Going to university? Think before you do! (Plumber vs Lecturer)

Going to university IS NOT necessarily a good idea, and it might be worth considering becoming a plumber or an electrician or something else. Why? Well, let's look at the numbers and see who gets paid more, a plumber or a university lecturer?

This video is discussing events or concepts that are academic, educational and historical in nature. This video is for informational purposes and was created so we may better understand the past and learn from the mistakes others have made.

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📚 BIBLIOGRAPHY / SOURCES 📚

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ABOUT TIK 📝

History isn’t as boring as some people think, and my goal is to get people talking about it. I also want to dispel the myths and distortions that ruin our perception of the past by asking a simple question - “But is this really the case?”. I have a 2:1 Degree in History and a passion for early 20th Century conflicts (mainly WW2). I’m therefore approaching this like I would an academic essay. Lots of sources, quotes, references and so on. Only the truth will do.

[Nuts-Bolts]

"Don't let schooling interfere with your education." - Mark Twain

[KaDaJxClonE]

As I get older I'm realizing it isn't about what pays more, it's about what provides the best work-life balance. I could be a lawyer making 200k a year, but I'd never get to spend it and work 60-80/hr weeks until I'm dead, or I could be a plumber making 55k a year and actually see my family, go on vacations, and enjoy being alive.

Being the hardest working cog in the machine doesn't mean you have the best life, it means the machine is running optimally; a machine you don't own.

[phishENchimps]

Best part about being a licensed Pipe fitter or Electrician is no matter where you move, there will be a need for your service.

[jonathansullivan]

I had originally intended to go to my local university for a 5 year master's degree in architectural engineering until the pandemic hit. Everyone lost their collective minds, we switched to online learning, and I, someone on the spectrum with a preference for hands-on learning, couldn't adapt. I withdrew from classes, and while I was depressed and felt like a failure at the time, it was probably the best thing that could have happened to me. Right now, I'm at the local trade school halfway through my associate's degree in precision machining, paid in full by scholarship, and I've got a paid internship position at a machine shop thanks to my instructor and his industry contacts. It may not be as fancy or prestigious as a piece of paper and an office in some downtown highrise, but I found what works for me, and life is finally looking up.

[samsonsoturian]

I'm getting a history PhD and I can say emphatically that you should never do this with the intent of making money. The only job that requires this degree is professor and you'll spend at least a hundred grand and years of hazing in grad school and have few if any job offers afterwards. There's still a steady stream of applicants because this job attracts egotistical bastards.

Don't ask what I want to do with my degree. I cannot tell you.

[ZESAUCEBOSS]

In my last year at university getting my aerospace engineering degree and I have never been more convinced it is a scam. Professors are useless, and I am paying thousands of dollars a year to teach myself the material. Really wish I (and my parents who are the only reason I went to university) had watched this video 4-5 years ago

[rwdyeriii]

I'm a teacher and you're quite right. I have started telling my students that they shouldn't go to university unless they're going into a job field that requires a college degree.

[chipparmley]

This video needs to be shown to every student who is considering university, and shown twice to those who are planning on going into a degree program without guaranteed jobs

[AlexFoxZZZ]

Funnily enough, "Look at your future profession's demand and trajectory before getting into it" is one of the most important things that we were taught in school by some teachers in Russia.

[christopherevans]

As a 31 year old certified electrician in the US I’m training my 3rd consecutive 23-25 year old college graduate as an electricians apprentice. They’ve all been tens of thousands of dollars in debt and unable to afford their own homes. I genuinely feel bad for them. They all had good intentions but they were sold a lie.

[SOLAscriptura-]

Outstanding video and assessment.

I went to trade school (A&P tech). After wrenching on aircraft for a few years, I left for the operational side of aerospace at the bottom level.

I self taught and educated myself in business and advanced aerospace technology. 10 years later I’m leading a team in Advanced Aviation Mobility. This was done with (still) no “degree”, simply self educating, continuing to challenge myself, and surrounding myself with great mentors. Many peers I work with are buried in college debt.

No college debt, no degree, working in the advanced aerospace industry, with a house, wife and kids. I’m 35 years old.

