It feels like people around my age are falling through the cracks of society

[EvilRoy]

Based on some things I've been reading I would say most of it has to do with being just a bit behind the curve, at least here in n.a. Not stupid or anything, just a few steps behind the right place to be. Growing up all I ever heard was "lawyers and engineers make zounds of money, and there are so many jobs to be had". This was not a lie, or untrue at the time, unfortunately years later it is no longer the case. Now we have lawyers and engineers coming out the ears and no jobs for them, why? Because everybody got the same advice at the same time. So what are parents saying to their kids now? Don't know, maybe investment bankers or doctors or whatever, but the trend will likely have moved on by the time .

The good news is that relatively soon the baby boomers will exit the workforce, and no matter how bad the news claims this will be, it will probably be the best thing that has happened to our generation, in a job prospect sense. Once our preceeding generations have finished filling up to fill in the gaps, there should finally.be some room left for the many of us looking for a spot. Those already in might even get a boost in terms of their prospects for advancement.

 

[Call Me Jose]

Having just graduated within the last year, probably 3/4's of my friends including myself have found jobs within months of finishing college, Its all about being in the right place at the right time, and well having connections doesn't hurt, even though I didn't have any. Remain optimistic.

 

[Vuliev]

College can be a worthwhile learning experience, but make it as cheap as possible if you do want to go. I'm talking a $3k/yr community college, transfer to $6k/yr state school. If there's a particular place you want to live, move there for a year before you start school so you can qualify for resident tuition.

Problem with that is, depending on where you live, you're only getting what you pay for (and in plenty of cases, not even that.) A $50k/yr tuition can be worth it, providing you do your research on the school beforehand, and the debt you end up with can be made a lot more manageable through scholarships and smart decisions. I'm from Virginia, and I can say that my electrical engineering education is far beyond anything that any of the major engineering schools in Virginia could have ever provided me. As for the VA community colleges? What a joke.

As for the debt, I'm looking at $120,000 or so total between my parents and I. That's $80k less than full tuition, and that's from a $10k/yr scholarship and a well-timed year's study abroad in Germany that let me essentially pay down an entire year's worth of university. The difference, though, is that I'm looking at a ~$70,000/yr job within a couple months, if not weeks, of graduation--and living in a fairly low-cost city to boot. I know how to manage my money, and I'll be able to pay my share of the debt off in six years assuming I don't get a raise.

The reason all of this is possible is because I went into an already high-ish demand field (EE), specialized in a subset that's been running low on new blood (electrical power systems), and went to a university that offered undergraduate education in that specialization, something that nearly no other university in the US offers. As a result, with minimal effort on my part--I haven't had a single internship, and haven't put a whole lot into the job search other than jumping on opportunities that jump at me--I already have a second interview with a company for a job that will start soon after I graduate. There's also another opportunity that I've been sitting on for a while that I haven't touched because I want to see how my interview goes first.

And therein lies the problem: it's not that there are too many college graduates, it's that many of them picked the wrong fields to study and the wrong schools to study at. They don't know how to read trends, they don't know how to look for colleges, many of them have sub-par high school education and/or poor preparation for college. Many of them don't even know what they want to do in life, end up getting gen-ed or liberal arts degrees, and then realizing that it's really not worth the money they spent.

TL;DR: your advice is flawed, because the "learning experience" of college can be better made with getting a job or apprenticeship out of high school. If you want to pay $18k for college and also have a job once you graduate, you're either going to have to bust your ass for scholarships or bust your ass finding internships and external experience.

 

[afroebob]

I take it you mean US society? If so...yeah.

I think you're supposed to totally ignore the reality of the situation...that's why they call it "the dream".

But the system is failing large numbers of people, and there isn't any real answer. Even pointing out the problem pisses people off no end.

I love how every problem someone has in the US can be traced to them living in that country, even though it is actually happier than the almost all of Europe. I mean you can ***** about the US all you want, I couldn't really give an essence of a fuck about it, just giving you a heads up.

(P.S. here's my source http://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2013/01/09/the-worlds-happiest-and-saddest-countries-2/)

 

[Thaluikhain]

I take it you mean US society? If so...yeah.

I think you're supposed to totally ignore the reality of the situation...that's why they call it "the dream".

But the system is failing large numbers of people, and there isn't any real answer. Even pointing out the problem pisses people off no end.

I love how every problem someone has in the US can be traced to them living in that country, even though it is actually happier than the almost all of Europe. I mean you can ***** about the US all you want, I couldn't really give an essence of a fuck about it, just giving you a heads up.

Isn't the OP talking about unemployment and the lack of job prospects facing young people? Because surely that is a serious problem in the US.

 

[afroebob]

I take it you mean US society? If so...yeah.

I think you're supposed to totally ignore the reality of the situation...that's why they call it "the dream".

But the system is failing large numbers of people, and there isn't any real answer. Even pointing out the problem pisses people off no end.

