America's most overrated product; the Bachelor's degree

If those kids don't go to college, they will just have that much more stacked against them. I have also found many that hate high school and don't do well there excel in college. High school and college are vastly different to many individuals.
A college degree is still valuable. In fact, not having one can put a person at a disadvantage, as it can be harder to compete for them up against so many that do. Americans as a whole are pretty educated. I worked in recruiting for awhile at a major corporation and saw the value of a college degree directly. It still matters and it more important now than it was even 20 years ago overall.

Everyone should have the opportunity to go to college if they want.

I certainly don't think collage is a waste especially for certain occupations that someone may want to get into such as teaching in a public school or dr lawyer stuff like that.
I do feel that a degree in other things such as Business can help you go further quicker in some cases however with many professions it is also about your experience and what you know not always how you know it. So in many careers I believe you can get to the same point as someone that has a collage degree I just think it takes someone longer to get there without a degree. If you are motivated and have the experience but no degree it is not usually a question of if but when. Look at Bill Gates he is a college dropout and he is one of the Richest men in America.

I think that there's a definite advantage to having a college degree, even if you aren't working in your major. I'm a good example of that. I got a degree in Language Arts (double major in all parts of English - Literature, Writing, Linguistics, Drama, Journalism, etc.) with an emphasis on Secondary Education. Basically, I got a degree to be a high school teacher. When that didn't work out, I became an Admin. Assistant (PC term for secretary). It's not glamorous, but it's definitely an integral part of every company.

While I'm not working directly with my degree, the fact that I have one has helped me land jobs because it shows that I can complete what I attempt, and that I will stick with something. The fact that it's in English has helped me land my last two because it shows them that I'm pretty good with grammar, writing and proof-reading.

However, I do see why students in the low 50% of classes have problems with college. It's not because they aren't smart enough, it's that they likely don't have the skills to complete the courses. They don't know how to study and retain knowledge. They don't know how to regurgitate that knowledge onto a test. They don't know how to restate the knowledge in their own words into essays. I do think that people who are in the lower 50% of their classes can do well in college, but they will need more help in learning those skills that the top tier of high school graduates either picked up on their own or were taught somewhere. I think a lot of those skills are learned through life experience, which is why people who go back to school are often more successful on a percentage basis than those straight out of high school. Well, that and older students aren't obsessed with getting drunk all the time.

I was a kind of weird case: I graduated in the top twenty of my HS class with a GPA of over 4.0. I got to college and it was a total shock! I didn't know how to study because, frankly, I didn't have to in high school. I retained everything my teachers taught, but then I was in class every single day being spoon fed all the info. In college there is a lot of reading and self-study and I was not giving enough time to that. At the end of my freshman year I had a GPA of about 2.8 and I lost my scholarship to my expensive private school I attempted to go the next year to a state school and just couldn't get into it, so I dropped out. I somehow lucked into my current job and now I am going back to college to get my degree, which I will need if my company lays me off

I think that in most jobs you are trained on the job, but having a degree can be the difference in getting your foot in the door and getting shown the door like Heidi said, it shows that you can finish something and it also shows that you can learn

LOL in my high school the top fifty % was a GPA of 3.25 and up ... in laymans terms a b to b plus ave....

College was a breeze for me prior to my Mom getting sick ... then I really no longer cared and was ready to take care of her....

Truthfully college did nothing for me .. I went for 2.5 yrs my gpa was higher than high school ... I learned next to nothing except how to get thru red tape and rack up a debt ...

For some college is nessesary but for many it is not ... I manage to run my own business without any college courses ....

At one time a college degree was seen as merely a way to expand your knowledge and not as a means to an end. Knowledge was considered beneficial for it's own sake.

Today a college degree is most often seen as job training. If the job you want requires a college degree, and many do, then it is certainly worth while to pursue the degree. These jobs most often require the specialized training you get in a college program. There are other ways to get the training but successfully completing a college program is the best way for you and a perspective employer to know you have received the required training.

But, even today, a college degree is absolutely not a necessity in order to have a decently paying job. Just depends on the job.

Edit: A college degree also isn't any kind of a guarantee. Obtaining a degree doesn't mean you will get a good paying job after graduation. Anyone who decides to go to college needs to ask themselves what they expect to get out of it and whether those expectations are reasonable.