To the People
Well, some of us just take the long route and drag the shit out for 12 years.... Then again, I'm hitting my final "year" and learning very little that I hadn't learned through ball busting work.
The only problem is that regardless of whether you want to admit it, you'll cut yourself out of a vast percentage of potential jobs for having a lack of degree. Or in my case, stalled where I'm at because my employer requires a degree to gain any higher movement in terms of pay grades and positions. I was pretty much told that no matter how good I was or what experience I have, I'm at a dead end without the sheepskin (not a rubber, the diploma).
yes, i have seen co-workers stifled on the job for lack of a degree. it is a tough call...they have all the years of experience and know the job, department, etc inside and out, but then some young whippersnapper with a degree gets a promotion or job and is clueless as to the ways of the working world. it seems frustrating for them.
what to do with the people who in their younger days couldn't appreciate an education or didn't have social support in their families to pursue these opportunities, but then later in life see it is valuable. always harder to get back on track later in life and certainly if they choose to have families, etc. but why should they be penalized for the remainder of their careers? no simply answer in my opinion. i work with plenty of people with big degrees and fancy titles and have no fucking idea what they are doing! none. and worse, they don't even realize their own ignorance. and make the other "uneducated staff" clean up their mistakes. i think the picture is more complex than simply saying higher ed. is the answer to it all. i am for higher ed and have benefitted from the time i spent on my degrees, to be sure. but i can certainly see how it is not so cut and dry as to suggest that those with degrees are more qualified for all opportunities merely for having the paper that they did their time jumping through the proper educational hoops.
a diploma has become the great qualifier. in general i understand the logic of overlooking someone who doesn't have a degree for someone who does. but why, when hiring, they don't go on a more case-by-case basis is curious.
I blame the immigrants.
Kidding aside, a diploma is a great way for HR departments to continue being lazy. They don't have to make hard comparisons of give good interviews--just pick the degrees and present them as the available job market.
yeah, a guy I work with, degreed and experienced in management applied for a few positions but never could get past the first round. Finally, fed up, he asked why: "Because you didn't use the word supervisory or management in your resume"
I think a better job would be for HR reps to get punched in the mouth every time someone is mad at the company 
"I'm sorry to hear that Mr. Smith, would punching a company representative make you feel better?... What? Sure, you can stop by any time between 9 and 4. Just ask for 'HR' when you come in."
I worked briefly in a hospital and experienced the tyranny of degrees. But what this story points to is not those subtle yet annoying distinctions. Rather, about 30% of people never even finish high school and only 22% of Americans complete a Bachelor's degree. So when jobs go overseas it often is not because those workers are cheaper, but because companies can't find qualified workers in this country.
Tons of professions lack skilled applicants below the Bachelor's level, people who just need some training or certification to get qualified. The company that I hire to do electrical repairs/work in my house has had to import Vietnamese workers as there are no local ones who can or will do the work. Btw, those electricians make about $70K per year and the experienced ones make about $100K, according to the workers. It is perplexing, when there are so many workers complaining about losing jobs to outsourcing that they won't get a 12 month education that would ensure them a solid middle class lifestyle and a job that cannot ever be outsourced.
Commenting by HaloScan
