Me and my fellow workers were having a conversation and from cars it came up to

four years of college VS four years of experience

Im currently working as an IT at a growing mortgage company (the potential of the company is unbelievable reaching to the multi billion $ stage) and taking a few classes in UMBC. at the rate im going ill be 27 by the time i finish college or i can decide to go to college full time and graduate 3 years early, but because at a young age i realize that my experience also plays a role in the jobs i got(ive been making more money than the average american since i was 18) but at the same time; i feel like im missing out on a good amount of the college life. im at a stage in my life; deciding which is best. i dont want to look back and say i missed out but i also dont want to waste the opportunity that i have now.

its interesting because i look at my sister who graduated college with a geodetical engineering masters and make around 72k a year then i look at my other sister that only went to college for a year and she makes 68k a year.

im 20 and im making 32k+ a year. granted i really dont have social life because of school and work.

thoughts and opinions

this is a serious question so if you really dont have anything productive to add or say just dont.

 

Just know this, if you want to ever get past a manager title, you will need a degree. If you plan on being a life long network engineer, I honestly wouldn't bother with a 4 yr school at all. How far out are your goals job position wise? Aim to finish your schooling accordingly, you already have some experience, that will go far in combination with the paper.

 

Please finish school. It's quite an accomplishment and it opens up so many doors. I went for two years, left at 20 to work, finally went back at 22 and just graduated this year. As a result of graduating I was able to get a job in the same field that paid 40% more than my previous one without a degree. I plan on going to law school next year. You definitely won't regret going for that degree, trust me.

 

Honestly you just have to look into your self and what you want your life to be. My first year of college was the best year of my life. I had about 11 years of education after that year, some of those being very hard. I think the education made me a better person. I met some intellegent people in college and learned ways to think more efficiently and use the scientific method. I learned how to communicate better and problem solve. I also learned about history and mistakes that people have made as well as what artists were thinking when they made their works of art.

Those are the reasons to go to college, the education. It's quite true you can at times make as much or more than a college grad not going to school, so it depends on what you want out of life.

 

what's your goal? .
Higher education will make it more likely for you to do better career wise but money is not the only thing in life.
luck plays a large part of how successful you are too. I read that the original secretary of the Waltons is worth tens of millions b/c she was given Walmart stock options early in the company's existence.

 

Im the IT director of maryland office.

my dilemma is not about financial since i know both ways i will earn money and still graduate.

its just that i feel like im missing out on what you experience in college, and the lessons learned outside of a class room.

 

In reference to what PDX said, it's true. There's a barrier/limit per say in terms of climbing a coporate ladder and compensation when it comes to not having that degree. I have a good friend that dropped out of college but is obviously very bright and good at what does, currently working for a very well known foreign bank. He's been there for a couple of years now and is making six figures. Until recently, he tried looking for jobs elsewhere but not too many places are willing to pony up the same pay because he's lacking that degree. If you can be happy and achieve what you want in life by making to that limit, then I'd say, it's really your call.

 

I think you need to go experience the college life then.

 

there's no "best." A college degree is great because it can tell an employer you have what it takes to finish what you start, but I think something over half the richest people in America have no degree. Somewhere around half of the most successful CEO's have no degree, according to a survey several years ago by a business mag (I can't remember offhand which one). The argument can be made that someone with no degree must work harder to succeed, but is just as likely to "make it" in the long run as someone who has a diploma.

But thinking realistically, a person with a degree will likely make more money over the course of their lifetime than someone with out, on average. That doesn't mean everyone with a college degree makes more than everyone without, and there are plenty of people who work in service jobs (like waiting tables) or part-time simply to supplement the family income that can skew those stats down. There's plenty of people making nice livings without college degrees.

FWIW, you'd rather be busy with school and work than be unemployed with no prospects, I'm sure. The fact that your current rate seems glacial shouldn't discourage you. Things change, and you might find the time and money down the road to go full-time.

 

I wonder what the stats are for CEO's who started their companies and they became successful vs. CEO's who rose through the ranks of an established company without a degree. Just curious.