Quote:
Originally Posted by ma-skis.com
There are lots of careers without university, it's just that society has played up university to be some kind of magic wand for people to find a career, so you have people languishing in school building up debt and trying to find jobs in markets that don't need their skills. Even working at earls can be lucrative. Head chefs and Restaurant Leaders can clear 100k. People choose to mess around at earls because they don't have the foresight to plan appropriately.
I would imagine after doing a short apprenticeship where you can get paid and then moving immediately into the workforce would be a much more practical plan for many people at this point in time. Instead we have people playing grown up living on their own, taking a masters in degrees with little job prospects. All of which adds up to debt.
People forget that university isn't the only route in life.
Plumber high school education --> after 2 years you're clearing 60k
Electrician High school education (without even math 30) --> clearning 60 after 2 years...
There's plenty of jobs out there for people, it's just that there's too many people who feel they are "too good" for certain types of work. or deserve something they deem as "better"
you have much to learn young grasshopper |
I suppose my view of real estate is skewed, but I do live in Vancouver. Calgary does seem to have gotten a little bit more reasonable.
As for the trades, yes I agree that is a good option for many. But internships in lucrative trades take longer than you are letting on and can be a lot harder to get than you are letting on.
During boom times the trades are lucrative, but during busts (ie now), not so much. Furhtermore, if a substantial amount of people at university dropped out and joined the trades, you would just have more competition for those jobs, and a transfer of the underlying demographic problem.
This idea that there are excess trade jobs is total BS and has nothing to do with people thinking they are too good for certain jobs. During housing booms we require extra trades people. During the other 90% of the times those people struggle for work just like everyone else. If you expect peolpe to train for a trade that there is no work in, in the event that another boom is on the way... well that just doesn't work.
Not only is it impractical since you actually need to secure a job and have soeone take you on to become a tradesman, but purposely investing time in an industry you know can't provide for you is ridiculous...even more ridiculous than going to university, because yes an education does have intrinsic value in itself.
If your so convinced about the trades, I think you should take a walk down towards your local EI or Welfare office and see exactly who is line there.
As for people making money at Earl's that is an illusion. 2 people in the restaurant make money. The head chef and the head of the front of house. The problem is neither of those jobs offer any security and you will be let go if: you are too old (anyone who doesn't fit their youth model is automatically let go), the restaurant suffers a loss for any reason, the staff becomes disgruntled for any reason (there is a lot to be disgruntled about there), etc... etc... You are basically the fall guy for the baby boomer who owns the restaurant franchise and the stock holders in the company.
Following and during university I worked in just about every industry there is. I observed how the people 10 years senior were living and what their prospects were. They simply were not very good. Hard work had nothing to do with it.