Fewer high schoolers want college, enrollment continues to slide

[bjcheung77]

A small survey canvassed 25,000 respondents from 223 schools in 21 states...

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/fewer-...r-AA1bB3as

College enrollment remains well below pre-pandemic levels, although associate’s 
degrees and shorter-term credential programs are gaining steam.

High schoolers are more interested in career training and post-college employment.
Still, earning a bachelor's degree is almost always worthwhile, research shows.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/careersa...r-AA1bDcU2

---

Edit to Add: We should have more success coaches at each and every institution guiding students.

Success coaches help students navigate college - Video

https://news.yahoo.com/success-coaches-h...08014.html

Success coaches 'dig a little deeper' to help Dallas College students

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/suc...r-AA1bzLhX

[dfrecore]

When you can go out and find a job easily, there's not as much need to go to school. Why spend years and thousands to do something you can do without any of that?

[LevelUP]

The problem arises when engaging in debates about college, as you inevitably encounter a logical fallacy known as a false dilemma. The situation is presented as an "all or nothing" scenario.

The options seem limited:

• either commit to spending 4-5 years in college or don't go at all
  
• either spend tens of thousands of dollars or nothing
  
• either secure a job immediately or wait several years until graduation
  
• either waste time on irrelevant theories at college or acquire practical knowledge.
  

The underlying premise of those arguing against college is that they can succeed in the world without a degree. While this statement holds true, it's akin to consciously choosing to navigate through life uphill rather than downhill.

[ss20ts]

High schools do a very poor job of informing students about other options such as trade school, community college, bootcamps, MOOC programs, utilizing ACE courses and schools which accept them. There are so many more options than the 4+ year route that costs tens of thousands of dollars with zero guarantee on the return of that investment.

[dfrecore]

The problem arises when engaging in debates about college, as you inevitably encounter a logical fallacy known as a false dilemma. The situation is presented as an "all or nothing" scenario.

The options seem limited:

• either commit to spending 4-5 years in college or don't go at all
  
• either spend tens of thousands of dollars or nothing
  
• either secure a job immediately or wait several years until graduation
  
• either waste time on irrelevant theories at college or acquire practical knowledge.
  

The underlying premise of those arguing against college is that they can succeed in the world without a degree. While this statement holds true, it's akin to consciously choosing to navigate through life uphill rather than downhill.

If the point of college is to find a good job - and you find a good job - then there's not point in going to school NOW.  You may find that you choose to go back later, when you figure out a career path that you'd like to take, or you hit a ceiling, or something else.  But there's really no reason why you have to go to college immediately upon high school graduation if you don't even know what you want to do with your life.  There is also no rush to find out.

[ss20ts]

If the point of college is to find a good job - and you find a good job - then there's not point in going to school NOW.  You may find that you choose to go back later, when you figure out a career path that you'd like to take, or you hit a ceiling, or something else.  But there's really no reason why you have to go to college immediately upon high school graduation if you don't even know what you want to do with your life.  There is also no rush to find out.

I never understood why high school grads are basically forced to go to college immediately following graduation. So many have no clue what they want to do and why would they? They haven't experienced much in life yet. Sure, some know what they want to do. Good for them. Go do it. But that's not the case for most people. And then there's the students who have 15 majors in 2 years and have 6 credits because they add and drop like the tides roll in and out. It never made sense to me why you had to college straight from high school. I know way more about what I want in life now than I did then. I also know what I don't want. That right there is priceless.

[dfrecore]

If the point of college is to find a good job - and you find a good job - then there's not point in going to school NOW.  You may find that you choose to go back later, when you figure out a career path that you'd like to take, or you hit a ceiling, or something else.  But there's really no reason why you have to go to college immediately upon high school graduation if you don't even know what you want to do with your life.  There is also no rush to find out.

I never understood why high school grads are basically forced to go to college immediately following graduation. So many have no clue what they want to do and why would they? They haven't experienced much in life yet. Sure, some know what they want to do. Good for them. Go do it. But that's not the case for most people. And then there's the students who have 15 majors in 2 years and have 6 credits because they add and drop like the tides roll in and out. It never made sense to me why you had to college straight from high school. I know way more about what I want in life now than I did then. I also know what I don't want. That right there is priceless.

Agreed.  I'm a HUGE fan of working after high school to try to figure things out.  Sure, it may be "easier" to go to college right after high school because in theory, you have a lot less responsibilities and whatnot. But when you really don't know what you want to do, you seem to spend a lot more time and money in school.

I have 1 kid who started college but also works FT right out of HS, and 1 who said "I cannot spend another minute in school" and started working FT after HS graduation.  He spent about a year working FT in a couple of trades, and decided that he does not want to do that.  He literally spent 0 minutes in school, and 0 dollars, to figure out a few things and got paid to do it.  He is at bootcamp right now, and I'm thrilled that he got a year to find out what he does NOT want to do.  Priceless.  If he ever decides to go to college, it will be with some life experience under his belt, and narrowed down some things as well.  He'll be better off than many of his friends who went to college right away (out of a group of 6, 1 already dropped out - he's going to become a pilot; and 2 already changed their majors).