Quote:
Originally Posted by PaperBagger'14
I have only a tiny bit to add here, but between my education at SAIT and U of C (which are directly related), I gained far more skills and technical knowledge at SAIT.
My instructors at SAIT were definetly not considered academics (with 1 exception), but when I look back at my time at both of those places, SAIT was far superior.
|
I started at UofA, then graduated at UVic, and didn't have a lot of job prospects, did a SAIT Information Systems program with the co-op program and started getting all sorts of job offers about halfway through. The skills at SAIT were way more valuable for getting sills to get a decent job, but the UVic degree did definitely benefit my career along the way.
I remember the giant lecture halls at U of A. I can't imagine that is any more effective than just watching a recording online or some robot teaching. Third and fourth year classes are I guess where things get more interesting, and you do get some interaction with a teacher and classmates.
I'm always torn on these arguments for free tuition. It's obviously not a good thing to have students leave school with large amounts of debt, but on the other hand if they have no skin in the game for paying, are they putting the same effort in as someone who might think the cost is worth it? A bunch of kids going through the motions of school in free college to hide from life for a few years isn't necessarily a great thing either.
Also, if Universities become free, are they going to be able to scale to allow more students? If not, then they may become much more competitive to get into. There becomes a line where making high schools too competitive introduces problems. Having kids being engaged in high school and putting in solid effort is a good thing. Having kids and parents being pressured into hiring tutors and enrolling in academies to boost gpas and ace SAT tests becomes a bit gross and you end up in a position where parents are paying $5k-$10k or more to get their kids in these free colleges.