College worth going into debt?

A big chunk of it comes down to what you want to do...

As others have said you can make some really good money starting/running your own business. You can also go flat broke.

Some careers need a degree, others a certificate. Some don't need either but can be next to impossible to get without.

An education does not guarantee success. Neither does hard work.

Right now I am working 40+ a week while pulling 15 credits. Add a wife and six boys to the mix. Right now I am not sure I would tell you an education is worth the hassle. Ask me again in a couple of years.

I sure wouldn't be doing this if I was paying for it myself. (Thank you state veteran tuition waiver.)

Bottomline, if the debt you incur results in a better life for you down the road do it. If it doesn't, don't.

Highlands.....
Nice websites.... From what I see college was not a waste of time or money for you or your wife.... Maybe you had the talent before hand, but I am sure if you sit back and reflect on your success you might see that maybe college taught you more than what came out of those courses. I am guessing you are "flatlanders"?? where did you and your wife come from and what did you make your living in before you got to Vermont and started your home based businesses? My point is that every aspect in life is a stepping stone.....remove one and who knows what would have be different for you today.

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Justice is the insurance which we have on our lives and property. Obedience is the premium which we pay for it.

People will always need a roof over head and those roofs will always wear out.
I also live in tornado alley which replenishes the demand for construction every year or so

I haven't read all the posts, so please forgive me if this has been mentioned. Talk to the people at the financial aid office of your college about applying for grants. A grant does not have to be repaid. Fill out a FAFSA. I'm thinking you will qualify for a Pell grant which would pay for a good chunk of your tuition. My sons at the community college level were able to get Pell grants that pretty much paid for the whole thing, sometimes even books. At the University level, my oldest son got half tuition on his Pell grant, but was able to get the other half through a merit scholarship. If you had good grades at community college, apply for merit scholarships, too. Do all you can with grants before you take loans. If you can continue to stay with Mom, that will go a long way toward keeping you out of debt.

You might consider a trade school. Before you leap one way or the other, look into what programs are available, and what they will prepare you to do. Be sure that you will have something that will get you into a career you want when you finish. At this stage in your life, you don't want to be taking classes that don't get you somewhere.

mary

There are many different people here with a variety of backgrounds. Obviously, that colors all of our responses.

That said, if well-planned, more education gives you more choices in your life. And in the end, that's freedom and happiness in my book.

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Beth ~ Old Church, VA
3 Nigerian Dwarf goats, 4 cats, 3 Pekin ducks and 7 chickens. One very patient husband~

Ok, just to now put this in perspective...this thread has over 1000 views, and we've had one person speak up to say they are making more than $100k/yr without the benefit of a college degree.

I rest my case...

Not really. I built our roof out of concrete. The initial layer is 1.5" thick. Next layer will be a foot of insulating concrete. Then another hard layer. It is a trussed, short span barrel vault and already strong enough to hold a bull elephant. It should last thousands of years which is forever as far as this civilization is concerned. The only thing that would 'wear it out' is a direct asteroid strike or something like that. I purposefully built outside the high strike zone. The rest of the house is concrete, granite, marble and other stone from our land. I build to last.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/blog/
http://HollyGraphicArt.com/
http://NoNAIS.org

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SugarMtnFarm.com -- Pastured Pigs, Poultry, Sheep, Dogs and Kids

My husband has a job in corporate america which he enjoys for the most part-keeps him challenged and current on technology, and he makes about 100k a year. He has no interest in farming whatsoever. His company is a worldwide solid one which is ethical. He works his 40 hours and gets to come home and relax all weekend and every night.

My thyroid has to come out. Looking at at least 10k.

Boy, is it reassuring we have corporate insurance to cover my surgery.

Some parts of the country are facing very difficult growing conditions, and market prices raise and drop, yet there is that paycheck every week from corporate america, and that insurance that covers nearly everything that could happen to us.

I would say it is only slavery if you hate what you are doing and do not feel you are paid enough. When you get a good job you enjoy, and are paid well, it is security and benefits for good work.

College is not a waste of money if the field you are interested in requires a lot of education. Medical personel, engineers, architects, scientists, all need college degrees. Would you prefer your doctor just sort of learned as he went along? I don't.

I think homesteading is NOT incompatable with corporations. We need those corporations and institutions to design and produce the tools we use, the vehicles we drive, the health care we recieve, the technology we are using right now to speak to each other.

Pretending you can live without them is like someone from NYC claiming they do not need upstate. Just because you do not see where things come from does not mean you do not need them.

I do agree, however, for many people not going into these highly technical fields, college is not the best choice.

That will depend entirely on the quality of the concrete as well as the enviromental conditions freeze and thaw will wear heavy on such construction . like a ---- a tiny crack can lead to disaster . Not knocking a concrete roof but nothing lasts forever . Ive seen a five year old dome that the concrete wasnt properly sealed on that may well be a total loss with another series of hard freezes . Moisture has seeped into the concrete through tiny cracks and with each freeze it flakes off more .
Its a glass reenforced type simular to gunite

You are in the great position of re-inventing your life, at a young age.

