As we enjoy the 4th of July weekend, one thing weighs heavily on my mind: financial independence.
As much as I like my Latino roots, there’s a trend that I’d rather not see stay forever in this country, and that is the increasing numbers of young adults who go through the grueling four, five, or more years of college education, only to find themselves back at home without any prospects for steady income; or worst, starting their careers underemployed.
The U.S. is starting to look more and more like the Latin America of the 80′s. And that is not a compliment.
I read in my local paper that the number of young adults ages 20 to 24 in the USA who live with their parents is at 45 percent; 1.7 million more than in 2005.
Our family is going through such situation. As a parent, this is not what we’ve envisioned for our grown-up children. It’s miserable and unfair to see a bright and motivated professional taking a night shift at a gas station because “that’s the only job I could find, mom.”
I cringe at the thought and start wondering, will this be her life? Is this the beginning of a terrible journey?
This is not what my husband and I had in mind when we left our country, when we sacrificed everything to “make it in the USA.”
He and I accomplished the American Dream; but, what about the children? Is getting a college degree these days an exercise in futility?
Everyone says that a degree is necessary to make it in this country, and I agree… but where are the jobs for these young adults? Where is the support system to bridge them from college to adult life?
There are many encouraging words and mushy good feelings that come with that diploma. There are tears, politicians making promises and dead end leads. What I have not seen is true networks of interested adults that will mentor and help the millions graduating from college each year secure a job in their field of interest.
Once they graduate, all those people become only words in the air. And parents are left to keep on paying college tuition debt and to carry the expense of sheltering and feeding the teen that grew into adulthood and came back home.
I love my kids, don’t take me wrong, I do like to have them around; but I want them to start enjoying what we have enjoyed for so many years as immigrants who fully developed professionally in this country.
As the United States of America celebrates one more anniversary of its Independence, let’s make sure we make those jobs available to our college-degreed new professionals; let’s help them start their path towards their American Dream.
Comments
Very interesting observations. I was flabbergasted by the math, Marcus…
I still believe in the power of being educated but it is a financial hot mess right now. There’s money owed and no income to cover that debt + there’s the time spent in college studies…
What’s the (new)message? I don’t want to tell our youth to skip college… but, yes, something’s got to change and companies and politicians (and the media) need to start talking frankly about this. We need to tell the students: look, we need this many engineers, this many journalists, etc. Problem is we graduate more in each field than needed and that’s were we waste resources.
Arne Duncan recently said that there’s 3 million jobs for highly skilled workers… I want to know where.
I personally believe in higher education; the numbers just don’t add up anymore. A college degree has become a luxury and should be purchased if conditions are ideal.
Americans are still telling their kids YOU WILL GET YOUR EDUCATION because over their career they have seen young college grads walk into entry-level postions making the same salary as someone with no degree and 20+ years of experience. Those days are over.
Since 2000, college grads have been experiencing a decline in opportunities. Employers are looking for a competitive edge again and they are willing to pay for experience–something college grads do not have.
When you do the math, it could take about 15 years for a recent college grad to financially “catch up” to the their high school diploma counterparts. High school grads who enter the workforce at a lower wage is no different than a college grad getting an unpaid internship — the order is simply reversed.
The difference can be found when you look 5 years from high school graduation. A high school graduate with 5 years of experience in a particular field will most likely qualify to purchase a home, a new car, and receive employee benefits — not to mention the financial relief to the parents. Furthermore, no school debt has been acquired and 100% of the money earned could have been saved or used for personal growth.
On the contrary, 5 years from high school graduation, a college grad can expect to have $30,000-60,000 in student loans, no savings, no tangible assets, and no job.
If a high school graduate with 5 years of experience later decides he/she wants to go to college to futher one’s career, there is a chance the employer may actually pay for the schooling.
Quality of life issues also come into play as well. College grads often delay family aspirations such as marriage and kids because of the overwhelming debt issues they face.
The bottom line is, there is no easy way to the top of the mountain. College used to be the “shortcut.” What people are realizing is, they just sell maps of the mountain. For those of us who bought the map, let’s hope there is some extra gold along the trail.
Ani: Thanks for writing about this important issue to all Latinos. I could not agree more. The unemployment rate among Latinos in the United States – even those of us who are college educated – is very telling, and scary. It’s not an easy issue, or one that can be over simplified.