Hodges: College grads need help
COLLEGE GRADS ARE STUCK WITH STUDENT LOAN DEBT AND NO JOBS, by Wayne Hodges
APPLE VALLEY, Ca – Houston, we have a problem. College graduates are leaving school saddled with student loan debt, shaky futures and, most importantly, can’t find decent jobs. Scary. Very scary. Megan Thomas, contributor to MSNBC.com, wrote an excellent article that chronicles the experiences of MBA graduate Michael Barreto; who was subsequently forced to move back home with mom because he couldn’t find work. . “Right now I’m just trying to find any sort of full-time work that would allow me to live on my own and save money for the future,” said a disappointed Barreto.
Here’s more depressing news: the economic forecast calls for darker clouds, heavier thunderstorms, and hail with no sunshine in sight. Why? Job outsourcing, in addition to dwindling consumer confidence and sweat shops, practically ensures an extension of our nation’s economic downturn. A couple weeks ago, Geoffrey Heathcock (a.k.a. Professor Rock) provided some key information involving the “Consumer Confidence Indicator.” The data was not good. As of June 2010, consumer confidence dropped roughly 9.8% with unemployment remaining close to 10%. Scary. Very scary.
Ok, I know what you’re thinking. Why is he raising points about employment and consumer confidence? It’s simple. Many of us are encouraging our children to attend college directly after high school. However, there’s one teeny-weeny problem. Right now, the average grad student accumulates approximately $100,000 in student loan debt. If the trade off is a $12 per hour job at Starbucks, does it really make sense to push higher education? Employers claim college grads are inexperienced and generally unprepared to be productive inside the workplace. But I was always under the impression college provided such experience.
Let’s be frank. The system is broken. It’s time for legislators to get off their ‘keysters’ and implement the repairs necessary to rejuvenate the economy. This includes curtailing job opportunities overseas, providing incentives for domestic manufacturers, and revamping the college education system to provide graduates with the experience necessary to gain top notch employment after school. Otherwise, we’re headed for a cliff like Wile E. Coyote. Somewhere, the Road Runner is laughing. “BEEP BEEP!”
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Wayne Hodges, an MBA from St. Mary University, is the Editor-in-Chief of “Mass Appeal News.” He is also a candidate for Kansas Senate District #7, an adjunct professor, and legislative intern with the Kansas Senate. Wayne welcomes your comments at whodges@massappealnews.com
July 29th, 2010 at 10:16 am
Hodges great article with great points! My grandson got his Masters last year and he still cant find good work. Now students loans are starting to pile up on him. We need to bring our jobs back to the US where they belong. We tell our kids to get a college education then they get out of school and cant find a job. Something is wrong!
July 29th, 2010 at 11:16 am
just want to say i enjoy your articles and the stuff you write about. alot of people can relate to student loans and no jobs. this is a very well written blog post
July 29th, 2010 at 12:04 pm
hodge maybe we should tell our kids to IGNORE college and work a 9-5.
making $12 an hour aint so bad when you dont have student loan debt.
we settin our kids up for failure
July 29th, 2010 at 12:05 pm
what do you expect???? mexicans takin all the jobs
July 30th, 2010 at 2:01 pm
nice article dogg. this just gives kids a reason not to go to college. my cousin got a degree and he works at walmart barely makin minimum wage. this country rapes you one way or another
July 30th, 2010 at 3:44 pm
great article Wayne!!!!!