Success Stories For Those Without College Degrees.

"Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis" (Dwhite95)
01/06/2016 at 17:24 • Filed to: None

Asking for a friend who could use a little helping out in case things dont work out for them. Doesnt have to be you, maybe someone you know, I think they could just use some assurance that not having a degree doesnt doom your future. Stigmas be damned.

Have an insane Rolls Royce.

DISCUSSION (35)

MonkeePuzzle > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:28

I’m a low level manager with 12 years in position at a large multi-national oil company, and a college drop out. Currently doing fairly well... monetarily. But you know oil...

Degrees are good to get a job, but often promotions and such a degree becomes irrelevant.

Master Cylinder > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:31

Shit, there hasn’t been a single day since graduation that I haven’t regretted my law degree. If being almost $90K in debt and not being able to get a decent job for nearly 2 years aafter graduating in the top 10% of the class is success, then I don’t wanna know what failure looks like.

In all seriousness, though, a degree is really starting to mean fuck-all in this market. My most financially successful friend dropped out of college after a semester and now is making $100K+ selling mortgages.

I’d probably be much better off financially (at least at the moment) if I’d become a machinist or welder out of high school, plus I’d probably actually even enjoy my job a little.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:33

While I make okay for someone without a degree, I have nowhere to go from here. Finding a full time job was a pita. I definitely plan on going back to school, but tech school, because I suck at testing. Not really any words of hope here, just the way I see it in a similar situation.

Future next gen S2000 owner > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:37

If they learn a trade or a certificate worth some value they will be fine. Underwater welders make pretty good money. It is possible, just hard. The armed forces is an option as well.

TheHondaBro > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:37

If I recall correctly, both Bill Gates and Steve Jobs dropped out of their respective colleges.

Future next gen S2000 owner > MonkeePuzzle
01/06/2016 at 17:38

I need to get into oil.

Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis > TheHondaBro
01/06/2016 at 17:40

Founder of Dell did too.

Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis > Future next gen S2000 owner
01/06/2016 at 17:41

Exactly what I’ve been tell them. Thats where the stigmas be damned comment came from.

Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast. > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:42

I have a degree, but if I were to do it all over again, I would go to a trade school and get certified in something first, and then maybe work for a degree while working at a decent paying job. There are all kind of certificate programs out there as well, which I do even now, and I honestly think they help more than my degree, if I were to be honest. Even if you aren’t able to get letters after your name, employers want to know that you are good at SOMETHING. Most of those certification don’t really take that long to get, and in some cases, the places that teach them also assist in job placement and you can find them for no cost or very low cost in a lot of cases.

One thing to remember though AVOID FOR PROFIT SCHOOLS LIKE THE PLAGUE!

Berang > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:43

Dave Thomas didn’t even finish high school. Then he felt bad about it after he made millions off of Wendy’s, so he went and got his GED.

MonkeePuzzle > Future next gen S2000 owner
01/06/2016 at 17:44

one of the worst times to get into it for the last several decades :S

coelacanthist > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:44

Obviously there are exceptions, but there are a lot of great opportunities in this country to start at the bottom and work your way up. I have friends with well paying and interesting jobs with big name companies who don’t have degrees. More and more, employers are seeing the value in an intelligent hard worker who is willing to learn and contribute over a twenty something with a degree and no real world work experience.

I would tell them to find work in a field that interests them, even if it’s sweeping the floors so to speak. They will find out quickly if there is room for advancement. Prove yourself, go the extra mile, volunteer to take on new responsibilities, treat work as a learning opportunity, work your way up the old fashioned way.

wiffleballtony > Future next gen S2000 owner
01/06/2016 at 17:46

This. Not necessarily underwater welding but there are many certifications that pay better than degrees.

wiffleballtony > Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast.
01/06/2016 at 17:46

This.

wiffleballtony > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:48

Degrees serve no other purpose than to show your prospective employer you can put up with 4 years or more of BS. If I could do it again, I’d get my certification first then have my employer pay for my degree. You may have to start somewhere not so glamorous though. For example QT convenience stores are very generous in tuition reimbursement.

Joshua Rollins > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:50

I only have a high school degree but i am highly specialized in my field. Everything in life is about working hard and not being scared to take opportunities. My family has always been in the automotive industry, family owned businesses and techs, etc. I started working at the family shop at 15 and was tearing cars aparts at 16, doing engine swaps at 18. I decided i enjoyed that but it isn’t what I wanted to do for work. I went to work for a dealership, worked hard and moved into sales, sold cars for about 7 years. I created some great relationships within the industry, I was approached to work for a specialized automotive company that’s dedicated to Digital marketing, websites, and services for dealerships.

