parents: college savings OR other enrichment activities?

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  • dennik15
    dennik15 Posts: 97 Member
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    I've only read some of the responses, but one that strikes me the most is from a 22 year old who is wishing that her parents had paid for college insted of giving her experiences that she's since forgotten. I was you 19 years ago and I can honestly say that I am so glad now that I have the memories (even if they are vague) of everything I did with my family as a child. Those memories will last so much longer than your student loan debt and are worth so much more. That's what we're giving to our kids and I fully expect that they won't always appreciate it at the time, but at some point in their future they'll look back and remember and smile at the memory. Remember, the future is not guaranteed.

    That being said, we will help our kids with restrictions. We will counsel them that spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a fancy private school will earn you the same degree as the state school down the road. We will put a limit on the amount given to them and we will stick to it. The balance will be their responsibility. They must graduate from whatever program they choose to earn any of our help, if they don't the full amount due will be their responsibility. I truly believe that you must have skin in the game to appreciate the value of a good education.
  • errorika
    errorika Posts: 89 Member
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    I paid for my own college and it REALLY made me think twice about skipping class. I definitely appreciated it much more. My parents helped, but I forked over most of it.

    Absolutely this. I'm 23 and working on paying for college right now after graduating with a crippling amount of debt, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Maybe I just like to be independent, but I have no intentions of paying for my kids' college. They will have to be responsible and learn to manage their time and money wisely. I wouldn't feel like I earned anything if my parents just paid for it.

    It would be super great if I could spend all my money on things I wanted right now, but where's the lesson in that?
  • awtume9
    awtume9 Posts: 423 Member
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    I didn't get a dime for college, nor did I experience "enrichment" activities. Never went to summer camp, never travelled to cool places (with the exception of visiting family). I have a huge amount of student loan debt that I'm terrified of, but I turned out okay, I think.
  • teresamwhite
    teresamwhite Posts: 947 Member
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    "but here in the states, people who can't afford to finish school have two options: construction work, or food service - and even then, I think many construction jobs require an AA."

    I'm a food service professional...a classically trained chef with an AA in Culinary Arts and a BA in Hospitality Management. I realize that most people feel as though food service is an industry dominated by high school dropouts and those that can't cut it in the real world, but I assure you, by and large, that isn't the case.

    There are many, many more jobs that are available to people who don't go to college. Warehouse, factory, military, janitorial, etc.

    On another note...for those interested in the military...i would suggest going to college first and then joining. Rack up the loans, and join under the Loan Repayment Program...after your first year of service, your loans will be paid for. My brother graduated from Notre Dame with $88K in loans and they were paid after his first year in the Navy. I did it the other way around and only got $15K for my GI Bill. The College Fund is only $45K. If I had known then what i know now, I would have gone to college first.
  • dennik15
    dennik15 Posts: 97 Member
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    "but here in the states, people who can't afford to finish school have two options: construction work, or food service - and even then, I think many construction jobs require an AA."

    I'm a food service professional...a classically trained chef with an AA in Culinary Arts and a BA in Hospitality Management. I realize that most people feel as though food service is an industry dominated by high school dropouts and those that can't cut it in the real world, but I assure you, by and large, that isn't the case.

    There are many, many more jobs that are available to people who don't go to college. Warehouse, factory, military, janitorial, etc.

    Unfortunately it seems as though kids think they have to have a fancy degree and a six figure income to be a productive member of society. What's happened to having pride in your work (whatever you do), working hard, and living within your means? Being happy isn't a direct result of having a high powered white collar job and tons of money (or debt). I tell my kids often that I'd dig ditches if I had to and that there's no shame in any job as long as you do it well.
  • Momf3boys
    Momf3boys Posts: 1,637 Member
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    I understand where you're coming from and I'm a firm believer that experience is much more valuable than book knowledge...unfortunately experience doesn't help much in this day on a job application. I have a family member who was laid off from their employer due to budget cuts...she had 30 years of experience in her field...it took her 2 1/2 years to get a decent job....the majority of jobs that are even posted these days REQUIRE a college degree...it's not an option, it's necessary and for those jobs that don't require a degree you are still competing against those individuals that do have them and they will get the job over you...it's a fact. At my agency of 33,000 employees, OVER 1/3 of the positions REQUIRE a college degree....I don't make the rules, I just know what it's like out there and for that reason I have college funds for my children...oh times, they are a changin...

    Most people I know with 30 years experience in something are behind the times, a little jaded in the industry they are in, and have lost their edge and skill set to compete in the marketplace. It doesn't have a lot to do with them individually, it's just the situation. It's really, really difficult when they ask what you've done in the last few years, and you point to a few not-so-stellar accomplishments. So, I think that is not a great comparison to someone in their 20's who is motivated and can demonstrate success in the way I described above. Bill Gates and Steve Jobs were both college drop-outs. Ya know? What if they didn't go to college because they were working on a quantum computer that could send sub-particlaes of matter through the time/space continuum?

    I mean, people are doing cool stuff out there. If companies are that blind, then don't work for them. JPL or some other forward thinking company will pick them up, no problem. They want talent. The reason the process is the way it is is because most people are average. So, they have devised ways to keep the average people in a pile. What I am saying is you really have to stand out and do something cool, or at least have a cool story and be able to relate that back to how that helps the company you are applying to.

    I guess we disagree on this point. i don't think the market is as stringent as you think it is. I think it's fairly flexible for talented smart people.

    Having said all that, I hope my kids go to college. But, if they don't, I will support their decision. In many ways, I wish I had not and that I would have rather went to trade school.

    If you apply for a job that REQUIRES a degree it doesn't matter how much "cool stuff" you did growing up....if you don't have that degree you are not qualified for the position, therefore no job for you.

    Not quite sure how traveling to China for 3 weeks as a child would make you more qualified for a job than someone with 30 years of work experience but hey....if that's how the job market is where you reside then that's great but where I live your trips as a child aren't going to help you as an adult.
  • Timshel_
    Timshel_ Posts: 22,841 Member
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    It is ironic that people use Jobs and Gates as examples against college education. Both of them, as well as others in the same boat, are few and far between. They also knew the value of college education and most strictly hired college educated workers from the highest rated institutions.

    For most individuals, college *is* a huge compliment to a good skill set, making them more marketable in industry. Most corporations will send top execs to finish Masters degrees before promoting them to higher positions. Engineers, including most of those who work on Internet related services (network, chip makers, cell phones, and pretty much most technology advances), are college degree professionals. Doctors....lawyers...you name it.

    Now, many trades and such can go through career and technical education in high school or a two year college and do just fine. They can own businesses themselves and do even better. So a degree is NOT the be-all/end-all as far as "success" is concerned.
  • Timshel_
    Timshel_ Posts: 22,841 Member
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    Anyhoopers....

    I have college funds set aside for my boys. I also try hard to do enrichment activities. They can be camps through church, outdoor activities, trips we take (we hit a museum in every city we visit), or even just reading. All that is at the core of experience and character building. If we read I make sure they think about the social aspect as well how the story or material effects them. Etc.

    Enrichment doesn't have to be expensive.
  • Kasmira0004
    Kasmira0004 Posts: 79 Member
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    I didn't get a dime for college, nor did I experience "enrichment" activities. Never went to summer camp, never travelled to cool places (with the exception of visiting family). I have a huge amount of student loan debt that I'm terrified of, but I turned out okay, I think.

    This.

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