National Student Walk-out Day October 5th Against Unforgivable Student Debt & Soaring Tuition

[1776Forever]

National Student Walk-Out Day
Against unforgivable student debt and soaring tuition rates

Visit for more information:
nystudentsrising.org
studentsunitedforafreecuny.wordrpess.com
takebackbrooklyn.wordpress.com
resistandmultiply.wordpress.com


This is part of the Occupy Wall Street movement which is part of a wider movement tied in to the protests in Egypt, Spain, and more to fight for the voice of the people and not just the elite 1%.

http://my.umbc.edu/discussions/2333

(From: Occupy The Hood on Twitter)

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. This is spreading

[FarCenter]

2. So students who are paying $100 to $200 / day for college are going to skip a day?

Yeah, that makes sense...

[justiceischeap]

3. You know, even when things are expensive or you're poor

there are more important things than money. I think the whole reasoning behind OWS is that people are more important than money.

So they skip a day and waste $100/$200. What good does that missed day do them if they can't find a friggin' job when they graduate or they have to quite because college is just getting too expensive?

[FarCenter]

6. If you're not in a college and in a major with a GPA that will get you a job -- drop out now!

Don't run up a debt for no practical reason.

Jeez, people are getting really bad at math.

[Missy Vixen]

7. If you don't have a college degree - any college degree

it is difficult to find a job.

If you have a college degree, the vast majority are drowning in debt to GET that degree in the first place.

>Don't run up a debt for no practical reason.<

What do you suggest the average student do? I can't wait to read this...

:eyes:

[OhioChick]

8. You're absolutely right n/t

[FarCenter]

11. "any" college degree probably isn't going to help

What's the employment market for a $160,000 BA in French and Romance Philology from Columbia with a 2.5 GPA?

A college degree has a pretty wide variability in market value depending on the college you get it from, the major you took, and how well you did, including internships and part-time work experience.

So it is up to the student to be a wise and informed consumer of educational services by weighing the costs of various programs against the employment prospects and recent track record of graduates from the institution and the major.

Meanwhile, there is little point in cutting classes when you are paying $30 / hour to sit with 200 other students in an auditorium and listen to the professor.

[Missy Vixen]

17. Oh, I see

>So it is up to the student to be a wise and informed consumer of educational services by weighing the costs of various programs against the employment prospects and recent track record of graduates from the institution and the major.<

Someone majoring in French and Romance Philology from Columbia is studying on trust fund money, and you know that as well as I do. They're not financing their education with loans.

So someone getting a, say, teaching degree deserves what they get? How about a student working on his/her MBA, graduating this year? They started that path before 2008. It costs over $1 million to set a doctor up in practice, but there is a significant primary physician (GP) shortage. Anyone taking that path is stupid, too, right?

The fact remains that EVERY degree now costs upwards of $50K, and more like $100K if the student in question is at a private university. There is no "foolproof" degree for employment.

It's too bad all those students graduating with significant debt didn't talk with you first. I'm sure you could have set them straight.

:eyes:

[1776Forever]

9. OK - But what about all those who started their degrees before the bottom dropped out? What then?

When there are so many people without a job to even try for it is not a question of dropping out. You still have the loan payment to meet. It is a good thing for those future students to think about what their major should be, I will give you that, but there are so many out here that didn't have that luxury when they started.

[FarCenter]

13. Never throw good money after bad.

What something cost in the past is irrelevant.

The only consideration is how the asset purchased by that investment can be used to generate income from this point in time forward.

Economic Analysis 101

[1776Forever]

14. Are you an economist? You sure sound like one - no offense. I think you are thinking like one & a

lot of people maybe should think more like you but they often don't:) That is reality and when you go to a college to better yourself you expect to get something out of your investment. Just saying.

[FarCenter]

15. An engineer, but a lot of engineering work involves comparative economics of alternative projects

Bear in mind that originally (say 1870 to WW I) when universities first grew large, getting a 4-year degree was mostly something that was done by the upper middle class. It was not so much for practical purposes as it was to evidence that the family was well enough off that the student did not have to immediately apprentice himself or go into business, but instead take the four years of college, often with a following year of travel. Thereafter, a position in the family business, or one arranged through relatives or family business contacts, would await. College also provided contacts with opposite sex members of good families and an appropriate match. The only exceptions to this model were the students entering professions, such as law, medicine and the clergy, who might be particularly studious and talented lads from less prosperous families.

Now, if your family and connections are certain to get you employment, then a degree in a highly academic suject still adds that social patina, but it has little to do with your worldly prospects. The earnings prospects of an Ivy League BA has more to do with who receives the degree than is has to do with the instruction that is received.

Other students must make a more practical evaluation of whether their expenditures, of borrowed money or their own, will increase their prospects for earnings in the future.

[1776Forever]

20. I agree with that. You would hope in the future those who do pursue a higher degree will think like

this. I believe more and more people who are starting out now are doing just that.

[Missy Vixen]

19. They can just get a job after they drop out

Imagine what the job prospects are for someone who didn't complete a BA or BS these days.

:eyes:

[joeglow3]

18. And, we have a winner!!!!

My masters in accounting was a great investment, as was my wife's bachelors in Nursing.

Sadly, I had friends pay just as much for degrees in History, Spanish and English. Guess what kind of a return they have received on their investment.

[Matariki]

21. And so goes KNOWLEDGE in our society.

We become a nation of comprised of either uneducated people or people with business degrees. Sound really great for society. Sounds like it will carry our nation into the 21st century. :sarcasm:

[joeglow3]

22. Once again, it is simple supply and demand

Instead, we become a nation of comprised brilliant people with no skills in demand, living in the streets with no food? Sounds really great for society. Sounds like it will carry our nation into the 21st century.


That aside, sure we need history and English offered in our universities. We need well educated people to teach these at universities to ensure we all graduate well rounded, in addition to a meaningful degree. What we don't need is 1,000 TIMES the number of degrees in those fields than there are jobs for them. For instance, we have 3 large state universities in our state, ALL of which offer degrees in these same fields. There is NO need for more than one of the schools to offer a history degree. NO ONE is saying we should offer no history courses at the other campuses. Rather, lets ensure we are a society that is equipped to lead meaningful lives, rather than a bunch of smart as shit people living in the streets with no food. At the same time, we can reduce the needless duplication in the unversity system and bring costs down to a level that people can afford.

I really hate it when people throw common sense out the window and ONLY work with extremes.

[1776Forever]

4. What good does a degree do for their future? Yes it makes sense - When you graduate with no job to

pay the loan back and the Banks are the only winners - Time to protest!

[white_wolf]

5. I need to see if my school has anything planned for this.

Probably not, Knoxville sucks, but I'm going to talk to a few friends and see if they know anything.

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

10. Sounds like a good time for profs to schedule exams & pop quizzes...

[1776Forever]

12. If no one is in the classroom it will be interesting. n/t

[joeglow3]

16. Followed by National Students Are Pissed At Their Zero Test Score Day on October 6th