An Alternative Look at the Cost of College
By Alex Picard
It is something that has been asked of us since we were children. It becomes a more daunting and pressing task once we come into junior year, and more so our senior year.
If you guessed “choosing a college and a major that will set the trajectory for the rest of your life,” you are correct. From a very young age, many of us are told, as we drive by a McDonalds, that if we don't get a good job we'll end up working for minimum wage and living paycheck to paycheck.
Thanks mom, no stress there.
But what resources are we given before making this decision? Are we given real opportunities to look into non-college based careers and what could become of those decisions? Taking matters into my own hands, I looked at careers most desired in Maine, the cost of living in our state, and whether we can or cannot just survive, or more importantly, LIVE without a college degree.
First stop: Portland, Maine, because not only is it the closest “large” city to Poland Regional, but because that's where a lot of our job market exists. My first step in this process was first to find an apartment. Of course I'm going to be looking at the most affordable option available and what accommodations these buildings come with. The apartment that I found was a one-bed one-bathroom apartment going for $2,085- $2,599 a month. Yes, that was the cheapest one I could find – on apartments.com, anyway. The apartment comes with a dishwasher, fridge, oven, microwave, air conditioning, and a fireplace.
Skipping a few nitty-gritty boring details, for you, dear reader, I looked for other possible monthly costs that would come with living on your own, such as heating, internet, phone plan, water, electricity, insurance (health and car), gas, as well as the food and any extras that you wish to spend your money on like entertainment. And the total was what I thought was an unreasonable amount. Our grand total was: around $3,777 per month for living expenses. This would call for some strict budgeting or a really really well-paying job.
But to get such a job … to live in Portland at a young age …do you need a degree?
Of course you do, I told myself. I mean, how else could you reach this unreasonable monthly cost? So I got to work looking at what jobs that absolutely need no college degree to be a candidate for employment, and what those jobs may pay. According to Indeed.com ….
- Warehouse package handler
- Up to $18/hr
- Subway
- $14/hr
- McDonalds
- $14/hr
- Production workers
- $17/hr
- Weaver machine operator
- $15-17/hr
- Cashier
- $13-14/hr
- Night machine operator
- $25.45/hr
- Child care provider
- $28k a year
- Doggy day care
- $14-18/hr
- Goodwill sales associate
- $23k -29k year
- Johan sales associate
- $12.75/hr
Each of these jobs would leave me a thousand or $1,500 short of my monthly needs.
Getting past that, I learned that Registered Nurse could be a career that meets my skill set and interest level. Registered Nurses are in very high demand and could pay my cost of living in Portland. You could possibly be making upward of $3,840 per month and an average of $52- $99,000 or more a year, depending on skills and location. This is not only a very versatile job in that you can take this anywhere, it has great job security so that you'll always have a job that'll be able to pay your rent. Due to the pandemic, Nurses are in critical demand so the pay could be potentially higher than what I have stated here.
Of course, anyone can learn this stuff on the Internet. Needing a different perspective, I went to my counselor, Mr. McFadden.
Q. Would you say that college is “essential”?
- Its necessity is based on what is going on in society today. But some form of training and education is important. But then again I know a lot of people can be successful just going to work out of high school.
- Game warden, or something outdoors. Maybe also something in the culinary field.
- Yes. There are several different training opportunities. My nephew is pursuing his journeyman's certification which is something you get paid for while you're learning. You can make some really good money without having to go to college.
- Giving yourself options really helps making the decision easier. I try to steer students away from the tough times (lots of student debt)
- It really depends on the field that you're pursuing. Some things you just can't do in Maine. Our state needs a plan to keep its smart youth here so that it could create more opportunities for growth and business.
- By keeping in contact with graduates, lots of students have gone on into the healthcare field, sciences and engineering.
- BIW is trying to recruit people for a 4 week training program that allows you to be trained in trades like wielding or manufacturing, and you'll get $500 a week if you complete the course. At the end of the 4 week period you can get an interview with them and hopefully get a job.
Q. Is it ok to go into college undecided?
- Absolutely, and it's easier because of the free college that's being offered at CMMC.
- Is the thing that I want to major in worth the struggle to make ends meet financially, and is it realistic for living.?
Bottom line: college is NOT an essential, set-in-stone, absolute requirement for any of us to further our education or live a good life. What's important is finding a career or a degree that you can enjoy, or tolerate – one that will pay the bills and the debt that you might accumulate. I think the importance of college may be overstated, despite the best of intentions. College can expand horizons … and debt, and possibly a degree you don’t use. You still have to pay the bills.