Forum Post: Occupy colleges?
Posted 13 years ago on Oct. 28, 2011, 8:18 p.m. EST by stanklem28
(81)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
As a U.S. college student, I feel overworked for the amount of money I'd earn when I graduate. I also feel that I'm taking classes that are unnecessary to my degree. For example, why would an Electrical Engineer (me) need to take Intro to Renaissance Art? That's just a complete WASTE of my tuition money, money that I'd have to get loaned to me, money that I'd have to pay back!
The prospects of getting a job is horrid right now. I've sent copious resumes to several companies and they have been completely ignored.
If you're a college student, you could fully understand the degree of suffering good-hearted college students go through in order to reach that "American Dream" that has been long lost due to America's insatiable greed.
Here's me trying to get a higher education, working hard, dreaming big, but then because of the greedy college system, my dreams are crushed.
Tuition rates are increasing faster than the hiring rates of college students. In other words, in college, we also have a "top 1%" --those that cheat to get 4.0's and use their unearned free-time to commit themselves more to work and doing other things that they could put on their resume, ultimately leading to their employment in a decent-paying company.
The whole college system is a mess. GPA is a very INACCURATE measure of successful workers in the work-force. Talk about being unemployed AND in debt after you're handed your Bachelor's Degree.
Tell it like it is.
this was never a problem back 3-4 decades ago. Now it's a HUGE problem that's currently being IGNORED, the same as bank bailouts.
Put the rising medical cost on that list "big time"
Education has become an “industry”. In this country Public Colleges should be all but free. It is getting to the point where the common person cannot afford to be educated
The really sick part is that: it was the public school system that provided the talent for design, engineering, manufacturing and managing the most powerful corporations on the planets
What’s going to happen when we are dumbed down and untalented as a nation?
I don't know the answer to that. Something has to change...
You need to understand that an indian engineer can do just as good a job as you, for a pittence of what you cost in the U.S.
I used to work for a major aerospace company (now I work for another aerospace company), said first aerospace company let a whole team of engineers go, because they picked up another team of engineers in India who could do the same (or so they thought) work for a pittence. You must remember that engineers often work in a BUSINESS. Business is about two things 1. Revenue generation and 2. Cost reduction, for the ultimate goal of profit. if you, an american engineer, costs the company more than a comparable indian engineer, the BUSINESS will hire the indian, not the american. This suck for us Americans, but is a hard reality. Add in College debt and it truely sucks. I honestly feel for you! We need to take back our government, and take care of Americans!!!
Getting the undercut prices will mean the creation of the United States of <Input name of country which America buys the most goods from here>
Occupy the Bursar's Office!
The college bubble will bust sometime in the near future. People are feed up with being ripped off and weighed down with insane student loans to pay back. Colleges need to be made affordable. Students should not be coming out of colleges owning so much money becoming debt slaves for the rest of their lives. It is a nightmare.
Please see this video clip. It is the best I find online on this subject. http://inflation.us/videos.html
I heard the NIA is a fraud. It saddened me when I heard about it because that organization was the only thing I found solace in when life sucks (which is pretty much everyday).
Oh, don't forget books, board, food, etc. those could easily cost $5k+
Remember, if someone is out there telling the truth they will have a campaign against them trying to discredit them at all cost. OWS has been attacked relentlessly. People have gone out of their way to discredit it and the protestors. EPIC Fail.
One of the things they mentioned in the video is the whole college textbook racket, where they make students buy newer versions of text books that had very little changes to it because they don't want students getting a hold of used text books. Colleges are a business and they really are out to maximize their profits. College students need to watch out for themselves. It's really rough out there right now.
I remember when I was in differential equations. Got the 3rd edition of the book while prof lectured on 5th edition. Made an A without even the littlelist effort, that's because the books were the same and I had Wikipedia and "Paul's Online Notes."
See. That just pisses me off.
Good for you for acing the course without getting the latest edition of the text book. What a ripoff!
They're like 90% cheaper lol. The only thing that change was the number 3 to 5.
I guess increasing a number 2 times makes a book cost more.
School is for suckers. Education is lifelong, and happens everywhere at all times.
Education can be obtained on Wikipedia. If you don't trust Wikipedia, google the subject, and learn more.
School is to get you "certified" to work, which is stupid.
