Why More Education Is Not Always Better

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Education is rightly seen as one of the best ways to develop a country’s economy, as more productive workers can create better living standards for everyone. But is there a limit to the benefits of education and should countries be wary of this double-edged sword?

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[ZyroZoro]

Over-education isn't a problem. Over-credentialism is. The only reason I'm in college is to get a piece of paper to wave at HR.

[Wonzling]

I'm German and got my whole education here. It was a while ago, and I got to see first hand the changes to education that were done to appease employers. I was one of the last to graduate under the pre-BA/MA model. I remember having a lot of leeway to choose my own courses as long as I fulfilled certain minimum requirements, and there was a big focus on forming a scientific mindset instead of raw facts.
While I was studying, the employers started announcing publicly that they want students to bolster their studies with volunteer experience made abroad. At the same time, fellow students reported that in job interviews they were being reprimanded for any gaps in their CVs that were not tied to by-the-book studies or fell between graduation and first job. Basically, the employers wanted to have a supply of graduates with specific skillsets on paper but had no interest in giving them the time to actually get that experience. And they kept faulting education for not fillling their needs.
After graduation I worked on my PhD and proceeded to teach some courses at uni, for students who were now in the BA/MA system. I noticed that there was no more leeway for them to choose their own topics of study. It was basically structured like school: You had classes that taught a set of facts that you needed to pass a final test. A "scientific mindset" haS no room in that system, because can not be easily be put to a standardized test.
At this point, I feel like the archetypical university education is just something that was structured to please employers who want to have an easy template to filter job applications. They just want a list of minimum requirements fulfilled in a minimum of time because younger=cheaper. Even if their expectations are completely unrealistic and the degrees themselves are completely disconnected from any kind of ability to understand the process of doing science.

[WilliamDye-willdye]

You can never have too much education, but schooling is not the equivalent of education.

[jaguarj]

I think the biggest contributor to this problem is that getting a degree is now an expectation rather than an option. It’s expected that anyone who does well at school go to Uni and get a degree.

[whiskersredwood]

I think our society tends to look down on those without a college degree. You are judged based on your education level, unless you are independently wealthy.

[aelux]

Overeducation does worry me, in the UK University level education is becoming so commonplace that graduates cant find jobs. In most stem fields a regular degree has been devalued to the point where a Master's or Doctorate are becoming a requirement to guarantee a job, simultaneously low skilled jobs are beginning to require new employees to hold degrees they don't need, just because they can.

[svettnabb]

Here in Norway, there is something called “masters degree sickness”. To become a manager or team leader in basically any field, especially in governmental positions, requires a masters degree..

[HeisenbergFam]

My heart goes out to all college students who got crippling debt and didnt learn much

[tipennya]

I had a neighbor who has several restaurants, his own boss, an entrepreneur. He gave my son his first job his last year in HS. When my son said he was not sure what he wanted to do but that he didn't really want to go to college but felt pressured to go by society (not me) my neighbor told him this:
"A degree is your qualification to work for someone else. Decide what you want to do and learn and master that. That is the difference between finding a job and finding fulfillment". Golden

[clintosorus]

I'm in Australia in my late 30's. An advanced economy with a solid education system. I didn't finish high school and currently earn the same as my wife who has a masters degree and just submitted her PhD. School isn't everything.

[Donkeyearsa]

A really big problem here in the states is that companies demand that their employees to be extremely over educated. There are jobs that someone who never graduated high-school could do just fine that the hiring manager is demanding at the least a bachelor's degree. There are people that have a near minimum wage job with little to no chance of advancement to a better paying job.

[davidbarry]

Something that is VERY apparent in Europe and parts of North America is that home-owning older people (often retirees) simply cannot find tradespeople to fix problems. There is a HUGE demand for plumbers, electricians, carpenters, roofers, and general handymen/people, and this demand is going to keep growing as the boomer generation retires. It's even more apparent in cottage country rural areas outside cities. Lots of opportunity for people who are both willing to learn technical skills and/or setup their own business.

[sbailey]

I did university after high school because i didn't yet know what I wanted to do with my life. Completed my degree but never used it for employment in that field. No regrets though as it gave me the skills to teach myself what ever i needed for my future careers.

[SenseiLlama]

I think removing the trades from school was one of the worse economic decisions weve made.

[xXGreatKilla]

It's very frustrating how predatory and coercive the higher education system in the USA is. Not only are we pressuring minors into applying for college without even suggesting trades as an option, but once they get there, we're giving them a license to make massive, life altering, financial decisions. If you ask me, the "exit counseling" that I received AFTER I had taken out my student loans, would've much better served me if I had gotten it before taking out loans. I'm sure it varies from place to place, but that was my experience graduating high school in 2016. So many simple, seemingly obvious regulations would help alleviate a lot of this predatory bullshit. Make sure students are educated on the opportunities in trades and options outside of college through mandatory education in high-school. Then have them take a basic financial course on how loans work and what it really means for their future to take these loans out.

[parker]

A real problem that i doesn't think you mentioned is the way we tend to lump all college degrees together. A ba in art has completely different demands, and job prospects, compared to a bs in petroleum engineering.

[shadeblackwolf]

I see this problem around me for sure. Physical labor is stigmatized and underpaid, which results in everyone wanting to be in the high education jobs. It should balance out when the pay disparity normalizes and people can live better on physical jobs. ofcourse it also takes time for that to work its way through the education system.

[LucasDimoveo]

I can tell you as someone with only a high school diploma - being a dishwasher or grocery store worker well into your 30s is PAINFUL. I’ve been making minimum wage since 2010. If you grew up in a poor family, go to college for something that will pay well

Edit: I hope EE makes a video about people on the lower economic bracket in developed countries. What kind of jobs they do, their prospects, etc

[shawnquintal]

Don't forget that education continu after school. Education is what make human great and simply the act of opening a book, listening to a youtube video or talk to someone to learn something new will always improve your life.

[GOATMENTATOR]

Here in Latvia there are set amount of free university scolarships based on demand that fluctuates each year. For example there may be 60 spots for becoming an environmental scientist but thousands of spots for IT. Overall this works atleast somewhat and everyone can get some education. Those who did the best in highschool will have the first choice and those who did worse will have an oppurtunity to enroll in what's left.