James Altucher's 8 Alternatives to College

[ruger17hmr]

Agree or Disagree?

I am a college grad and whole heartedly agree with Mr. Altucher.

In my opinion, the college education is over-rated.

James Altucher's 8 Alternatives to College


Posted Feb 08, 2011 08:00am EST by Aaron Task

It's been nearly a year since Formula Capital's James Altucher discussed his theory on why sending your kids to college is a bad idea. The segment proved to be one of Tech Ticker's most popular...and controversial of 2010. (See: Rethinking College as Student-Loan Burdens Rise)

More recently, a report based on the book Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses found that after two years of college, 45% of students learned little to nothing. After four years, 36% of students learned almost nothing. (See: Brain Drain: Most College Students Learn Next to Nothing, New Study Says.)
Meanwhile, the cost of college keeps rising -- 20 times the rate of inflation and much faster than say healthcare costs -- and student loan debt keeps growing. As of mid-2010, U.S. student loan debt totaled $850 billion vs. $828 billion for credit card debt, according to the Federal Reserve.

So with more people coming around to the idea that maybe Altucher is onto something (vs. being on something), the money manager and author is back with a follow-up: The 8 Alternatives to College:

• -- Start a business.
• -- Work for a charity.
• -- Travel the world.
• -- Create art.
• -- Master a sport.
• -- Master a game.
• -- Write a book.
• -- Make people laugh.

"Whenever I suggest 'don't send your kids to college' a lot of very smart people invariably come back with the response, ‘well what else should they do?'," Altucher writes on his blog. "So I figure I will help people out by coming up with a list and try to handle the criticisms that will certainly arise even before they arise. I can do this because I have a college degree. So I've learned how to think and engage in repartee with other intelligent people."
In the accompanying video, Altucher "repartees" with Henry and me about his alternatives to college and addresses the most powerful thing working on behalf of higher education: The huge gap in employment between those with and without college degrees.

 

[jsharmon7]

I think it depends on what you want to do in life. Some professions are unattainable without a college degree. Some professions it doesn't really matter if you have one or not. I would say that a college education is NEVER a bad thing, but it's not necessarily essential for success.

 

[6birds]

Many college curriculums are useless, not the idea of more education. The job and income potential, well, it is true, if you have a degree in something someone will pay you to do.

 

[theweakerbrother]

It depends. I went to private post secondary school and the work load was pretty tough. I learned a lot, I developed a stronger work ethic and I had an environment where I had real deadlines and expectations.

The state school I went to before attending the second college I went to, expectations were so low that it seems hard NOT to get an undergrad degree at a lot of the state schools. Exceptions to this rule are "tough" degree programs.

What makes it worse is when you see professors coddling students because of their 'circumstances' and make excuses for their poor work, lack of work ethic and/or a plethora of other downfalls.

I learned to write, during college, a whole lot better than I ever did in high school and I'm pretty thankful for that.

What I hate the most is the decision to finish my degree in school knowing that I had to borrow money to obtain the degree. My student loan payments are higher than my mortgage and Dave Ramsey's principals are helping us pay them down but I will probably have made MORE money by not going to college.

Lesson learned? Pick a degree, if you go to college, where you have almost guaranteed success.

College is not for everyone and that is perfectly okay. I know that if I work hard, plug away and volunteer, eventually my talents will be recognized and I'll make more money when I snag a job where a company recognizes my talents. Unfortunately, I come with a lot of baggage with having to miss work at least a day and half every three months and the employer I currently have tolerates that. I'll find something else someday, I just ain't there yet.

 

[rambone]

• -- Start a business.
• -- Work for a charity.
• -- Travel the world.
• -- Create art.
• -- Master a sport.
• -- Master a game.
• -- Write a book.
• -- Make people laugh.

These sound like retirement ideas. What about "Get a job."

 

[LEGENw84itDARY]

yea i read this today because sometimes i feel their might be better options than going to college but the first one made me lose all respect for this article....how many lost 18 year olds do you know just walk out of high school and #1 have funding to start a business and #2 would have any idea of what to do once it was started

 

[jsharmon7]

yea i read this today because sometimes i feel their might be better options than going to college but the first one made me lose all respect for this article....how many lost 18 year olds do you know just walk out of high school and #1 have funding to start a business and #2 would have any idea of what to do once it was started

The ones who are really motivated and intelligent find a way. Experience helps, but it isn't necessary. Hard work and intelligence goes a lot further than education alone.

 

[nawainwright]

One of my teachers in college explained to us that if we didn't need a degree to do what we wanted to do...."don't waste your money and time"

I desired advanced training, which was both beneficial and detrimental. On one hand, having a Masters degree is good for getting hired in my field and the things I learned are beyond helpful....but on the other hand, when unemployed no one hires someone with an advanced degree to do ANYTHING.

 

[sepe]

I don't think college right after high school is always a good thing but most careers you NEED that piece of paper. Whether you're planning on turning a wrench or running a mill, you've got a better chance if you get training and a tech school is a great place for that.

As far as the list:
-- Start a business...Good luck starting something that will be successful unless you've got an idea that nobody else has had.

-- Work for a charity...This is great but without a piece of paper (and usually an advanced one) you're not going to see much monetary reward.

-- Travel the world...Unless he means military, unless mom and dad are paying Junior's way around the world they aren't going anywhere. Working and saving so you can take time off to travel is something I'm big on. Why wait until retirement age to enjoy life?