Getting certified is one thing. Indenturing yourself for tens of thousands of dollars to get certified is foolish.
Hahah, my thoughts exactly.
It feels like no matter how hard I work, i'll NEVER make 6 figures. It seems like this wealth disparity functions as a pseudo-caste system, which is hard to see, therefore not alot of people are so outraged.
I mean, there's no way you can start out broke and become rich, unless you're the .00001% that are ACTUALLY innovative. I'm more in the lines of work hard, and get rewarded. Too bad recently, all I've got was hard work, and no reward.
Bro, this whole "class warfare" talk is such a smokescreen. It's not like the middle class is disappearing. As if, we have all these people, and they're just going away. I don't even think most of them are getting poorer. We're losing economic mobility. So as somebody works their way from 20k a year to 60k, and then on to 100k and up, they move up the ladder. It's getting harder and harder to get up to 100k. So as the middle class people who are able to move onward, do so, and they aren't replaced by poor people coming in behind them, working their way up to middle class. It's not "wealth disparity" that is the problem, it's UPWARD ECONOMIC MOBILITY that is the problem (or lack thereof).
Hard work will pay off. Unless it doesn't.
apparently it doesn't pay.
I have a cousin working as an Aerospace engineering. Graduated and got his MS after like 10 years of work. He's now working at, guess where...
Cosco, bagging groceries at 12 bucks an hour. I guess all that time analyzing air vibrations and plane flight behaviors was so that he could see how plastic bags and paper boxes fly once they've been emptied of their contents.
And this is exactly why school is a scam.
Sucks man, wish you and your cousin the best.
Thanks man.
It makes me sad that my cousin had like almost 100 grand to pay off and he's working only a few bucks from minimum wage.
He said that he didn't learn much practical things when he was an undegrad, and he thought he could probably learn them in grad school. He was wrong apparently. It all had to do with the demands, and he chose the wrong major. mechanical engineers took his job during his undergrad years because they had practical knowledge. He only had theoretical knowledge, and it couldn't be used for much.
It's absolutely insane.
Similar thing happened to me, only I didn't have nearly so much debt, Thank God. I went to school for traditional animation almost 10 years ago, and the industry crashed overnight, six months before I graduated. It went from a 5,000 person industry to several hundred people shipping all the work overseas, instantly. I still have a little bit of student loan to pay off, but not much. And it's made me realize how pointless school really is.
Problem is, we keep encouraging people to go to school. Jobs keep trying to require degrees. We shame people if they don't get the piece of paper. There's a huge societal stigma against not going to school, even with many examples counter the point (Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, millions of tradesmen). We need people to unplug from the concept of school, en masse. The question is, how we get it started...?
It's not going to start with OWS, but it will start when the state of the U.S. is in dire conditions, or in other words, in cataclysm.
What's left when there's nothing left? Nothing. What's to make when there's nothing left? Everything
We can rebuild once we are given the chance to start over, fresh, be it through a bloody revolution (hope not), or a mass enlightenment of the general public known as the "99%"
Because who in the 1% would go to school? Unless they want to? Hell, I don't think anyone in the 1% would go to school, the internet's there, and you don't need to get certified for anything, right? Just wikipedia it.
Other than as a requirement for a job interview, there's no reason to go to school. http://www.khanacademy.org
exactly.
The college system is so fucked up on so many levels.
Even libya has free education and free healthcare and gaddafi was supposedly so bad.
Without the possibility to get out of student loan debt either. But this is a great idea, and I think people should spread what the real truth is behind the movement
http://occupywallst.org/forum/a-1er-with-some-asnwers/
People also cant be scared to voice what they know is right. This movement is for the PEOPLE! If people hear about the actual cause, and keep home their political ideologies, this movement will work. So, on that regard, get together with fellow college students if your in college and start displaying the real information. Along with this, its very easy to write a note on social networking cites giving a brief understanding of the federal reserve, and highlighting that this movement benefits everyone.
College students are taught to think the way the University thinks. This means these students can't think for themselves.
For example, an indirect psychological effect of University on students is girls wearing Nike shorts carrying around Iphone 4 to 4s. Nike gets its cash, so does Apple. See that? Two companies just got a bunch of money because of female students trying to "fit" into the way those sorority or fraternities think of them.
