“Brace yourself -- the vision of the future this author sketches out with regard to younger generations, and their preparation to succeed within the labor market, is a sobering one! Built around the highly contrarian point of view that college is NOT the best vehicle to career success for the majority of high school students today, and that undergraduate college education has become greatly devalued given the rush to plow students through the system, Mr. Gray emphasizes that employers tend to pay money for proven skills and hands-on technical capabilities, not a mere diploma. HIs argument, therefore, is that schools need to help students explore their future employment options much earlier on in their educational career and to not necessarily assume that college is always the best route or that they'll "figure things out" once they get there. And while some my consider his message somewhat shrill, or pessimistic, he backs up virtually all of his points with hard data and statistics about the relative benefits of college education on the ability to earn a living. Simply put, employers today don't hire nearly as much on potential; they want people who show up at the interview armed with proven skills and the ability to make an immediate contribution. Adults are experiencing the force of this trend as we speak, as people with 15, 20, and 30 years of experience struggle to find an employer that will hire them without having an exacting slate of skill-based credentials, and this author is trying to ensure that we minimize the impact of this reality on the next generation. Great (and important) reading for all ages!”
myoungquist wrote this review Thursday, October 12, 2006.
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