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Iowa, Iowa State liberal arts colleges face budget woes, cuts

Got a liberal arts degree 12 years ago then came back and got my engineering degree four years ago. The liberal arts degree has and will continue to set me apart in the engineering work place (I can talk to people 😮).
You had to spend $100k+ to learn how to talk? Two degrees? How much debt do you have?
 
Is it “the system” or is it Americans and their ignorance of how finances work? Methinks it is the latter more than the former.
“The road to hell is paid with good intentions.” But Hardin and Waters were both 100% spot on in their opposition (based on the facts) to including “for profits” in their federal reimbursement program.
Yes it is the system which is why we are having these student loan problems. I believe we need to rethink how we spend our money at all levels of government and education too me is one of the most important investments you can make.
 
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Your response is always to blame this side or that side. The world is changing and how kids go to school has changed due to the pandemic. Don’t be so jaded to point your old ass finger at people and say they are to blame. I’m waiting for the “when I was younger” or “kids today aren’t as smart as when we were kids!” Kids are smarter and more aware of their surroundings than when you were once young.
There is nothing wrong with being well educated and exposed to a number of social sciences. Some would say you might appear educated.
Because “the world is changing” does not necessarily mean it is changing for the better.
Contrary to what you want me to be, I think kids are every bit as smart today as before with opportunities folks my age never had. But then again, we (as kids) had the same advantages over my parents stop enjoy today.....as will kids born 40 years from now. I think public schools do an amazing job in developing youngsters and never have the challenges to public education been more complex and difficult to negotiate. However, I believe as an old football coach friend of mine once told me...I would rather develop compete football players...and not just left offensive tackles. Too much “ specialization” detracts from the zest of living life. Liberal arts are the zest of living.
 
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8500 unless Biden wipes it out. And unless you've worked with engineers you won't understand what I mean.
Your case is unrealistic for most. Sounds like your parents are really rich, really poor, or you received scholarships
 
Your case is unrealistic for most. Sounds like your parents are really rich, really poor, or you received scholarships
None of the above. The first degree helped pay for the second. What I'm trying to point out though is the advantages of liberal arts in STEM fields. I wish the engineering curriculum had more time for it.
 
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None of the above. The first degree helped pay for the second. What I'm trying to point out though is the advantages of liberal arts in STEM fields. I wish the engineering curriculum had more time for it.
I have a liberal arts degree as well as a masters. Honestly I don’t see how either of them have been particularly useful other than getting me good jobs. Most of the skills I use daily have been learned on the job.
 
I have a liberal arts degree as well as a masters. Honestly I don’t see how either of them have been particularly useful other than getting me good jobs. Most of the skills I use daily have been learned on the job.
Cool. In a field with notoriously bad communicators, a previous degree with multiple courses in expressing ideas and formulating arguments has proven invaluable. Engineering BS degrees need to be five years to allow for more liberal arts inclusion.
 
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Before the lefties in here jump on me for this I believe we should have a private/public partnership for certain fields of studies that are in need of job applicants, like nursing, to be free. I also believe we can do more through the government (fed/state/local) to make community college affordable to possibly free.
You make some majors free what is the incentive for the college to get rid of the bad students ? They want that free tuition and also what stops the school from setting tuition at $100,000 a year ? The student won’t care because it’s free, the tax payers will be stuck with the bill and likely also get a bunch of crappy nurses.

I like the practice of forgiving loans for people working in needed professions in less than desirable areas.
 
You make some majors free what is the incentive for the college to get rid of the bad students ? They want that free tuition and also what stops the school from setting tuition at $100,000 a year ? The student won’t care because it’s free, the tax payers will be stuck with the bill and likely also get a bunch of crappy nurses.

I like the practice of forgiving loans for people working in needed professions in less than desirable areas. But would have the right amount of nurses in the economy far outweigh the investment we put into that profession?
Let’s stick with nursing here. There is a massive shortage for this certain occupation now and in the future which will cause other issues down the line. Wouldn’t the investment into nursing with a private/public partnership be smart? We get thousands of new tax payers at good salaries for years to come and on top of that people get the care needed.

The question to this is how do we minimize the taxes that citizens pay? Well one there is so much wasteful spending in the state and federal governments that we should be able to offset some costs there. We can Make these hospitals responsible for some of the burdens of the cost. And these are just certain professions and not every degree so the cost would be minimal compared to free college for all. Once we see that this occupation is filled properly then we take away free or the low cost of getting a degree in nursing.
 
You make some majors free what is the incentive for the college to get rid of the bad students ? They want that free tuition and also what stops the school from setting tuition at $100,000 a year ? The student won’t care because it’s free, the tax payers will be stuck with the bill and likely also get a bunch of crappy nurses.

I like the practice of forgiving loans for people working in needed professions in less than desirable areas.
Also why wouldn’t the students care about their prospective career? And obviously as a student you have to pass or have to pay back the assumed costs of when you were in nursing school
 
I’m all for a well rounded eduction but much of the liberal arts knowledge has to come from self study and a thirst for knowledge.

Also, did they not stress critical thinking to the boomers? Or is that just a cognitive decline issue?
 
Buried in the article is students coming to college with general education requirements met. With the concurrent enrollment program in many Iowa schools, the motivated high school student can very easily graduate from high school with an associates degree and no debt. Just a huge leg up in their fellow students.

The last numbers I saw were that nearly 52,000 iowa high school students obtained college credit at community colleges while enrolled in high school. The majority of those students were seeking STEM related degrees.
 
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Yes it is the system which is why we are having these student loan problems. I believe we need to rethink how we spend our money at all levels of government and education too me is one of the most important investments you can make.
Well Bruno, then it is like anything and everything else in life.....Find out a way to remove the profit from it (education) and the program becomes much more efficient.....however, if you remove the profit from it (education finance), you will be hard pressed to find folks who will support it.
 
Got a liberal arts degree 12 years ago then came back and got my engineering degree four years ago. The liberal arts degree has and will continue to set me apart in the engineering work place (I can talk to people 😮).
One of the smartest men I have ever known was an ex-roommate who is now a CPA. The guy was a friggin' brilliant thinker and had a steel-trap mind. He can talk about anything it seems and talk about it intelligently and the guy has been a CPA for 45 years........In my life experience, finding a well rounded, well versed "numbers guy" is a rare thing. No offense to CPAs and accountants out there.....just my observation. (In your defense, I know very few professional golfers who could talk about world affairs intelligently, but damn, they can hit a golf ball any where they want!)
 
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