A lot of people in your generation are also getting married later and having children later. Single people and childless couples often don’t feel any great desire to buy a house even if they could afford it.
When my kids grow up and want to major in “basement” major, I will sternly tell them that I will respect their choices with my love and will support as much as I could ONLY if they are confident enough to shine among all
What does that mean?
I don’t think it’s the choice of major that leads grads to living in their parents’ basements, I think it’s more often issues like anxiety and depression - no matter what the major is. My BIL, who has a PhD in physics from a top univ likely would have been relegated to living in the parents’ basement if he hadn’t married someone who was willing to let him sit at home and play computer chess all day.
Anyone with ambition (the ole ‘get up and go’ spirit) can be a success with any major.
^^^^ this is what I meant.
I agree with you 100 percent. However, there is selection bias in these types of surveys as the people with “getup and go” tend to stick through the more difficult majors like engineering or accounting. People who aren’t self-starters tend to end up in the majors that are easier academically.
Another form of selection bias is the majors themselves. You don’t see major criminal justice and fire protection majors from highly selective schools. These major tend to lead to jobs in law enforcement or the fire department, not the kind of place a Harvard grad generally wants to end up.
“agree with you 100 percent. However, there is selection bias in these types of surveys as the people with “getup and go” tend to stick through the more difficult majors like engineering or accounting. People who aren’t self-starters tend to end up in the majors that are easier academically.”
Oh please. Self-starting is a trait agnostic of major.
^^^^ People without “getup and go” or who are not self-starters tend not to do well in weed out classes which are concentrated in the STEM fields that did well in this survey.
^ I don’t get that. A kid with a natural aptitude for a STEM major might make it through the weed out classes just fine, but not particularly be a self starter.
There are plenty of self starters in liberal arts who are getting internships, etc.
I get what zinhead is trying to say. As an engineeing undergrad I saw plenty of folks switch to “something else” and very few switch into engineering. Based solely on thainobservation, It would be easy, but wrong, to conclude that the self starters were all in engineering.
I’d bet money that the primary reason for low numbers at home for engineeing is driven by a multitude of factors. Two come to mind - a pre defined career starting point that allows employers and student to match up easily, and lack of technical employers at home to even get a job.
My employed 2015 spring BSN grad is living at home. She works nights so we see each other occasionally on either end of her 12-hour shifts. And yes, she’s saving money for a condo or house. So far, it’s working.
In the U.S., there is a lot of angst about moving back home and I agree with many here that the percentages are only part of the story. Not all graduates who live at home–heck, I doubt many–are sitting around watching TV.
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Not all graduates who live at home–heck, I doubt many–are sitting around watching TV.
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Of course not.
However, the “living in the parents’ basement” label is often short-hand for “failure to launch, jobless or part-time-employed, and spends too much time watching TV or playing video games.”
I don’t think we’re applying that label to a fully-employed graduate who is living at home for sensible reasons (maybe paying off a student loan, saving for a down payment, getting married soon, etc)
@mom2collegekids Unfortunately, though, the stigma of failure surrounds those young people who live with their parents, even if they are gainfully employed.
There’s a young woman at my office who started in a relatively routine job about a year ago and has already been earmarked for great things. It took management about a month to realize that she’s the best thing to hit the department in years, and they restructured her job to give her the kind of experience that will prepare her for greater responsibilities – which will be coming very soon. She is obviously a future superstar.
But she gets funny looks when she tells people that she lives with her parents.
Why does she live with her parents? Because they enjoy each other’s company. It’s a simple as that. She probably won’t move out until she has a specific reason – like marriage or a move to a different city.
I find graduates who choose to live at home with their parents (when they’re welcome!) in order to save funds or pay off loans a lot more commendable than those who take on debt or spend every last cent they earn to maintain a life they cannot truly afford. Obviously, if a job offer comes in another city, it’s not going to be possible to live with the folks, but if it’s a reasonable option, why wouldn’t you? If it bothers your co-workers, just don’t share that info.
Many of my neighbors welcome their children back home after they graduate, and almost all of those students are gainfully employed. They’re working to pay off loans, save up for first homes or weddings, and consolidating resources with their folks. Many cultures do this, and this whole “living in the basement” trope is just silly. And if anybody bothered to read the article the OP posted, he pretty much concedes that the entire premise of the article is stupid:
If my s’s lived nearby, they would have been welcome to live home if they wanted (which unfortunately they did not). One s lived in the area for a year, about a year and a half after graduation. He wanted to live where the young folks lived, not with his parents. And it would have given him a 2 hr commute to work each way anyway, which was ridiculous.
I found particularly strange that Americans IN GENERAL make fun of adults who live with their parents. I mean if you dont have jobs and wastes your life then anyone would think them as losers, but in other cultures,kids still live with their parents even after graduating unless they get married or get a job offer from far away
@jym626 Family attitudes differ. My daughter lived in our area for her first 3 years after graduation. My husband was adamant that she should not live with us. She didn’t want to live with us anyway because she wanted a shorter commute to her job. But if she had wanted to live with us, she would have been unwelcome – at least from her father’s point of view. To him, living on your own is a crucial part of becoming an independent young adult.
I don’t agree with him, but nothing I could say would change his mind.
Ouch, Marian! Tossing the chick out of the nest. Am guessing she had the wings to fly and your DH knew it.
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But she gets funny looks when she tells people that she lives with her parents.
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Why does she live with her parents? Because they enjoy each other’s company. It’s a simple as that. She probably won’t move out until she has a specific reason – like marriage or a move to a different city.
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Well, that’s unfortunate that people can’t tell the difference between moocher and a thoughtful decision. If the parents and adult children have a respectful relationship, and the young adults saving money on rent, then that’s a wise thing to do.
Honestly I would’t mind moving back home after school. I know this article is supposed to mean “jobless after college”, but IMO working and living at home would be a great way to pay off debt quickly. Then again my family/culture doesn’t have the stigma against living at home after 18 like many Americans do 