This hasn’t been a problem in my home.
Rather than go for a “garbage degree”, our son went for an ME (Mechanical Engineering) degree. Since some of his credits from his first year college didn’t transfer over to Texas Tech, he finished his degree in 4.5 years.
Degree in hand, he hired on with a good firm and hasn’t looked back, from his own place and not smothering in debt.
Needless to say I am proud of him.
Congratulations to both you and your son. You both deserve to be proud.
Stories like this always make me wonder about parents and the kids education. I contend conservatives are far less likely to suffer compared to these liberal mindset yahoos who still think government is their savior.
I have three nephews. We had/have a recession and not one even realizes how drastic it has been. All three are employed and doing just fine, thank you very much.
“Needless to say I am proud of him.”
Not to be too corny, but I’m proud of you, too, for guiding him properly and getting him to do it right. Can’t say that about many parents I know.
Engineering is a great trade, and necessary, but I know quite a few MEs (my brother included) who left for the business side of things in order to expand their potential income base. I suggest that you be proud of your son for what he has accomplished, but there are quite a few MEs unable to find work upon graduating, along with those who followed my path of a "garbage" degree. It's what you do once you enter the workforce that defines you, not what you did in college.
You raised him right.
Pat yourself on the back and I hope I will be joining you in a year. My daughter has one year left in her PharmD program. Four years ago she was majoring in biology, looked around and realized the medical field offered money and job security and chose pharmacy with an eye on doing hospital critical care pharmacy. It’s been a long six years counting her undergraduate time, but the end is in sight and there are jobs and they pay very well.
On the other hand, a young man my daughter went to school with graduated two years ago with a degree in Czech languages and studies and his wife has a degree in theater arts. She is now a secretary at the local university and he is an attendance clerk at our high school. What were they thinking?
Nor in our house. My turn to brag!
My daughter was a military brat, was public schooled, home schooled, private schooled and Catholic schooled. But whever she went, she was serious as a heart attack about school. Always got the straight A’s. She’s not a drama queen, is quite sober in her outlook, but it paid off.
During high school she had to wake up at 5 a.m. and commute to a Catholic school far from our home. Why we did that to her, I don’t know ..but instead of complaining, she continued to get straight A’s and became the yearbook editor.
So, she gets into a great university (better than her dad or I ever did) and became the campus newspaper editor also. She also majored in a “hard” degree also and got into the
business school — economics — at our extreme urging.
She now works in NYC for a TOP NOTCH financial firm. I can’t mention its name, because it would surely cause some hissing and spitting fits. I am very proud of her, as I actually lived in a mobile home as a child, and came from a crazy broken practially white trash family.
But she did so well. I do believe there are still opportunities for the top notch kids with good personalities, who keep their noses clean. However, for the “average” kids, there are less opportunities ..and that is what has changed — but these dummies can’t make the connection.
Had I tried to do it now, I doubt I would have gone to college. Makes me want to cry.
She leans right politically, but day by day, is seeing the light as she pays extreme taxes.
Our son, however, is one of those average kids. I’m just praying constantly for him .. . and also hoping he just goes into the military.
Going to the Catholic school she had a lot of very neurotic friends from wealthy families — many of whom still have not even graduated. Lots of them staying on those 5-6 year plans. Lots of them already heavily medicated.
This is a common theme on FR threads about college degrees. I just wonder whether you and others are cognizant of the reality that not every college student is capable of handling the mathematics (particularly that) required to get those engineering degrees.
our middle son has to do the extra half semester as well. He is a Computer Science major; math minor. He just missed out on am internship (3 interviews) that would have kept him on campus this summer. Instead he will be home; unloading trucks for Target at night; building maintaining webpages by day. One of the interviewers asked why his work history was continually (even @holiday breaks) with the same store since HS. The guy said, to him, too many kids look passed ‘labor’ jobs and spend a couple months here; a couple there.
Engineers rule! (I’m married to one)
My husband didn’t have a bit of engineering experience out of the Navy, but took a job that got him on that track. He went to school full-time while working and raising a family, maintaining at least a 3.8 GPA. Despite a bump or two, he has never been unemployed. As a matter of fact, he quit a job at the end of October and took another manufacturing engineer position in Ohio. He’ll be here another week from now so we can move the kids and myself to join him.
Sounds like your son was raised right!