PERSONAL BIAS
I, like everyone else, cannot go into any conversation without some form of personal bias. That is true in this case as well.
Let me explain. I graduated high school in 1969. I wanted to go to college more than anything else in the world. I wanted to be a lawyer. I do not know how long I had wanted that, but that is pretty much all I ever wanted to be. While I didn’t have the greatest grades, I scored very, very high on my SAT’s and ACT’s (top 3 percentile in the nation). But I was ignorant as to what that meant and with effectively no counselor at that time (he was involved in extracurricular activities), my 15 minutes of counseling did not help much.
I did have an offer to pay a full ride for all of my schooling that I depended on if I attended a specific Community College for my first two years. This turned out to be a $50 check in August after I graduated.
Thus, my introduction to the real world.
After one quarter at the Community College, I needed to borrow money for the next quarter. I borrowed $500 in January, 1970 which is roughly $4,000 today.
After that quarter, I had an erstwhile attempt to earn some money for the next quarter that ended badly so it went to work in the lumber mill and revisited my higher education plans. It became very, very obvious that I could not get a law degree without borrowing my way into future poverty, even if I got scholarships somewhere down the line (remember this is before such things as the plethora of grants).
Thus, unlike way too many modern-day students, I made the hard decision to change my career goals. Anyone who knows me knows I never became a lawyer. Hell, I never got any kind of baccalaureate degree until I was 48 years old and well established in my ultimate profession.
I chose to enter the Business Programming field because I showed both aptitude and interest in it. Strangely, there were very few junior/community colleges that had the equipment and programs that were actually conducive to train people at the level for them to actually get positions. And, a 4-year degree was, as noted, out of the question. Ironically, most 4-year colleges did not even provide programs in business application programming yet, opting for the math/science model.
So, I chose a Business College that had a highly regarded program. I used a combination of working in the lumber mill and borrowing an additional $500 dollars in 1971 (roughly another ($4K today) to get a certification, even though it took 2 years to get the 9 months of education/training.
(Ironic note: at the conclusion of the, I did not get a programming job because, quite frankly, affirmative action raised its ugly head. I returned to the lumber mill temporarily, got a job in a few jobs in computer operations and management, and finally got into programming in 1991. I did not look back!)
Post schooling, I paid my loans. I paid more than was required. I paid as much as I could. Raman noodles and fast days were involve. No car. Living in a boarding house instead of an apartment. But I paid my loans. You say, “it was only $1000”. Yeh, but try paying it of in the one of the most expensive city in America at the time, San Francisco, and getting paid squat:
- Takehome: $550-580 month (depending on overtime)
- Rent: $320 month
Now tell me that was not hard.
So do I know how hard it was? Damned right I do. I was not burdened with a family. But here is the thing, and an important thing:
I never borrowed more money than I thought I could pay back in the timeframe of the loan period. When push came to shove, I quit school and went back to work.
Yes, I could have borrowed my way to an education, but I did not. I did not borrow against my future. Thus, I find it hard to sympathize with those who have done so.
An Addendum
As I have not discussed this with the person I am talking about, I will be very circumspect regarding specifics here, but I assure you that this is absolutely factual.
A person I know, unlike me exceled in high school plus had the SAT and ACT scores as well, faced the same dilemma. Even with grants and minor scholarships, a 4-year degree was out of the question without borrowing money and more money, sacrificing any real chance at a future.
So, after attending community college for a short time on scholarship, this person opted the trade school route, paying for most of it by working full-time. In fact, when the bills became too much, this person opted to leave school rather than incur more debt.
This person began working, working hard. Self-training and trying to fit into emerging careers this person created a great career. Is it the career this person wanted: no. Does this person sometimes wish that they had been able to obtain their original career: I do not know. But here is the thing. This person, as a late teenager/early adult had the maturity to not become encumbered with debt for the future that could not be guaranteed.