Advanced degrees are really only applicable in STEM fields, especially with the access to information we now have. Plus state run schools (including universities) here in the states are more about indoctrination and selling a activist mindset than educating.

[mehrzahl]

The difference is even bigger if the plumber starts investing his money at 25.Totally agree with your point.

[James-rltj]

I'm an auto mechanic. Over the years I've self taught basic electrical engineering and gotten every bit of training I can get. I'm now making 120k+ a year.

It's hard work but I make double what the teachers in my area make.

[SanarySeggnete]

This talk remind me of my university professors, all of my marketing professors were poor, despite they taught people how to control the market... kind of irony... They also tried to improve their life with their finance knowledges, which ended badly as their plan was only good on mathematic paper... It was pretty weird to see 5 professors suddenly got themselves into a massive debt while they were trying to teach you how to not to...

[tancreddehauteville]

I gained a 2:1 in history back in 1988 from a well known 'redbrick' UK university - roughly equivalent to US 'Ivy League'. I had no problems finding well paid jobs, though totally unrelated to history of course! I ended up going into IT and have pursued a successful career in this field. Not sure what the situation is now as when I went to university only 15-17% of 18 year olds did so in the UK. The problem is that Blair destroyed the implicit value of a degree by opening the door to almost anyone, and this is what has caused problems. Would I want to go to university now? Probably not. I would say that if you want to become a doctor or dentist then university is a pre-requisite, but for other careers it's just not necessary. Even to become a lawyer it's not strictly necessary as there are avenues for those who want to train with A levels; likewise for accountancy, IT and other relatively well paid careers.

[gustavolobo]

I'm 22, about to start a 2 year vocational training course (Logistics and transportation)
I didn't go to college while pretty much all of my former classmates did. However, almost all of them chose an education career (being a teacher for middle schoolers and little kids), and where I live a great percentage of people that go to college choose to be an educator. The problem with this is that since a lot of people chose that career, there is now a surplus of teachers and they are having a hard time finding a job that won't even pay that good.

[jimsackmanbusinesscoaching]

I remember writing a paper in college about something like this for an Economics class. Essentially it boils down to this. If you want to have a return on investment in higher education, you need to get a degree with a substantial job at the end of it. This means, most often, a STEM degree of some sort. Business degrees are okay, but the return is generally delayed - unless the degree leads you to being good at Sales.

As an aside to this I took a couple of courses while I was working my internships (I went to the Rochester Institute of Technology where paid internships were part of most degree programs), I took a class called "History of the Atomic Age" at a State University near my internship to save money. The class cost less than a single credit hour at RIT and I transferred the credits. The professor had his wife, an economics professor, provide one guest lecture. She asked the class full of History and PoliSci majors (and me and a friend from work who was also an engineer) who thought they would have no problem getting a job after graduation. The two of us raised our hands and explained we were engineering students. At that, she nodded and chuckled.

[Geek-A-Hertz]

You hit the nail on the head, so many people are going to college for 4 year and getting buried under debt, while getting degrees that can't even earn enough money to pay off the debt.

[Awakeandalive]

I made the mistake of getting my PhD after the 2008/2009 financial collapse -- as a result, the schools were glutted with more experienced older "scholars" who were just riding out the economic situation in academia but whose life experiences OUTSIDE academia made them more attractive hires for the paltry university gigs out there. And as someone who refused to play the "Woke" game, I realized I was doomed if I tried to stay with academia. I have a family to provide for! At this point I've been a cab-driver, salesman, tutor, etc. and am looking to go back to get trained as a Plumber or EMT.

[snowbear]

In the US we have a painful shortage of trades people, especially that are involved in construction like electricians and plumbers. The current minimum pay in California for a journeyman electrician (been working for 2 years) is $65 - $70/hour plus overtime, which takes you over $100/hour. When you get your full high-voltage license (so others work under you as apprentices) you're not even really doing manual labor anymore. You're now in meetings, doing contracts, and making obscene amounts of money. You land a deal doing electrical in a big skyscraper and that will pay you for years.