The majority of college students don't know anything about the federal reserve system or fractional reserve banking or such intricate economical things like that. All they know is what they learn in their major, what they learn in their deceited sororities/fraternities, and what they read from their Facebook page.
They usually fight against change, and it takes alot to persuade them.
Even if you did persuade them...
"This just in, iPhone 5 is coming out tomorrow!"
students: "I'M GETTING IT! BECAUSE EVERYONE MUST HAS AN IPHONE 5!!!"
yep. society has progressively gotten much stupider and ignorant in their beliefs and what is held important. College students simply seem to not care about the future, and choose to stay away from politics or only hold steadfast to their own implanted set of beliefs. But then again, you have to think of whose running public schools, and if they honestly want to make current and following generations smarter...
They'd have to be less greedy. Not going to happen.
Every human is susceptible to greed, its about having solid principles, and honest morality/ concern for humanity.
I'm not greedy. I just want to live! Without ripping off years from my life because of constant stress.
I wouldn't mind making billions, but if I did, i'd use it to make change, starting with America, and keep just enough to make myself happy.
yep. money doesnt buy happiness. your always just going to want more
Money DOES buy happiness.
It buys the sought-for "American Dream." The only thing is that it costs like 50 times more than it used to cost in 1980.
Oh, we're also hitting 7 billion people. Demand and supply. Prices of human assets go down as more people are born (or supplied) to the world.
For me, I'd just stop at having a house, a wife, a kid, and a decent job that pays for my household. I wouldn't want to get anymore than that because I'd be completely happy then. That's what I LIVE for, and i'm not ALIVE to say the least.
Anything that comes after supporting my household is called "Greed." But now, I just don't even see any of this happening, and I'd never be greedy since I'd already have what I want.
yet we have 800 billion dollars going towards military and another 500 on other defense needs. think of what just half of that money could do if it went towards poverty and humanity, rather tools to kill. Although its probably not a bad idea we have that now, considering how our "American Dream" has looked a lot like global conquest..
Heh, I never asked for war...
Hell, all I understood of why the U.S. fights the middle east is for oil. I don't bother myself with that bull. It's stupid, and it should STOP NOW!
Ha yeah i was just making a point. Either way, we need some smart people running this jont that actually like humanity.. haha
Humans liking humanity....that's hard to believe, unless it's people like me.
I just don't get why people have to stay so conceited, so careless, and so ruthless.
Check out the de Rothschild family, they define selfishness as a human family.
american universities need alot of help
In terms of remodeling their greedy system that's based on FOOTBALL FOOTBALL FOOTBALL and RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH, both of which only increase the notoriety of universities and in turn get more students, which means more cash to act as assets.
It's certainly not based on the students and teaching.
it's all about the money.
If you're already complaining that Renaissance Art is too hard and hurting your GPA then you should probably cut your losses and quit now, because your core engineering classes are going to kick your ass.
I think you are missing the point. The person who posted this thread is questioning why is it mandatory that he/she takes this liberal art class (Renaissance Art) when he/she is pursuing a degree in Electric Engineering.
The colleges/universities say that it is making the student more well rounded, I say just let the college student take classes that is relevant to his/her degree and don't push b.s. liberal art classes on him/her, milking them for more money.
They haven't so far. I only earned 2 B+'s from all my engineering/science courses, and that includes upper division electrical engineering courses such as those microprocessing classes/labs.
People like you hinder the progress of science. That's why we're not in space yet. It's because of idiots like you! We're stuck here...dealing with IDIOTS, like YOU!
When I was your age, I was taking senior-level computer science classes instead of those art history and music theory classes, because I wanted to get the most that I could out of college. I've been in very high demand ever since and now I'm a CTO. If you're so self-confident in your abilities then nobody is forcing you to take useless classes. The main reason more people don't do what I did is because they don't want to take difficult classes. They want to do the minimum necessary to get a degree so that they can use the degree to get a job. My approach was different. Nobody has ever asked me about my GPA, and after the first couple of years nobody ever even asked me whether I have a degree, where it's from, or what it's for. My abilities are my introduction. If you're so smart and self-confident then maybe you should try that angle.
I just wanted to live the "American Dream" by graduating college and making a decent living. Apparently, that's kind of impossible now. Back in the 1980s, standards were low so you don't need a college degree to make as much money as today.