I love how every problem someone has in the US can be traced to them living in that country, even though it is actually happier than the almost all of Europe. I mean you can ***** about the US all you want, I couldn't really give an essence of a fuck about it, just giving you a heads up.

Isn't the OP talking about unemployment and the lack of job prospects facing young people? Because surely that is a serious problem in the US.

Its the same story, with a few exceptions pretty much everywhere in Europe is on par or worse than the US.

 

[Chairman Miaow]

I take it you mean US society? If so...yeah.

I think you're supposed to totally ignore the reality of the situation...that's why they call it "the dream".

But the system is failing large numbers of people, and there isn't any real answer. Even pointing out the problem pisses people off no end.

I love how every problem someone has in the US can be traced to them living in that country, even though it is actually happier than the almost all of Europe. I mean you can ***** about the US all you want, I couldn't really give an essence of a fuck about it, just giving you a heads up.

Isn't the OP talking about unemployment and the lack of job prospects facing young people? Because surely that is a serious problem in the US.

Its the same story, with a few exceptions pretty much everywhere in Europe is on par or worse than the US.

Sources plz. That's a pretty big claim.

 

[kgpspyguy]

How about you just suck it up and do your job, Work isn't supposed to be fun.

 

[afroebob]

Its the same story, with a few exceptions pretty much everywhere in Europe is on par or worse than the US.

Sources plz. That's a pretty big claim.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_unemployment_rate

Wikipedia uses various sources for their information. If you want the specific source for each country next to either the percentage of unemployment for the country or the date the data was published there should be a link to the original source for every European country listed (just a tip if you don't know, its the little blue numbers that are the hyperlinks).

 

[Shivarage]

*snip*

So much empathy for you... so much empathy ;_;

(so not to get warned for low content) although I didn't reach 6 years, still a long time...

 

[Chairman Miaow]

Its the same story, with a few exceptions pretty much everywhere in Europe is on par or worse than the US.

Sources plz. That's a pretty big claim.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_unemployment_rate

Wikipedia uses various sources for their information. If you want the specific source for each country next to either the percentage of unemployment for the country or the date the data was published there should be a link to the original source for every European country listed (just a tip if you don't know, its the little blue numbers that are the hyperlinks).

I'm confused. That link shows that what you said is wrong. Very few European countries are on par or worse off. About the only big European country worse of is Spain, the rest are all on a par or better off. Even the smaller countries bar a few eastern European countries are doing better.

 

[Vuliev]

College degrees under a masters are worthless. The whole point of college is just to make connections. It's not just your generation, every gen has gone through those periods.

Uh, no. The point of college is to obtain specialized education and training so that you can work properly in that field. You may be able to learn engineering principles on your own, outside of college, but you won't have access to the facilities that let you actually fuck up and learn from it before you fuck up in the industry and get fired, before you have a chance to even progress in your field. Even non-STEM majors need the education in order to get into grad school--you can't straight-up jump into grad school.

 

[Sutter Cane]

As someone who is currently 20 and looking to finish up his college degree in the next couple of years, it feels like people around my agre are really ending up on the short end of society's stick. I mean based on what I'm hearing, it really feels like college degrees are barely worth the paper they're printed on nowadays, an that unless you are looking to go into certain very-specific fields, you're just going to end up back at Walmart indefinitely anyway. It really feels like the only choices right now are between "career that will make you miserable for your entire working life" or "not being able to support yourself." I mean when it feels like those are your only two choices, how am I supposed to stay motivated? How am I supposed to remain optimistic? What is a person like me even supposed to do?

Here is my personal motivation. You may use it:

"Life is hard, unfair and mostly misarable. Deal with it. Getting a job that is both well-paid and interesting is near impossible. So here is a choice for you: either stay loner for the rest of your life and work wherever you want and earn enough to survive, or marry, start a family and be willing to work your ass of on the most boring of all the jibs just to make life of your loved ones enjoyable. If you care for them, of course.
But if you are lucky enough to get a job, that is enjoyable AND well-paid, then grab it by the balls and do not let go, untill your eyes are blind, your arms are limp and your brain is almost dead."
Something like that.

As for devaluation of diplomas: what did you expect? In the past, most people did not go to universities, so people with higher education were treated as rarities.
Now, everyone is getting it, so employers can fastidiously choose whatever person they like. Democracy, babe. Everyone gets a chance, but the more people get it, the smaller it is.

Tried working a menial job for the summer. Didn't really work out. Was miserable at the job, and that misery began working its way into my personal life as well. Can't imagine myself working for decades in a job like that

 

[freaper]

Honestly, do something you like to do. Forcing yourself in a course that'll take 3+ years, with barely any "fun" (as in interesting and engrossing opportunities) prospects will get you less satisfaction in the long run than a course which truly interests you, even though the pay might not be the highest at the end of the day. At least that's what I'm telling myself.

