high school diploma or ged?

[waterinthefuel]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

I don't want to sound like a pessimist but I have 4 year college degree in finance and insurance and I was unable to get a decent job that paid the bills. I am now re-enrolled in a technical college for aviation maintenance and I will make more the day I graduate with my license then I would have after 10 years in the insurance industry.

High education doesn't guarantee success. In fact the only job I got was for 1 dollar above minimum wage pumping jet fuel at an airport. (thats where this username came from, I was also in charge of inspecting it) Now that's at the age of 22 with a 4 year degree making deans list the last 2 years every semester. In a curriculum that required a 5 page report for every class (3 days a week) for 4 and a half months. There was a study done at my university that said the college of business, specifically the major of finance, had the most reports to write of any college or major at the university. And I did it. And it taught me not only how to write well but how to type well. Entering college I was about 20 wpm maybe. Now I'm well over 60wpm and I never took a typing class. When you have that volume of typing to do you just learn on your own.

I'd advise going into a technical area like welding or something like that. Because moving up the corporate ladder of an office is hard if you don't have connections but people are willing to pay you well if you have a skill or trade.

 

[skargo]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

I am one of the odd ones. I was stupid in HS and got my GED. Now I own a 500k a year business and am looking to open more locations. (Im 24 years old)

What kind of business are you in Jonathan?

 

[Jonathan3206]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

What kind of business are you in Jonathan?

I own a printing company. We do everything from single copies to 100,000,000 or prints. We also make custom sticker and boat name lettering. Wide format 600DPI prints up to 44"x150' in house and can print to the size of a billboard.

 

[CheapboatKev]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

I own a printing company. We do everything from single copies to 100,000,000 or prints. We also make custom sticker and boat name lettering. Wide format 600DPI prints up to 44"x150' in house and can print to the size of a billboard.

You ever go to the ISA shows? Next one is out here in Orlando, though I prefer the Vegas show myself!

 

[skargo]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

I own a printing company. We do everything from single copies to 100,000,000 or prints. We also make custom sticker and boat name lettering. Wide format 600DPI prints up to 44"x150' in house and can print to the size of a billboard.

That's great, there's a company here locally that does amazing work with the big stuff. Congrats on your success!

 

[jakebrake]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

my dad quit h.s. to join the navy. he got his g.e.d., did some college afterwards, but not much. He retired from a local police department as a detective lieutenant. he joined in 1968. Needless to say, the world has changed rather dramatically since then.

i was a signature away from doing the same. my father looked at me, and shook his head. He told me that dropping out was his biggest regret. made me think twice. i stayed in and finished. glad i did. Not a slam at jonathon3206, but , he is the exception, not the norm (and congrats on that).

i think waterinthefuel is right. trade schools can give a skill that i wish i had. i always heard that computers were the way to go. i wanted to go back to school, but the field i wanted to go into is very specialized, and only 44 schools in the country teach it, and my wife's education was far too important to me.

tell him not to live my dad's regrets...or mine.

just my opinion.

 

[IVAZ]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

I quit school and got a GED. I started working with my dad at the age of 16 in his industrial fiberglass shop. I quit working with my dad when I was 20 (old man would not promote me or give me a raise). I was hired by another company and immediately promoted to foreman. My friends were barely getting started with college and I was already in a better position than some of their dads were. I have moved to better and bigger things since that.
Even though my friends now have degrees they still make less money than me. One friend is a teacher, makes horrible money but he loves his job. This guy is doing what he loves, no other job would make him happy. Two other friends are engineers, their money is better than the teacher but they aren?t exactly thrilled to be doing what they are doing.
I guess my point is that if he has a professional career in mind, he is going to need school to achieve his dreams. If he is a hard worker and hates school, he may be wasting his time there. He could be gaining hands on experience in a craft that will lead to bigger things in life for him.
Talk to your son man to man and show him both sides of the coin. The decision will be easier to make if he really knows what?s out there.

 

[rjlipscomb]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

My wife's son (from a previous marriage) dropped out of school in 9th grade. Or, more accurately, he was kicked out for failure to complete a drug treatment program. He was allowed to drop out of the DT program. He finally received a HS Diploma from a correspondence school. His uncle helped him pass the test.