Also, I need those bullcrap classes in order to graduate. I have no choice but to take them.
I always thought the "American Dream" was working hard to build up a good life for yourself, not doing the bare minimum and expecting the best out of life. But hey, I could be wrong. It seems the "American Dream" has changed in the last 10-15 years.
If I had gone over the bare minimum, it'd be only for self-satisfaction and to boost my ego.
Wages are falling, unemployment rates are at DEPRESSION level! I'd work hard if I know it pays, and I'm sure it won't.
If you graduate with an electrical engineering degree then you'll be fine. If the other people involved in this protest movement had electrical engineering degrees then they wouldn't be involved in this protest movement.
Graduates don't get job unless they had jobs...
So far, I've gotten no job! No idea why they don't want me.
Pretty much if I graduate without a job, I'd only received a piece of potentially worthless paper after 4 years of stress and 4 years worth of hellish debt.
Really? I should dig myself a bigger hole? I'm sure I won't even touch 6 digits if I got an MA, especially in this economy. I'm not even sure I'd get hired.
You were expecting a six-figure salary from electrical engineering? Really? It took me all of five seconds to find how much an electrical engineer can expect to be paid.
http://www.indeed.com/salary/Electrical-Engineer.html
All i'm saying is the amount of work you do nowadays is unparalleled to the amount of money you're paid. Morale is low when you know you won't end up with much.
We are occupying colleges! The GOP debate is coming to my school in 2 weeks and I have already organized a protest :) Not a pro-Obama protest of course, but an anti-corporate owned party protest.
Damn straight. I hope you get stuff done. We have coachs that make MILLIONS, and we have students taking classes that are IRRELEVANT to their undergraduate study. The reason they make students take these stupid useless classes is to make themselves get more money through tuition, so they can pour all of it to the coach, so he can teach the football players to win stupid football games, so the university would get more fans, hence more money.
BS don't get you a job no more. take out another loan and get a MA. but don't go to one of those "internet:" for profits though!!!lol
instead of just 'blaming' the loan companies, a constructive conversation should be had about where these cost are coming from imo.
i went to private. ivy. 1000 a credit? really? why? the loan lenders just met a need. why so much $$$ on the actual colleges end?
these loans are oppressive...
Why don't you go back and ask your teachers what is wrong? Why isn't the system they have fought to build to get more money in THEIR bank accounts helping you succeed and get money into your bank account.
Oh that's right it is all a scam by some evil consortium of bankers. That has caused the educational system to fail you. Why are the youths in China not occupying Beijing? Maybe they have a better chance at making money because they are taught a curriculum not directed by so called educators. Does an EE student in China have to listen to a "teacher" extol the benefits of socialism? How is it that Steve Jobs was so successful after dropping out of college? He was in touch with reality. He was able to CAPITALIZE on his ideas, on his concept of what most people wanted. He didn't complain about Wall Street... he made them alot of money along with those who saw the value of INVESTING in his ideas.
The ideas you are investing in is something for nothing. That is similar to the true evil that happens in Society but is not condoned by Wall Street or anybody. Things like Madoff and his Ponzi scheme or Ken Lay and the Enron scandal. Those things are due to people trying to get something for nothing. How did that work for them. Madoff is in jail and Ken Lay is dead.
You want to change things then take a lesson from the sixties revolution. "Tune in...not turn on." Change starts in Washington not Wallstreet. That is where you need to focus or "Tune into". The real problem is when people believe the lies of the politicians that Wall Street caused the problems. They try to avoid the fact that the true power brokers in Washington are elected with the help of Wall Street money. Get that changed and you will have done something to improve your future prospects.
I never said Wall Street was the appropriate place for this protest. Washington does serve a fitting place for the protest, however.
go to a public school. problem solved
I'm in a public university.
and still too expensive? back in my days (10yrs ago) tuition ex room and board for a public school was like 5-10K a year, which doesn't seem excessive.
not all of us are that privileged with that much money.
i meant if you took out 40-50K in student loans, I'd hardly call that excessive
it is when you can't get a job.
Shut up whiney
you should go fuck yourself and never come back.
I'm back, you going to cry some more about how evil the college system is fortunate spoiled prick
obvious troll is obvious.
Obvious overprivileged crybaby pretending to be a rebel