Mathsquatch, surely you might be able to point out to us some of the B.S./ unintentional hilarity in this Journo's numbers that I know must be lurking within?
It's not so much the math that's the problem as it is the logic.
To be fair, the flaw is actually mentioned:
"Of course, there are factors that could make the higher debt more worthwhile. Perhaps the NYU graduate would find that degree translated into a higher salary over time, making the extra tuition pay off. But even at the most elite private universities, there are no such guarantees."
Saying "there are no such guarantees" is not an acceptable reason for ignoring what is likely to be a key factor, without consideration of which these comparisons are basically worthless.
Stew and Angry Archie pretty much hit the nail on the head, but if you want to talk numbers, then you would need to make sure that they are talking about the same dollars... You know, inflation causes a dollar today to be worth less later. So, the rate increases might not be as drastic if they have accounted for it by turning all the dollar amounts into the same year's dollars. For instance, if they translated all the monetary amount into, 1990 dollars.
Second, it is also important to note that those with a high school diploma tend to have jobs that get lost first in a recession. So, you could argue that this is an argument for college education. At the same time, there will always be these jobs so that raising the minimum requirement for any job to a college degree will only cause a new article in the future about how college degrees are not as good as graduate degrees. This is only shifting the blame.
Basically, these articles are just "crying wolf" and looking for a scapegoat.
It's not so much the math that's the problem as it is the logic.
ReplyDeleteTo be fair, the flaw is actually mentioned:
"Of course, there are factors that could make the higher debt more worthwhile. Perhaps the NYU graduate would find that degree translated into a higher salary over time, making the extra tuition pay off. But even at the most elite private universities, there are no such guarantees."
Saying "there are no such guarantees" is not an acceptable reason for ignoring what is likely to be a key factor, without consideration of which these comparisons are basically worthless.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteYou could also rewrite the offending sentences as follows without changing either the flawed logic or the meaning:
ReplyDelete"Even at the most elite private universities there are no such guarantees. So what hope does an NYU graduate have of ever paying that debt off?"
Rimshot...
Stew and Angry Archie pretty much hit the nail on the head, but if you want to talk numbers, then you would need to make sure that they are talking about the same dollars... You know, inflation causes a dollar today to be worth less later. So, the rate increases might not be as drastic if they have accounted for it by turning all the dollar amounts into the same year's dollars. For instance, if they translated all the monetary amount into, 1990 dollars.
ReplyDeleteSecond, it is also important to note that those with a high school diploma tend to have jobs that get lost first in a recession. So, you could argue that this is an argument for college education. At the same time, there will always be these jobs so that raising the minimum requirement for any job to a college degree will only cause a new article in the future about how college degrees are not as good as graduate degrees. This is only shifting the blame.
Basically, these articles are just "crying wolf" and looking for a scapegoat.
Mathsquatch out.