I started in 2010 with this company, in those 5 years I have moved from a base level position. To a digital advisor for FCA corporate, I’ve been to Chrysler city many times and done presentations to their corporate teams. My recent promotion I am subcontracting for Subaru of America, I actually sit in the SOA zone office in Orlando.

Basically what I’m saying is find something you love, for me it is cars and the car business. Become damn good at it, become specialized, in what you do, and people will pay you very well for it.

Future next gen S2000 owner > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:50

Just remind them of this, my wife worked for peanuts as a front desk supervisor at a hotel. She had three degrees. Degrees =/= good money.

WRXerFish - WRX-Wing pilot > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:50

For the most part I have found that experience is greater than a degree. I did not attend college and I work for a small-ish software company. I work in the QA department. I have also managed an IT department.

Being self taught and motivated can get you very far in life.

Do whatever it takes to get the experience.

sTalkinggoat attacks! with Trollhammer for 14 DMG > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:54

Well... my cousin and I both graduated High School the same year. I went to college and after about 5 years came out with a ID degree and about 80 grand in student debt. My cousin didn’t mostly because of some trouble with the law and being in the midst of a borderline alcohol problem but he got it together after a few years got himself apprenticed to a plumber and more or less settled down. Fast forward 8 years we make about the same slaary but I’m still chipping away at that debt. Meanwhile he’s owns a house and basically makes his own schedule.

I think the key to succeeding without a college degree is learning a trade and getting very good at it.

Levi > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 17:55

College dropout reporting in:

Got a 35 on my ACT, full-ride scholarship, the works. Thought I was gonna be a doctor or a lawyer. Or an engineer. Realized I couldn’t bear to be in formal education long enough to do any of that stuff so left and did some soul-searching. Now I’m working in a factory making 15 bucks an hour which could break my heart if I thought it was my final destination...but it’s not. Now I’m working on my helicopter pilot’s license with the long-term goal of becoming a medevac pilot. My dad is a physician and sits on the board of the hospital he provides his services at, my mother is an RN who works at a cardio clinic and my sister is a lawyer who does contract review for an extremely large energy company. I didn’t think I could be happy without at least a masters and 100k/year, but honestly my only regret is not quitting school sooner. For me it wasn't the gate standing between me and my career, it was a distraction. I want to fly, and that takes money, and that takes working.

kanadanmajava1 > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 18:01

In Finland we tend to be a bit over educated. The company where I work is probably one of the most extreme in this. If I remember correctly our hierarchy is 7 levels from the lowest level to our CEO and the company employs ~2500 people.

I’m at the lowest and team leaders are the nest level above me. As far as I know every team leader has at least one doctoral degree. So advancing in hierarchy above the lowest level is pretty much impossible without such.

Our team of 20 has one guy who doesn’t have more than high school degree as he didn’t finish his college that he was working for when he was hired.

So you can get employed without much education in this company too but it’s not going to be easy. When new employees are been looked for the lack of education is very a bad disadvantage.

There are of course success stories of non educated in here too but usually they have made their fortune by establishing their own company that has been successful. Some have managed to climb up in some company’s hierarchy to the top without much education too but these times are pretty much gone.

Btw. That RR was built by some Finnish nut and it’s definitely not street legal here. The windshield has a temporary license plate (sticker) but any cop would fine the driver for several things. But that temporary plate will still clear him from costly offenses of driving without insurance or not paying “yearly road tax”.

Textured Soy Protein > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 18:10

I took a break from college and lucked my way into a decent job where I advanced up in the company, without a degree. I started going back to school while still at that job but it wasn’t an ideal situation, and I found it very tough to get a job equivalent to where I was at, without a degree. I graduated and it’s definitely easier in my field to get a job with a degree than without, but that’s because for most of the jobs my experience qualifies me for, a bachelor’s degree in something is table stakes.

What I would say is that a degree in and of itself is no guarantee of success, especially if you pay a lot of money you don’t necessarily have to get that degree. Think of getting a degree like any other investment: what kind of return will it get you for the amount of money you put into it?

There are plenty of ways to get trained or certified in some kind of trade or skilled profession without getting a degree. There’s no shame in doing so. As long as that trade/skill is something that person likes doing and pays them a decent wage, having a degree doesn’t matter for shit.

TheHondaBro > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 18:45

Yeah, I feel like the Steve Jobs example would be more appropriate, because he didn’t have a lot of money when he started Apple, unlike Bill Gates.

64Mali > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 18:49

I’m a Mechanical Engineer, Salary isn’t too bad means I can do ok. I have worked at chemical plants where the base salary for an operator is almost what I made. With OT some of those guys are pulling in 6 figures and most just have High School diplomas. I had a few thoughts of career changes more that once because of how well they do.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > MonkeePuzzle
01/06/2016 at 18:55

I spent eight years in the Army. During that time, I was required to salute to people who had shiny things on their hats. Some of those shiny thing-wearing people were so stupid that I was amazed they could get their boots tied in the mornings. What allowed them to wear shiny things on their hats was a four-year college degree. I decided that I would not live my life on the other side of that divide, so when I got out (in 1990) I went to college and got a degree.

