Milton Bradley introduced The Game of Life more than 30 years ago. At the beginning of each game you must decide: “Will I take the college route or the career route?” Your attitude to this question will vary depending on how real life was played out in your home. In my house, I was expected to go the college route, and I bought into the belief that in the end I would be well ahead on a career path offering more opportunities and higher pay. In the early 80’s that was a reality.
Does This Sound Like Someone You Know Today?
Rick is a nice guy who’s great at sports and computers, but isn’t much for books. His high school marks were good enough to get him into a “second-tier” university. He finds lectures boring, and his term papers are full of grammatical errors. He struggles to formulate an argument that generates any original thought, but continues to muddle through and collect a degree that supposedly prepares him for the new information economy, whatever that is. Rick’s story ends with him asking “Now what?” Due to the staggering debt he has accrued in four years at university, he crashes at his parents’ house until he figures out what he wants to do next.
What advice do you have for Kidployees in this situation?
Universities are full of people like Rick who are there because they’ve been brainwashed into believing that a degree is essential for success. In the 1960’s roughly 10% of high school graduates went on to a degree. Today, it’s 40%. In Canada, only 16% of jobs require a university degree, yet we are pumping out 4 times that. We have created a scenario with two conflicting stories:
On one side are employers who canot find employees, and who are worried that there is no one to replace retiring baby boomers. On the other side are university grads (with an average debt of $42,000+ at graduation) who cannot find work they’re interested in.
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