Do people who don't go to college end up earning less?

IIHotelYorba · 2017-06-15T01:09:04+00:00

it is a statistical fact that as a group they do. YMMV

[deleted] · 2017-06-15T01:23:43+00:00

My answer will be a combo of spaceboobs' and atlas'.

The statistics are easily accessible, and it's a fact that people with college degrees, as a group, outearn those without.

BUT

Those stats don't tell the whole story. Tradesmen can make a very good living. I grew up with dudes who went into the oil field and made 75K right out of high school. (The oil industry is fickle though; you might make 100K one year and then be unemployed or working at 7-11 for two. Things like plumbing and HVAC are more stable, but pay less.)

There are also people like my SO who have college degrees but left white collar work for the trades. So that muddies things too.

A lot of the people I hear saying "College is a waste of time, you can make a good living without a piece of paper" are the types who think they're going to start their own business and hit it big a la Steve Jobs. These people, and the types who are unmotivated and never do anything but work retail/wait tables, are usually not going to outearn degree holders. But tradesmen very well can and oftentimes do.

Butt-Factory · 2017-06-15T01:27:25+00:00

Most of them do, but there are always outliers. Many successful entrepreneurs skipped college or dropped out early. UPS drivers don't need a degree and do well, skilled tradesmen can earn buckets of money. I was earning up to 50 dollars an hour as a private gymnastics coach years ago, before I went to college. College isn't necessary for everyone, but some level of higher education is a good move for the vast majority

Atlas_B_Shruggin · 2017-06-15T01:13:11+00:00

depends on if they become skilled tradespeople or not

drok007 · 2017-06-15T01:44:34+00:00

This doesn't seem related to PPD.

[deleted] · 2017-06-15T02:30:03+00:00

what's this doing here?

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Title	Do people who don't go to college end up earning less?
Author	wholesomedude
Upvotes	2
Comments	25
Date	June 15, 2017 1:07 AM UTC (9 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/PurplePillDebate
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/PurplePillDebate/comments/6hbuiw/do_people_who_dont_go_to_college_end_up_earning/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/PurplePillDebate/do-people-who-dont-go-to-college-end-up-earning.267586 https://theredarchive.com/post/267586

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