Machines | Dirty Jobs' Mike Rowe on the High Cost of College (Full Interview)
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"If we are lending money that ostensibly we don't have to kids who have no hope of making it back in order to train them for jobs that clearly don't exist, I might suggest that we've gone around the bend a little bit," says TV personality Mike Rowe, best known as the longtime host of Discovery Channel's Dirty Jobs. "There is a real disconnect in the way that we educate vis-a-vis the opportunities that are available. You have - right now - about 3 million jobs that can't be filled," he says, talking about openings in traditional trades ranging from construction to welding to plumbing. "Jobs that typically parents' don't sit down with their kids and say, 'Look, if all goes well, this is what you are going to do.'" Rowe, who once sang for the Baltimore Opera and worked as an on-air pitchman for QVC, worries that traditional K-12 education demonizes blue-collar fields that pay well and are begging for workers while insisting that everyone get a college degree. He stesses that he's "got nothing against college" but believes it's a huge mistake to push everyone in the same direction regardless of interest or ability. Between Mike Rowe Foundation and Profoundly Disconnected, a venture between Rowe and the heavy equipment manufacturer Caterpillar, Rowe is hoping both to help people find new careers and publicize what he calls "the diploma dilemma." Rowe recently sat down with Reason's Nick Gillespie to discuss his bad experience with a high school guidance counselor (3:20), why he provides scholarships based on work ethic (6:57), the problem with taxpayer-supported college loans (8:40), why America demonizes dirty jobs (11:32), the happiest day of his life (13:14), why following your passion is terrible advice (17:05), why it's so hard to hire good people (21:04), the hidden cost of regulatory compliance (23:16), the problem with Obama's promise to create shovel ready jobs (33:05), efficiency versus effectiveness (34:17), and life after Dirty Jobs (38:24). Aprrox. 41 minutes. Cameras by Meredith Bragg and Joshua Swain. Edited by Bragg. Visit http://reason.com/reasontv/2013/12/13/dirty-jobs-mike-rowe-on-the-high-cost-of for full text, links, and downloadable versions and subscribe to Reason TV's YouTube Channel to receive automatic updates when new material goes live.
Comments
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Smart dude.
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the problem with these "unfilled jobs" is that theyre uncomfortable, low paying and not prestigious.
especially in asian culture, face comes above all. apart from money, its the aura of being an accountant over a welder that motivates parents and kids to go and study for that 4 year degree -
Tradesmen are now making as much as most People out of college. Not all, but most . And without debt. And the ones that aren't making more, at least most of the good tradesmen are working. So if you can sing and dance get a real job. Get active .
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Great interview. Its hard to even find a "dirty job" that pays well. I only have an Associates (technical field) but it was well worth it for me.
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It's not so much that college is bad as that it doesn't prepare you to make a living in the real world.
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The Internet and television have indeed gradually put magazines and newspapers out of business, or rather, absorbed them.
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I know of some college graduates who went over to skilled labor and are doing better financially than they did with white collar jobs. I'm glad I went to college and got my degree because I'm not good with my hands. The GI Bill and NY State Veteran's Scholarship paid for my tuition and expenses. I don't regret the army either. It gave me the time I needed. My great-grandfather, grandfather, and father were tradesmen, and I am proud of them.
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College, Some of the smartest people in the world are usually the dumbest. Thanks to the government.
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The statistics comparing salaries and lifetime earnings of those with vs those without college degrees are misleading. What they don't or can't take into account are things like ambition, work ethic, IQ, people skills, etc. Generally speaking, college grads tend to be smarter and more ambitious than those who don't go or don't finish college. So naturally if you're smarter and more ambitious you'll tend to earn more. But what those stats don't tell you is that a person who has those qualities can be very successful without college, or at least without going to college directly from high school.
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Right wing bias.
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In addition, at our company, the requirements of the work are that our crews dig by and with hand-operated shovels in people's backyards. And there are a number of people who have called the office looking for a job and I tell them that and never hear from the again. Or a few show up and work for one or two days, never to be seen from again, often leaving the job site without warning.
Because it is physical work outside. It can be done. I had already spent a good chunk of thirty years in the first part of my career doing it. And was willing to do it, which makes the difference. And I was making more money than some others I could name. In fact, I used to brag that they pay me really well to dig ditches.
People need a change in paradigm, a new weltanschauung, grow up, and start working. -
The kid on the left of the poster with the college degree looks like Leonardo dicaprio!
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Perfection is the enemy of good.
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maybe we need Mike Rowe as president He seems to have a lot of common sense
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Mike is a sober bloke
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Only go to college for a STEM degree, otherwise learn a trade.
You don't need an English degree to be an author, you don't need a theatre degree to be a good singer/actor, you don't need a gender studies degree to be stupid. -
Its true what mike said Plumbers 100.00 an hr and in some cases more depending on OT or ST and where. Also most service calls are an hr 's time at 150.00 to make a repair in your home.
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Helll yea we need more diesel mechanics. Lots of old guys are retiring and the last 5 years seems like we're always short staffed. 55-70 hour weeks are normal for me... $$$$$
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dirty hands=clean money, also re invest in trade schools and put back in shop class and home ec in our schools.
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its a long term investment and seems as though it should make the government a ton of money. i know i will probably pay 200k or more back but i only borrowed 30k. yes, it was my mistake. just sayin, sometimes shit happens and it also seems quite profitable to the borrower. not sure how people get away with not paying at least what they borrowed. my understanding is that if you go too long without making a payment the government will take your bank account, 401k, social security, garnish your wages etc..