Mills75 wrote:
How clever does one have be to look for something they don't know, and usually don't even suspect, exists? I'd say pretty damn clever. And if they find that there is such a thing as financial aid and a financial aid office, they still have to figure out how to fill out the forms, where to get the required information (when you're a poor kid, and need your parents' financial records, that can be a real pain in the ass), etc. Because of a variety of factors springing from the condition of the poor, many people from the lower classes simply conclude early on that they can't go to college, and no one corrects this self-defeating ideology.
They don't know that financial aid exists??? This is nonsense. I don't care what school you go to, college is not some alien concept that has never been mentioned to these kids. Do they think that "rich kids" just pay their tuition in cash??? Almost everybody gets some kind of student loans. As far as filling out paperwork, this is just another sorry excuse. The financial aid office can assist in all of this. You act like everyone is on their own and there's nobody to answer any of their questions. BTW, I decided early on that I wasn't going to college and you know what, I grew up a bit and I changed my mind. I started college at 24.
Quote:Networks are socially interconnected groups of people. For example, a college graduate whose parents are upper middle or upper class more often than not have connections that will help secure their graduate more lucrative employment. The student with poorer roots will have only him or herself and whatever services the college may offer on which to rely. The bottom line is that the best paying jobs will tend to be filled by those graduates with higher class background while the lower class students will tend to occupy the lower paying jobs left over.
OK, well I'm afraid that's the way it goes. My father is a retired toolmaker from GE. My mother was a secretary for the state of New York. I am middle class. I don't really expect any type of connections from them to get a job. I have to find my own way and I'm alright with that.
Quote:
Well I can't speak to the discount education you're apparently receiving, but the average college grad. who has student loans to pay off will be paying quite a lot more than $100 a month. But again, think of it as part of filtration system--$100/month for 15 years is $18,000; that's $18,000 less that you'll have to invest, build equity in property, or just throw in the bank than the graduate whose family paid the bill. It doesn't seem like much, but it's one more hindrance to upward mobility; it's one more obstacle to social mobility that not everyone will be able to shrug off.
It's not discounted, that's just community college. Of course if I go on to a four year university it will be more, but I'm pretty sure you have longer to pay it off. I don't know what to tell you, I'm not looking forward to paying all this money back but that's what I have to do. Is it your opinion that a college education should be provided by the government?? I wouldn't necessarily be against that, I just don't know how feasible it would be.
Quote: why should we continue to allow the socio-economic status of the families we're born into be the most important factor affecting our social mobility?
Again, I'm not sure if this is quite accurate. I think it's only perceived to be that way by some people. Don't get me wrong, I know some people genuinely give it 110% and are still stuck at the bottom, but I think the number of people like this are drastically exaggerated. I made excuses for years of why I couldn't do this or that, but the bottom line was I just didn't want to work hard. I'm still like that sometimes and I have to force myself(along with the nagging of my wife
) to be assertive. If I wanted it, I'm confident I could be quite well off, but that's not what's important to me. I'm content to be middle class and not have the responsiblity that comes with power and money.
