Last night my wife came home from her first Photography class slightly dismayed that the instructor was not as up to speed on digital cameras as one might expect an instructor to be, has a definite bias against them, and hasn’t upgraded the syllabus to reflect the reality of the digital age yet (even though there is an addendum to it that modifies it for the digital age.) Come on man! No one taking your class has a film camera. Spend an hour and update the syllabus!
But this raises the broader question. Is college relevant anymore?
I’ve been writing about this problem in the narrower field of computers and programming for a while now. See “Object Oriented Programming Has Failed Us” and “Do Programmers Need a Degree” for some of my more recent rants on the subject.
As we discussed the class last night, I came to realize the the problem is not just a problem in my field. It is a problem in any field where technology has had an impact.
For whatever reason, most of the professors have not kept up with the changes in technology. Some schools try, but I’m not convinced that those teaching the new topics understand them well enough to teach them. I don’t know if this is laziness (tenure makes keeping up to date unnecessary), lack of ability (those can can’t do, teach), or age (can’t teach an old dog new tricks). And, yes, there are teachers who can do and prefer to teach and there are teachers who can be taught new tricks. But, we have way too many who can’t and don’t relative to those who can and do.
Which leads us to our main question. Is it worth going to school to get an education in a field that has been impacted so much by technology that learning something from an instructor that is teaching something 10 years old will inadequately prepare you for the work place?
I’d say no. Find some other way to learn that. Find a mentor. Volunteer to work for a company in return for training (cheaper than going to college and much more valuable if you ask me.)
If you have to go to school either because your parents say you have to, or because you think having graduated from a college with a degree in anything will have value in your future, make sure you get your degree in something that hasn’t changed a whole lot in the last 10 years. Otherwise, all you’ll graduate with is a piece of paper and high expectations from employers that you can’t possibly meet.
Here are some areas I think qualify, off the top of my head:
- Business
- Psychology
- Some of the Arts (obviously, NOT photography)
- Any Language
- Social Services
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Tagged with: college • education