Editec,
You do what I did. I didn't have the kids or wife (divorced, no kids), but going back to school at 37 on a 30 hour a week income wasn't exactly easy.
I'm sure it wasn't.
First off, I didn't bother trying the standard classroom routine- I went to the University of Phoenix through the online program. I was able to set my own schedule, and aside from having assignments and such due on certain days of the week it didn't matter if I logged into class at noon or at 3am. Yeah, it was tough as heck at times, and finances were a major pain in the rear, but 2 months after i finished my degree my income almost doubled. Im still not on easy street (owe too much in student loans for that), but I'm not too worried about being able to meet each months bills anymore either. Instead i worry about how long it's going to take me to build up enough money to fix up my house.
That's nice.
Now explain to me how the other 30,000,000 Americans are going to do it.
Editec,
Whether a college education is worth the cost is totally dependent on where you're going and what you're majoring in.
Very true.
I spent right about 40K for a bachelors that landed me a job starting at 40k/yr, which isn't a bad cost vs benefit ratio in my book. However, what about the people that spent the same amount I did to get liberal arts degrees that won't land them a good starting job? Is it worth it to spend that kind of money to land a position with starting pay of maybe $25-30K/year?
The better question is: What major can you be assured will not find itself leaving you, in mid career, having to seek still another career path because, for one reason or the other, but certainly not because of any shortcoming in your proformance, the business conditions have changed and you find yourself REDUNDANT.
Now when that happens to some of us, we can find some path back to employment that makes sense.
But when it happens to millions of people every year, there is not enough resources for that happy outcome to happen to all of us.
I keep popinting out problems that effect the MACRO-economic climate, and you people tell us about something that effected you personally.
All that would be sage advice IF we all had the same circumstance.
Clearly that is NOT the case.
I myself hold one "worthless" degree. I picked up an associates in veterinary sciences in my late 20's, and worked as a veterinary surgical technician for a couple of years. Problem was that i couldn't count on regular hours, and I soon found that I could make more on my part time job loading trucks then i could at my "career". I got off relatively light on that one-Only cost me about $8k, and it did allow me to cut a full year worth of general ed classes off the requirements from my bachelors in accounting.
I applaude your stick to it attitude, I really do.
I myself have had to change career paths and have done so. But I happened to be a position where I could do that, just as you found yourself in that position.
That is not the case for the millions of workers who: are too old, are too poor,are too stupid, are in far too much debt, etc etc etc.
MY complaint is that we are creating far too many people who have no such avenue to get back on the employment roles.
The fact that some of us can and do is irrlevant to that issue.
Some people survived the sinking of titanic, too.
But more would have survived if they'd had enough LIFEBOATS.
The survivors who tell themselves that they DESERVED TO SURVIVE, while the others didn't, are damned fools.