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With the cost of a college degree shooting into nose-bleed territory, more families and students are debating the trade-offs of enrolling in a four-year program.
While some fear that failing to earn a college diploma will lead to a life of fast-food work or another low-paid occupation, that's not exactly the case, according to a new study from CareerCast. With foresight and planning, workers who lack college degrees can have a successful career with middle-class incomes.
With student loan debt now at $1.2 trillion, that's sparked a debate about whether young Americans are taking on too much indebtedness for a college diploma. While the upside to earning a college degree is well documented, with young college grads earning about 50 percent more than peers with only high school educations, not everyone is able to afford college tuition. Others may opt against college because they don't want to be saddled with debt, while some might feel it's not the right fit.
"Student loan debt in the U.S. is the second-highest debt after home loan debt, " Tony Lee, the publisher of CareerCast, told CBS MoneyWatch. "There are people who for financial or ethical reasons don't want to go to college. You can still have a very productive career with very respectable earnings if you don't have a four-year degree."
Many of the jobs do require additional training, however. For instance, people who want to become an electrician, which is one of the jobs on the list, typically go through an apprentice, while some may attend a technical school. Some of the jobs also require licensing, while others may require an associates degree or some technical training.
