“I have never let my schooling interfere with my education”-Mark Twain
With the boom in online teaching platforms and the ever rising cost of getting a degree, more people are starting to take their education into their own hands.
The total student loan debt has tripled in the past 10 years from $363 billion in 2005 to more than $1.2 trillion today. Many are starting to question the value in pursuing a college degree. Graduate school, a long opportunity to boost one’s income, is being challenged. People are seeing shortcomings in what they learn in college and what the job market demands.
The rise in student debt over the years
Resources have been popping up that are catered to people wanting to self-learn something new. Online platforms like Udemy, Coursera, iTunes U, Skillshare and others provide online courses (in which many are free) that lets anyone learn anything from anyone. Courses are taught in learning Adobe Creative Cloud, writing fiction, knitting, culinary arts, history and many more.
The new found ability for people to be able to teach themselves things has prompted many questions. Are any practical skills for the job market learned in college? Is it up to universities to provide students with applicable, real world skills or is it on the students?