Does that second chart actually mean anything? Poor kids make friends with rich kids in college and the result is they make more money? How much of this is driven by groupings of college majors?
I am reminded of a discussion I once heard that one of the unspoken advantages of having a military draft was that it was an environment where young people from different backgrounds (geographic, ethnic, economic, etc.) were forced to mix and have shared experiences, challenging the stereotypes their family and local environments may have forced upon them.
Going off to university could do the same thing, but-for geographic and economic factors impacting choice of school and the experience one has at school.
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Given the current Russian aggression, some European countries are considering stepping up national service.
Sweden has a national service model which allows for other forms of service. -
## There are three types of total defence duty:
** Military service (conscription).*
** Civilian service in, e.g., rescue services, childcare and healthcare.*
** General national service obligation in activities that must also function in the event of danger of war or war.*
Before we demonstrated that the US is living in the stupidest timeline, I would have been receptive to the notion of a mandatory year or two of “national service” (not necessarily miliary; potentially community service or WPA-type projects) for everyone.
While I object to the idea of arguable slavery (and I wouldn’t have used the qualifier “arguable” if I were young enough to be impacted by such an initiative), and I REALLY don’t want to think about what such a program would look like under the current regime… in theory / but-for the risk of abuse, the societal value of such a program probably would be very real.
Someone has to pay for the free college of about 700 athletes.
Colleges love the JC Penny model of pricing
Graduate Premium now also taking a beating in the US.
I really do feel bad for recent grads. AI is really doing a number on them leading to an over-supply of grads relative to demand of grads.
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Interesting that there seemed to be far less financial incentive to go to college in 1980. Presumably there were many more manufacturing/union jobs that paid fairly well for those without college degrees.
The big gap this century certainly must have accentuated the wealth gap. The premium has to make up for college fees (I believe around $40K on average nationally) and four less years of earning, but 90% premium does seem really high.
Wouldn’t recent US minimum wage increases also play a role in decreasing this gap?
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