This is exactly right: "If the university's leaders (and even much of its faculty) can't get excited about learning, then learning won't be exciting. Students excited about learning won't come. Students who do come will have it drilled into them that learning is some sort of tedious but necessary chore whose goal is to prepare them for a tedious but necessary job. The university is creating the world it's complaining about."
Part of my point is that national averages do not take into account the nuances of rural places, which are all unique. Montana and Alaska offer more of a subsistence lifestyle than some other rural places, and so median income is just one measure of quality of life in those areas. I grew up below the poverty line but never went hungry, for instance, and never worked for minimum wage.
Much of this goes to the question of affordability. The reason administrators are locking themselves into prescribed vocational paths is because college presents an enormous financial risk. There's no room to explore, to discover yourself, to change your mind if you're looking at decades of debt. You need to know the outcome to invest at that scale.
But I'll also say that I see boom/bust cycles in industry that make the predetermined path less practical than it seems. Lifelong learning and a well-rounded liberal arts foundation still have the most value. But I understand why that seems like an unacceptable gamble for many.
Yes, I was tempted to write another paragraph about how we're typically focused on income and ignore the expense side. You made that point in your description of your relatives (no debt) and I wanted to pick up on it. People don't HAVE to hop on the hamster wheel, and I agree that some rural places provide non-cash-based alternatives. Alternate social arrangements in urban environments probably offer some similar options. I'll probably write about it this week in my new "After Academics" section of my blog.
I didn't include this in the post, but sometimes the income side doesn't make sense either. One relative is making $25/hr with a law degree (bachelor's and law degree). His cousins are making nearly six figures in construction (maybe actual six figures). The ceiling is quite high in some trades. The cousin I mention makes north of $300K -- more than the college president at my former employer. Find the right certification, embrace a little travel, and there are a lot of possibilities. In some ways I think that life embraces a growth mindset much more than the blinkered mentality that academics must embrace -- or the ruts that people sometimes get stuck in in industry.
There was a bloodbath in UX research last year. Those folks have got to feel like they're looking over their shoulder constantly no matter when they land the next role.
Dan, I really like your closing point about motivation - and how de-motivated students become when a college curriculum focuses on courses to help get a job. It’s very short-sighted, and has traditionally been the argument for why a liberal arts education can inspire passion as well as job skills. But standard four-year programs have become a financial burden - so I suspect the answer involves non-traditional programs that are flexible, affordable, and allow for open enrollment.
Really great point that a job and a passion don’t have to be the same thing.
Thanks for extending the conversation, Dan.
This is exactly right: "If the university's leaders (and even much of its faculty) can't get excited about learning, then learning won't be exciting. Students excited about learning won't come. Students who do come will have it drilled into them that learning is some sort of tedious but necessary chore whose goal is to prepare them for a tedious but necessary job. The university is creating the world it's complaining about."
Part of my point is that national averages do not take into account the nuances of rural places, which are all unique. Montana and Alaska offer more of a subsistence lifestyle than some other rural places, and so median income is just one measure of quality of life in those areas. I grew up below the poverty line but never went hungry, for instance, and never worked for minimum wage.
Much of this goes to the question of affordability. The reason administrators are locking themselves into prescribed vocational paths is because college presents an enormous financial risk. There's no room to explore, to discover yourself, to change your mind if you're looking at decades of debt. You need to know the outcome to invest at that scale.
But I'll also say that I see boom/bust cycles in industry that make the predetermined path less practical than it seems. Lifelong learning and a well-rounded liberal arts foundation still have the most value. But I understand why that seems like an unacceptable gamble for many.
Yes, I was tempted to write another paragraph about how we're typically focused on income and ignore the expense side. You made that point in your description of your relatives (no debt) and I wanted to pick up on it. People don't HAVE to hop on the hamster wheel, and I agree that some rural places provide non-cash-based alternatives. Alternate social arrangements in urban environments probably offer some similar options. I'll probably write about it this week in my new "After Academics" section of my blog.
I didn't include this in the post, but sometimes the income side doesn't make sense either. One relative is making $25/hr with a law degree (bachelor's and law degree). His cousins are making nearly six figures in construction (maybe actual six figures). The ceiling is quite high in some trades. The cousin I mention makes north of $300K -- more than the college president at my former employer. Find the right certification, embrace a little travel, and there are a lot of possibilities. In some ways I think that life embraces a growth mindset much more than the blinkered mentality that academics must embrace -- or the ruts that people sometimes get stuck in in industry.
There was a bloodbath in UX research last year. Those folks have got to feel like they're looking over their shoulder constantly no matter when they land the next role.
Dan, I really like your closing point about motivation - and how de-motivated students become when a college curriculum focuses on courses to help get a job. It’s very short-sighted, and has traditionally been the argument for why a liberal arts education can inspire passion as well as job skills. But standard four-year programs have become a financial burden - so I suspect the answer involves non-traditional programs that are flexible, affordable, and allow for open enrollment.
I agree, Martha. That's why I've become so interested in lifelong learning.
Me, too, Dan :-)