He attempted community college in Orlando, failed. He does not have the skills to pass the basic college entrance requirements.

He has worked numerous jobs, and quits for "reasons beyond his control". We don't know what to do with him. He refuses to acknowledge his deficiency in math and english. He has no drive to complete what he starts. What will he do when he is 25, 30 and beyond? He shrugs his shoulders when you ask.

My point is simple, if you allow him to quit and seek the simple solution, he will have learned to always quit tasks requiring effort and seek the easy way out. Like, having you support him for the rest of his life.

IMO, Kids learn from their experience. If forced to succeed, they learn to succeed and overcome obstacles. If allowed to quit, they learn to quit and rely upon others. I'd like to know from the above "success stories" whether they were allow to fail or forced to succeed on their own.

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

When I married my wife 12 years ago she was 40. No GED or diploma. She worked in nursing homes taking care of the dirty deeds that they do. I asked why she didn't go on to become a nurse. She told me that she didn't have the education.

I found a high school that gives courses online and got her enrolled. She completed the 36 month course in 18 months. She then went on to take courses for medical assisting, codes/billing, transcription, and anatomy. Within 3 years of our marriage this all happened. She now works at a hospital in the ER as a PCA. (patient care assistant)

Since she obtained the job at the hospital, she now has completed all the necessary classes for becoming an RN. She is going to start her clinical classes this coming winter.

So, I guess what I'm saying is that if one does not like their GED and wish to get a diploma, YES there are ways to do it online in your own time.

BTW, my teenage son at that time also took the course and now has his diploma. At the time (2000) the course was $850 books/supplies included.

 

[wajajaja02]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

Cant add anything to the 1st response, I had a great motivator to stay in school the draft and viet nam, Now Im retired from that war, disabled, after I graduated HS and later college, but my fortune what ever it is, came from blue collar union work for MA Bell but shes dead and we are all orphans now.

 

[IVAZ]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

IMO, Kids learn from their experience. If forced to succeed, they learn to succeed and overcome obstacles. If allowed to quit, they learn to quit and rely upon others. I'd like to know from the above "success stories" whether they were allow to fail or forced to succeed on their own.

Forced to succeed? Impossible, people succeed because they have it in them to succeed. As parents we can encourage, teach and instill the right mentality. That?s it. Success comes from your own actions, not your parents.

You ever heard of the horse that was taken to the river but refused to drink?
In the end it comes down to the individual to make the right choice.

 

[CheapboatKev]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

Forced to succeed? Impossible, people succeed because they have it in them to succeed. As parents we can encourage, teach and instill the right mentality. That?s it. Success comes from your own actions, not your parents.

You ever heard of the horse that was taken to the river but refused to drink?
In the end it comes down to the individual to make the right choice.

You can be forced to succeed, but you have to force yourself, it has to come from inside. I forced myself because I was not going to allow myself to be a warehouse clerk my whole life.

You can lead a horse to water, but can't make him drink..Well no you can't..But sooner or later he'll get thirsty and drink on his own..Or lay there and die.

Stay Thirsty would be an appropiate moral!

 

[Rickairmedic]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

Ok I will change my tune somewhat . Learning a trade is a great option to college . However and I stress . You must not mind hard labor and you must be willing to stick with it and not quit just cause its HAAAARD. I have been doing HVAC going on 20 years . I could have opened my own company years ago but I got lazy when I was making good money working for someone else . Most trades will still take several years in order to get anywhere . Electricians on average have to have 8 years in the trade to qualify to tke their masters test . HVAC where I am requires 4 years in the trade to qualify to take your test . Auto Mechanic isnt a great trade to start into today .Welding can be a great trade and theres very good money in it but it is a hot nasty dirty job from the time you start till the time you retire . I am 42 own my own company and still do more manuel labor most days than the average 18-20 YO does all week.


Rick

 

[gstanton]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

IMO... something that is being missed here is that a HS diploma does not make you smart. It means you can conform and LEARN something on your own. You have learned how to learn!

Our daughter just finished her Masters in Business and is working for a min wage job at a local store. Point is... if the non HS diploma (or GED) person comes up against an MBA for the same job - who wins?