-- Create art...Not going to happen for most people. Sure you can pump out garbage that nobody will ever want but what would be the point in that?

-- Master a sport...Most of the population isn't ever going to see anything from a sport or come close to mastering it.

-- Master a game...Isn't college for "mastering" video games?

-- Write a book...Straight out of high school, you haven't lived enough to write anything anyone would want to read.

-- Make people laugh...Most people just aren't funny.

I don't think jumping straight into 4 more years of education is the best thing for most people because how many people are honestly mentally ready? Spend a year or so working a job that will get you some experience and save the money so you can spend some time travelling. Spend time getting to know who you are and what you want out of life. THEN go to college and be there for the purpose of being successful in whatever you want in life and not to make friends.

 

[ATOMonkey]

• -- Start a business.
• -- Work for a charity.
• -- Travel the world.
• -- Create art.
• -- Master a sport.
• -- Master a game.
• -- Write a book.
• -- Make people laugh.

These sound like retirement ideas. What about "Get a job."

+1 These ideas are idiotic at best.

I agree that college isn't for everyone, but everyone should have a marketable skill set, either through experience or formal learning.

 

[dondavis3]

I strongly believe that most people need a college education in order to increase your income to the highest levels.

Sure some (a very few) become wildly rich w/o a college education. but not many.

Just look at the odds -

It's like a kid not going to college because he or she wants to be a movie star or a pro athlete.

While it works for a very few - it doesn't work out for most people.

You play the odds the way you want to.

But in my family every kid has started college - not all finished, but most of them did finish.

 

[ruger17hmr]

I strongly believe that most people need a college education in order to increase your income to the highest levels.

Sure some (a very few) become wildly rich w/o a college education. but not many.

Just look at the odds -

It's like a kid not going to college because he or she wants to be a movie star or a pro athlete.

While it works for a very few - it doesn't work out for most people.

You play the odds the way you want to.

But in my family every kid has started college - not all finished, but most of them did finish.

Isn't that sad the education is no longer valued as pursuit of knowledge, but to raise an odd for higher earning potential.

 

[revsaxon]

I think it depends a lot on what you want to do post high-school. Could I do my field without a degree (IT/Systems Administration)? Of course, college was a 4 year 120,000$ money waste (thought there were a lot of other things besides a degree i got out of it that made it worth it). I would have been better served going out there and just working for a company right off the bat (assuming I could have found one to hire me sans degree that is).

Would someone like an Engineer, a Physicist, a Chemist, etc be better off? Not really. Those hard sciences pretty much have to have a degree for the single reason of it really is what you learn (or so was my experience taking those classes)

 

[CountryBoy19]

yea i read this today because sometimes i feel their might be better options than going to college but the first one made me lose all respect for this article....how many lost 18 year olds do you know just walk out of high school and #1 have funding to start a business and #2 would have any idea of what to do once it was started

I started my own business in 8th grade with a little help from my parents. They loaned me $2k and let me borrow some of their things to do it. The business grew so big so fast that I had to bring my brother on as a partner just to help cover it all. It paid our way through HS, and when we sold the business when I was ~20 we each had enough capitol that we've never had much in the way of financial issues since. I'm not saying that every kid could do the same, but with a little assistance, it's possible to build up a good business at a very young age.

BTW, I still chose to go to college, and IMHO, I'm much further ahead now. Sure, my brother who didn't go to college made good money while I was in college, and that put him way ahead of me financially to start with, but he busted his hump to do that.

In my outlook there are 2 ways to work in your life, they are both going to be very similar financially as far as input costs and earnings, but there are a few differences that I can see.

You can go straight to work manufacturing, construction etc right out of HS and make good money. But you are going to have bust your hump, come home at the end of the day exhausted, and potentially injure yourself etc. Later on in life you're probably going to have some health problems... back problems, carpal tunnel, etc depending on what your job is.

Or, you can go to college, get a degree, get a job that is much easier on your body. When you're first starting out you're broke, and in debt, but you will eventually recover. For me, my life begins when I get home from work. I can go out and cut/split wood, do projects around the house etc. My body isn't physically exhausted and to me that equates to accomplishing a lot more in my personal life outside of work. The easier job at work will also reduce risk of injuries related to repetitive tasks and hard work.

Not everybody is cut out for college, and not everybody is cut out for hard work. Just hope a person figures that out before the make the decision one way or the other. OTOH, some people are cut out for both, and some people aren't cut out for either. I think I can honestly say I'm in the former of those two, sure, I can do hard work, I did it all through HS. And I still do it today when I get home from "work". But I chose college because I was given a gift and didn't want to waste it away. I can honestly say that I think I made the best choice. Sure, my brother already owns an 80 acre farm, and drive nicer vehicles than me, but give me 10 years and ask that question again. He'll still be where he is, and I'll be improving.

 

[dondavis3]

I can honestly say that I think I made the best choice. Sure, my brother already owns an 80 acre farm, and drive nicer vehicles than me, but give me 10 years and ask that question again. He'll still be where he is, and I'll be improving.

That's my point exactly - you increase your odds of making more money by going to college - it's not 100%, but IMHO it's in the 80% range.

I look back and see my old High School friends and more than 80% of college grads are making more money at any point after 10 years after High School.

We're just speaking of odds - not right or wrong.