The best thing you can do for yourself is to think outside the box- brainstorm- take flights of fancy- and then look at the types of jobs that are needed and on the rise .

The list would include: engineering- alternative energy is a HUGE emerging technology

nursing or medical tech
physical therapy
accountant
financial officer-corporate
organic/niche food production
many many more

You are lucky and smart to be taking this path now- for some of us, it is WAY too late.

Dahliaqueen, I knew a woman who was 50 and starting medical school. Granted her grandmother and great grandmother lived to over 100, but still...

I would advise against going into anything medical. Although there is a high need for nurses right now, the industry itself is a)falling apart at the seams and b) completely neurotic in the workplace environment--a fact which those who have never worked in other industries are unable to see.

Having worked in both engineering and medical capacities, I can tell you that the workplace environment for engineering is far healthier, physically, mentally, financially, and lifestyle-wise/hours, than anything you'll find in medicine.

The only disadvantage in engineering is that you're one step removed in the way you are helping people--you help their (or build) tools rather than the people directly.

Don't get me wrong--patients are great. It is other healthcare providers, legal/insurance bull-pucky, and particularly the management hierarchy that are crazy-making in the medical fields.

Well, yes... if you do something wrong you can screw it up and make it break and not last. That is rather the point in doing it right which is why I do it myself. Properly done concrete lasts for thousands of years. It certainly lasts a heck of a lot longer (orders of magnitude) than asphalt shingles or even top quality metal roofing. Do it right.

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SugarMtnFarm.com -- Pastured Pigs, Poultry, Sheep, Dogs and Kids

In Vermont concrete has a life span of about 10 years. I did quite well up there for a few years replacing sidewalks and stairs on state college campuses. Having worked in different aspects of concrete for a total of about 12 years I have yet to meet a do-it-your-selfer who knew how to do it right.....the pros don't even do it right most of the time.....they, like everybody else, do it the easy way.... Now as a roof; concrete I imagine would have to be thick and if it's in the 8+ inch range then other than some surface scaling it will last a really long time.....short of a strong earthquake which is really unlikely in that part of the country

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Justice is the insurance which we have on our lives and property. Obedience is the premium which we pay for it.

Incorrect. I have concrete I've set that is far older than that. No concrete I've done here in Vermont has deteriated. There is a tremendous amount of concrete that is half a century old, back to when it was first used around here, and it is still in excellent shape.

It is always odd to me when people like you argue against the reality of evidence.

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SugarMtnFarm.com -- Pastured Pigs, Poultry, Sheep, Dogs and Kids

Very sound advice, for sure.

Highlands.
Concrete work durability can vary quite abit. The largest factor in those steps and sidewalks is the use of ice melting agents (salt). You i'm sure don't put them on the roof!!!! If you do. Stop that strange behavior.

In the northeast freeze/thaw has a large impact on the longevity of concrete as well. If you bought your concrete from a plant northern mixes have air added to them to provide spaces in the concrete for water to expand into when it freezes. The downside to this practice is that the addition of O2 into the concrete speeds up its reaction with steel rebar causing a shorter life span of the reenforcement steel. It all balances out really..... if you don't have the air additive freezing scales the concrete and if you do the rebar fails faster..... yes salt is really bad for concrete.... the calcium cloride ice melters less so, but still not great for it. If you are really mad at somebody throw 5lbs of sugar in while the concrete is mixing

Highland.....your from Massachusetts aren't you?

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Justice is the insurance which we have on our lives and property. Obedience is the premium which we pay for it.

Well, I did some checking over the weekend and am more confused than ever.

Here's the deal:

I don't want to sell anything. Take that literally. I do not want to be a sales rep, etc.

I don't care to do anything related to nursing.

Now, I always wanted to have an agriculturally-related job but I didn't do that in college to begin with because I thought I wouldn't make any money. Yes, I do care about money! So, I started poking around at degree requirements to see if I could get at least maybe a minor in an ag field. I started thinking about environmental science or a natural resource degree. I would love to do something like wildlife management or even be an ag teacher. These are things I would be happier in, I think. However, I have very little previous math or science from my associate's degree.

AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH! This is too stressful and confusing!

If you care about money natural resources/ environmental sciences are out....those are both fields that require alot of education to reach a career level that even pays a living wage......look back at tech degrees...there is alot you can do in the healthcare field without being a nurse.....though nurses do have the option of 3 day work weeks....How about Resp. therapy? Two year degree with 60k earning potential!! Upwards of 120K is some areas if you go into the private sector.
Find a field you can make a living at and follow your heart in your off time.... I wish somebody had told me that 10 years ago....

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Justice is the insurance which we have on our lives and property. Obedience is the premium which we pay for it.

Ah there in lies the rub. When you're working (for someone else) theres no such thing as "off time".. only sleep time and work time.. Thats been my experience anyway.

Whatever happened to do what you love, the money will follow? Oh thats right, that was before global economics and corporate greed ran the county.. What was I thinking?

for what its worth my next degree will be in sustainable agriculture. I have one in IT and it's pretty worthless in this area.

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"Let the beauty we love, be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground." Rumi