The decision to pursue higher education is right for some but not necessarily for all.
When Tyler New was studying at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), he hoped to finish his education and go into a career he would love. People had been encouraging him to attend and graduate college for years.
But by his third year of college, Tyler was $45,000 in debt. He was paying $700 a month in student loans, which made paying other bills more difficult. He was struggling to make ends meet while also going to a school that had an annual tuition of around $20,000. It was difficult to maintain both his job and his studies.
“All I had time for was work and college,” Tyler says. “It basically had taken over my life and gave me no time for anything else.”
He realized college wasn’t for him. After leaving school, Tyler realized he could accomplish things he thought he wouldn’t be able to without a degree.
Now, Tyler works as a truck driver. He stays local, with drives no longer than an hour and 15 minutes. He typically works shifts somewhere between eight and 12 hours.
Tyler is perfectly happy with his career. He wishes he had never gone to college. He believes if he went back to get his degree, he probably wouldn’t end up making much more than he is now. Plus, he’d have to start all over. When people graduate from college and enter their first jobs, they typically start from the bottom and work their way up. Tyler would have to work back up to make what he does now: $80,000.
With the costs of attending college today, many potential students are turning to trade jobs. According to The National Center for Education Statistics, annual tuition costs have risen from $7,626 to $16,188 for all public institutions since 1984.
Millions of Americans are jobless, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, yet there are thousands of jobs to be filled. Employers are having a hard time finding skilled trade workers, such as electricians and welders, according to a recent study by the nonprofit research organization Conference Board. Companies generally want to hire employees who have already been trained in trade schools or previous jobs.
Mark P. Mills, a graduate of Queen’s University in Ontario and CEO of the Digital Power Group, says there are a half-million more jobs in the U.S. than people who can work those jobs. According to a paper Mills wrote while at the Manhattan Institute, 88 percent of manufacturing jobs report having trouble finding qualified employees.
While high school administrators often encourage students to get a college education, it’s not the only way to go. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported in 2016 that about 64 percent of American occupations didn’t require more than a high school diploma.
Tyler majored in computer engineering and organizational leadership. Even though he didn’t go into a career related to his college studies, he makes plenty of money, allowing him to be financially stable. He is now raising a family without the pressure of college.
He has owned around 15 motorcycles, is currently restoring a corvette, and is helping pay his disabled mother’s bills. He was also able to help run a charity for several years, raising around $75,000 for families in need.
He believes college shouldn’t be presented as the only option. There are plenty of other options out there, and it’s important to understand them, he says.
“Of course we always want more––it’s human nature,” Tyler says. “But all things accounted for, I’m very happy.”
It’s common for people to work outside their specific field of study after college, Mills says. It’s also common for someone to go into a trade job and be profitable without the burden of student debt.
Phil DeCicca, an economics professor at Ball State University, says college is a good investment, but it’s important to explore all your options and know what you want to get out of the experience. Academics aren’t for everyone, which he says is perfectly okay.
“It’s all about knowing yourself,” he says.
Both Tyler and DeCicca know people who went to college and don’t use their degrees now. Many people enter careers they didn’t “sign up” for, spending money on an education just to end up working in a completely different field. Others skip it altogether.
Austin Whaley never went to college. He never had the desire to. His mom and sister both went to college, and now they both work in fields unrelated to their degrees. Austin believed, for him at least, college was a waste of time. He believes that to this day. He now owns a small plumbing business in Tennessee, where he’s able to support himself and is very familiar with his work because he has been doing it for so long.
Individuals are asked to figure out what they want to do with their lives at a young age. That’s not an easy question to answer. From one perspective, the solution seems clear: Just skip college and go into a trade. For others, it seems smart just to go to college.