 

[Bocaj2000]

As someone who is currently 20 and looking to finish up his college degree in the next couple of years, it feels like people around my agre are really ending up on the short end of society's stick. I mean based on what I'm hearing, it really feels like college degrees are barely worth the paper they're printed on nowadays, an that unless you are looking to go into certain very-specific fields, you're just going to end up back at Walmart indefinitely anyway. It really feels like the only choices right now are between "career that will make you miserable for your entire working life" or "not being able to support yourself." I mean when it feels like those are your only two choices, how am I supposed to stay motivated? How am I supposed to remain optimistic? What is a person like me even supposed to do?

My only two choices are being miserable with my job or being poor? I'm an animator, and I love it. I work with the arts non-stop and have fun doing it. Maybe you're in the wrong major...

 

[UniversalRonin]

Be cautious before taking on a degree. In 2008 I lost a job to the recession. Then I did a computer science degree, and now I'm a skivvy at a theme park because my decade of experience in the work place has nothing to do with my degree, and nobody is interested in a guy with a qualification and no related experience. As for staying motivated, you can make any job fun and worth doing if you try, and as long as you choose to have fun, and to work hard, things generally will get better, it may take a while, but they will.

 

[afroebob]

Its the same story, with a few exceptions pretty much everywhere in Europe is on par or worse than the US.

Sources plz. That's a pretty big claim.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_unemployment_rate

Wikipedia uses various sources for their information. If you want the specific source for each country next to either the percentage of unemployment for the country or the date the data was published there should be a link to the original source for every European country listed (just a tip if you don't know, its the little blue numbers that are the hyperlinks).

I'm confused. That link shows that what you said is wrong. Very few European countries are on par or worse off. About the only big European country worse of is Spain, the rest are all on a par or better off. Even the smaller countries bar a few eastern European countries are doing better.

With on par being considered between 7-9 percent unemployment and 9%+ being considered worse and excluding countries that haven't been cited in 3 years it shows that 78.6% of countries are on par or worse than the US. Granted, there are some places doing significantly better, Switzerland being a great example, but for the majority of nations they are on par or worse, with places like Greece having over 4 times the unemployment. However, I will admit I didn't count Russia as a European country and if I did it would changed it to about 75% in my favor.

 

[Chairman Miaow]

Its the same story, with a few exceptions pretty much everywhere in Europe is on par or worse than the US.

Sources plz. That's a pretty big claim.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_unemployment_rate

Wikipedia uses various sources for their information. If you want the specific source for each country next to either the percentage of unemployment for the country or the date the data was published there should be a link to the original source for every European country listed (just a tip if you don't know, its the little blue numbers that are the hyperlinks).

I'm confused. That link shows that what you said is wrong. Very few European countries are on par or worse off. About the only big European country worse of is Spain, the rest are all on a par or better off. Even the smaller countries bar a few eastern European countries are doing better.

With on par being considered between 7-9 percent unemployment and 9%+ being considered worse and excluding countries that haven't been cited in 3 years it shows that 78.6% of countries are on par or worse than the US. Granted, there are some places doing significantly better, Switzerland being a great example, but for the majority of nations they are on par or worse, with places like Greece having over 4 times the unemployment. However, I will admit I didn't count Russia as a European country and if I did it would changed it to about 75% in my favor.

Forgive me, I was looking at the map, which paints a very different picture.

 

[Mcupobob]

I don't might be because its the city I live in but its been incredibly easy to find a decent job for me. Plus I know my degree will be relevant as long as I follow whichever city tech booms happens.

 

[Luca72]

As someone who is currently 20 and looking to finish up his college degree in the next couple of years, it feels like people around my agre are really ending up on the short end of society's stick. I mean based on what I'm hearing, it really feels like college degrees are barely worth the paper they're printed on nowadays, an that unless you are looking to go into certain very-specific fields, you're just going to end up back at Walmart indefinitely anyway. It really feels like the only choices right now are between "career that will make you miserable for your entire working life" or "not being able to support yourself." I mean when it feels like those are your only two choices, how am I supposed to stay motivated? How am I supposed to remain optimistic? What is a person like me even supposed to do?

Start thinking outside the box. I think the main issue is that all the sudden we have enough information via the internet to know how shitty life is when you do nothing but chase a paycheck. Don't do anything simply because society thinks you have to. Even jobs that sound interesting on paper are mostly tedious and boring. Research shows that the amount of money that you make does not alter your level of happiness once you're above the point where you have all your expenses covered, so chasing bigger and bigger paychecks is a waste of your life.

The economy will not get better. Life will not improve simply by adopting a positive outlook. My advice? Learn to program. You can do just about anything if you understand how to write code and approach problems tactically and creatively. It takes a bit of work, but no more so than any college degree you'd be going for. Take classes if you feel the need, or just use the internet as your resource. The world is evolving very quickly, and most of the things we're being trained to do in the US may not have any value very soon. But computers and the internet aren't going anywhere. Plus, you get to do contract work, so you don't even have to be glued indefinitely to one job for your whole life if you don't want to.