Reply #: No vote here - this is something that gets me very conflicted [View All]

[csziggy]

I graduated from college - I have great parents who worked their butts off to send all four of their daughters to college so we had a good start in life with no debt. But I originally did not want to go to college, I wanted to go to a equestrian school. If I had done that, though, I would be a completely different person. Most of my life decisions would have been different - I would be living in a different state, would not have met my wonderful husband, would not have the farm I love, etc. And although I really have not used my college degree, the knowledge that I gained, the people I met, and the experience enriched my life.

I WOULD advise a young person finishing high school to go to college if they had the opportunity to do so without going deep in debt and if they had the ability to do college level work. One thing about doing it now is that delays their entry into the job market. Hopefully, for a high school student graduating next spring, by the time they would finish college the economy would be better.

On the other hand, if they would get out of college with massive debts, I would be cautious. Student loans can be crippling and for a student who does not have their own drive to go to college it may not be worth it to them. Some kind of post high school education is probably good, but that is an individual decision that has to weigh interest, drive, and financial situation.