When I was in school, the question of the day was always "What college are you going to?" After graduating H.S. I did in fact go on to a university and had a great time there. However, my high school classmates who weren't attracted to campus life sometimes felt a little lost. They didn't get much help at school since both the curriculum and guidance counseling were weighted heavily towards college, even if the student had no idea why she should go.
I think the reason for this was because over the last few decades, the choice of a career in skilled trades has been losing acceptance in middle-class America. And yet, tradespeople are more in demand these days than desk jockeys, they earn more than your average English major and - this is what most university grads don't realize - entry into degree programs in auto repair, dental hygiene or electronics may be more difficult than getting into a liberal arts college. Such programs require a high degree of mathematical, scientific and/or technical skill.
Thirty years ago, guys who liked to fiddle around with cars were called grease monkeys and simply got started in the business by getting hired as go-fers at a garage. These days the automotive manual for professionals that students at the local community college use weighs more than all my English textbooks together!
A lot of kids are missing some great opportunities, only because they're stuck inside an educational box. My husband, who used to work for a program that served at-risk high school students, once told me that trade union representatives have a hard time getting permission to visit schools and sign up interested kids - guidance counselors are so focused on bringing college admissions reps to campus that everything else falls by the wayside.
Happily this is changing, partly due to high unemployment & the recession. More students question the wisdom of paying $50,000+ for a degree in an overcrowded field, especially if they don't have a clear vocation.
Maybe it's also partly due to personal experience. One of my sharpest, most insightful and artistically talented friends works as a hairdresser and has "only" a cosmetology license. And one of the most incompetent bosses I've ever had (nice, but incompetent) had an MSSW - not just a Masters in Social Work but a Master of Science in Social Work, which requires more credits. Boomers like myself are realizing that formal education can't teach practical living skills, business sense or street smarts, and we're adjusting expectations for our kids.
For an interesting take on the value of manual work, read Shop Class as Soul Craft by Matthew B. Crawford (20009). Crawford holds a PhD and once directed a think tank in Washington DC but quit his desk job to open a motorcycle repair shop.
He and other professionals like him are showing young people that you can be smart and still enjoy getting your hands dirty. And even make a living at it.
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