How to add value to your "declining in value" college degree

Parent Cafe
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<p>I came across this article in another thread: <a href=“http://www.azcentral.com/business/consumer/articles/2008/07/17/20080717biz-DegreeValue0717.html;[/url]”>http://www.azcentral.com/business/consumer/articles/2008/07/17/20080717biz-DegreeValue0717.html;&lt;/a&gt; and as I will be entering my senior year in high school this fall, it made me wonder: how can one make the college degree valuable?</p>

<p>I’ve always heard that while education may get you in the door, it’s your experience and abilities that keep you in the house. Thus, many career resources emphasize the importance of work experience and internships. But the woman in the article clearly HAD experience, skills, and the education, yet still dwelled in the “career wilderness” for six years. Granted she was already in her fifties, so perhaps the age factor worked against her. </p>

<p>Another article I found interesting was this one: [Painting</a> a Whole New Future–Without Oil?](<a href=“http://googolplex.cuna.org/32032/cnote/story.html?doc_id=1033]Painting”>http://googolplex.cuna.org/32032/cnote/story.html?doc_id=1033). Both offer bleak hope for those entering college. Not only is the value of the college degree declining, but economic circumstances (soaring costs of living while our wages stay the same, environmental concerns that butts head with our standards of living) makes hope for the future even bleaker. </p>

<p>What does it take then, to find a steady income job after college? Are work experience and continually building on skills during college sufficient? Or are students better off choosing a practical (read: related to careers not easily outsourced and always to be needed, like doctors and teachers) major, as the art student did? Does the classic adage about following your (perhaps impractical) passion and the money following still hold water in today’s circumstances?</p>

<p>My hypothesis is that while in college it’s important not only to build skills but the right ones - ones that are first of all related to your career field, and second of all ones that are applicable across all fields, like public speaking and technical expertise (knowledge of Microsoft applications - I cite as a great resource the book “10 Things Employers Want You to Learn in College”. Second of all, I think you’ll be more impressive to prospective employers if you not only had an internship or work experience listed on your resume, but achieved significant results there. From their point of view they would likely think that past successes are a good indication of future ones. Just my two cents.</p>

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<p>You make some excellent observations, and I agree with your hypothesis. I would add that the ability to work well with others is probably the most important skill when it comes to increasing one’s job success and earning potential.
While solving some of our current problems may look bleak, there is opportunity there as well. I expect that creativity and problem-solving ability will become more valuable as we seek to survive in the 21st century.</p>

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<p>Agreed. Innovation has always set people and companies apart from the pack.</p>

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<p>Internships are becoming the norm now for many industries. I have also seen kids get a lot of value added by going to a local college or even community college and getting some sort of specialty certificate such as in airport management, computer science or other field. That becomes a power addition to a liberal arts degree.</p>