In this economy you need to have everything in your favor, and a drop-out (ie: GED same thing) has everything against them.

And another thought. Right now, the teen's and 20 somethings think they can work(manual labor) like this forever. HA! Wait till you turn 40-50 and you'll think differently.

 

[Rickairmedic]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

LOL can you find me one teen/ 20 something willing to do manual labor for more than 10 minutes and I will hire him or her yesterday .


Rick

 

[lowkee]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

Some great stories in this thread! I am at a crossroads in my life. I went to a Tech College for computers and have been doing computer related stuff all of my life (since I was 4 y/o). I have been looking for a new career and this thread has been great for brainstorming.

On to the subject of GED's. My opinion on it is: Never, stay in school, get your diploma. From there you can be whatever you want, do whatever you want, forever. Until then, you need to go through high school.

I plan to home school my kid(s) simply because government schools are pathetic (more so than before) and I want my kid to learn something besides how to take a test and how to be 'patriotic'. That aside, if your kid thinks he will be a great business owner and make a fortune.. great! BUT, if he doesn't succeed right off (or ever) and has a few years where he just needs to make a living, he will be at a disadvantage to the 90% of people with a diploma. As stated in previous posts, the diploma says "I stuck it out, even though it sucked, just because I understand how the world works and I realize employers, recruiters, loan officers, business partners and many other people view it as a requirement". Assuming a diploma says all of that. What does a GED say?

Time to drop your kid off at the local welfare office so he can get accustomed to where most high school dropouts spend what could have been the best years of their lives.

 

[yourkiddin]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

i cant even believe all the responce to this subject. thank you guys very much. just the thought of him dropping out of school and maybe not being successful makes me very angry. now im not the brightest tool in the shed, but i did graduate with my class. went into the army for eight years and have worked at the same company for 14 years. make a pretty good paycheck. now maybe it wasn't the diploma, but my desire to make a good living. and for some reason he dont seem to care about his future. he thinks that things are easy to come by.

 

[Autotech]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

As a Career Tech. Educator I can tell you this. EVERYONE has to find their place in life. Some know it in Jr. High, some don't figure it out until they are thirty(30). I have had kids that had 29 on the ACT, and some with 9, some with GEDS,some I had to read the test to them because they were LD, Dyslexic, or just could not read , some X Military(I liked these the most, gave me a lot of help with the younger kids) didn't matter to me because that is my job. Starting students and raising them to entry level positons in their field of employment.. I will tell you this ,not every one is Academic Material. I have had many students that own their own business and are doing well ;some are working in mantainance; Policemen, carpenters, Truck Drivers ,Electricians, HVAC :what does that tell you. Should have never enrolled in Auto Tech. They got and AS in Automotive Technology and went on to something else. Everyone has to start somewhere. I still would encourage him to stay and HS.

 

[Rickairmedic]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

LOL that seems to be the general mentality of the current generation . They think the world is supposed to be handed to them . I have 5 between 14 and 24 and none of them have a clue about the real world ROFLMAO.


Rick

 

[rjlipscomb]

Re: high school diploma or ged?

Forced to succeed? Impossible, people succeed because they have it in them to succeed. As parents we can encourage, teach and instill the right mentality. That?s it. Success comes from your own actions, not your parents.

You ever heard of the horse that was taken to the river but refused to drink?
In the end it comes down to the individual to make the right choice.

You've got the intent of my response partially wrong. In choosing the word "Forced", I intend it to be by any means (parents, friends or life). And, you are right, we either succeed on our own accord or not.

We are allowed to fail in life by all sorts of means. But, if we (the parents) coddle our children and tell them its okay to depend on others, its okay to not try, its okay to hide from hard work, then we have failed and the product of our failure is a child who may never achieve his full potential.

Conversely, if we (the parents) push our our children to excel, not allow them to quit, establish the limits of our support, then maybe our kids will find their way to success and reach their full potential.

Some people accept responsibility and are natural born over achievers. Some are not. I believe this thread is about a child who is not.

I can tell you that, at least in my case, leading by example has not worked. And, I firmly believe you are correct in saying, "In the end it comes down to the individual to make the right choice."