biased here, but I am certain that a college degree is worth it. This is true financially but more than just financially.

Now you need to be wise about your college degree - where to go etc. - and be wise in how you get money to go to college. Personally, I recommend going to school in Canada!

I went to a private Christian college. While I enjoyed the Christian atmosphere, economically speaking it has not provided a single advantage over a state school.

I work in the technical field. My degrees are in social science areas. My masters in a totally non related field doesn’t hurt. It usually gains me a little more respect as most hiring managers don’t have a master’s degree. They want to see a degree and may state that as a requirement - but they hire non-grads all day long. They know the most important thing that matters is your ability to get the job done and secondly to get along with others on the team.

My degree was worth it, but only because I really had a good time at university.

I think I would have been better off financially if I started working and saving straight away.

University cost me 4 years of:
- living expenses, accommodation, food, fuel, etc.
- university and book fees
- potential income, which could have gone to savings

Four years can make a BIG difference.

@bob wrote: “I also think that my most valuable lessons from college were more like learning how to learn, learning how to stand on my own two feet, learning how to get things done under pressure, etc…”

Why isn’t this sort of thing being taught in our High Schools? I think it ought to be.