(I knew a woman who was a nurse in the Air Force Reserve. When I new her, she was a major. She went on to make lieutenant colonel before retiring. One night I was receiving CPR training for my job and one of the trainers was a nurse from the Air Force Reserve. He knew my friend, but this guy was enlisted, an E-6. I asked him why he wasn’t an officer (wearing shiny things on his uniform). He scoffed and said, “Because I don’t have a degree. Like that really matters .) Certainly would’ve mattered to me...

Then there’s my brother-in-law who has made and lost at least two and a half fortunes in construction and real estate in the 26 years I’ve known him. Never went to college and he’s as bright and capable and competent and sensitive as anyone I’ve known but now, when he’s approaching retirement, and his building boom went away, lack of a degree is keeping him out of good paying jobs that would really allow him to make a large contribution.

Not what you were looking for, I bet, but offered with good intentions.

Flavien Vidal > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 18:58

I have degrees, but actually never bothered applying for a job, so these are utterly useless for me... Making my own company out of pretty much nothing, just social networking, meeting the right persons and so on... I won’t be able to go too much into details unfortunatly, but no degrees is no big deal in the “car flipping” or car import/export business... Amount of money required to start is fairly low either...

f86sabre > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 19:10

One of my very top level engineers has no degree. He is an industry expert in his field and is very much relied upon by our very large aviation company. He did seve in the military though and that is where he got much of his training.

Phyrxes once again has a wagon! > Future next gen S2000 owner
01/06/2016 at 19:11

Buddy of mine is a high school dropout, though he has completed his GED, and is a goldsmith. Anything artisan or trade related doesn’t “need” a degree.

A former student of mine, who barely made it out of high school, went to diesel mechanic school and makes good money driving a field service truck for a heavy equipment company.

cletus44 aka Clayton Seams > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 19:30

Kinja'd!!!

College dropout here. Bailed out of marketing school with abysmal grades and decided to try my hand at auto journalism. Now my 9-5 is shooting (sometimes driving) cool cars and I love every bit of it. College isn’t for all people, it wasn’t for me. Do what you love and bust ass at it until you’re good enough for someone to pay you.

Kailand09 > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 19:32

Especially if you aren’t quite sure and very into a specific degree and have some form of funding college, it can be a terrible idea.

I have multiple friends doing well without a degree, they aren’t rich or anything but they’re also not flipping burgers.

A degree opens many doors but isn’t entirely necessary.

Most notably, trade skills are in high demand like welding and generally start at minimum just below 20/hr.

I’d say tell him if he’s not into it that it isn’t a necessity. Often a degree doesn’t lead to a relevant job and you end up in the same place as without it but now have a ton of debt. I have a degree and honestly used it, however I'm lucky.

AfromanGTO > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 19:49

I have a few friends who dropped out of college and are doing ok. Some are working at Gulfstream making or painting jets, a few are in the AC business, know pest control people who make between 50-80k, a few working at JCB making industrial machines, and have a couple of underwater welder friends who make really good money.

E92M3 > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 20:03

I have a friend who came here with no college degree at 20 years old, but his native language is spanish. He was offerred a job at a trading company as an assistant for south america sales with a small salary. It was cheaper for the company to hire him than it was someone with a degree. After a couple years he was trading on his own, and no longer the assistant. A few years later he and 5 other people left to start their own company. Fast forward another 10 years and he’s a multi-millionare. Luck plays a huge role (not saying he didn’t work hard to prove himself). Had he not gotten that job, his life could be completely different though.

College is more about networking than the degree if you ask me. I’ve seen a number of people get good jobs because they were in the same fraternity, or on the same ball team as the manager doing the hiring. Not because they were the best fit. I’ve seen strangers get hired just because they went to “Alabama” too.

probablyshoulduseafakename > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 20:30

Casey neistat

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 21:28

Kinja'd!!!

HOVERCRAFT MODE ACTIVATE!

XJDano > Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis
01/06/2016 at 22:58

I’m a Union Laborer. Not just any either, the environmental kind that abates asbestos & lead, mold, and general demo.

I was homeschooled, but I’m not much for schooling either, I got a GED, tried a couple semesters of community college then at 18 the 40 hour Asbestos Supervisor certification. I know I been in the laborers Union since 5/99.

I have health benefits. I make $29.59/hour and another $1.50 when I’m running a job. It’s not for everyone.

Example, today we made this mess, drywall & insulation in a house that was flooded over New Years, it's cold & wet.

Kinja'd!!!