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Camden Rooney

Mr.Pace

ELA

11 December 2023

The Battle of College v Blue Collar/Military

For the past years the push of going to college in the greater parts of the United States has

been over shadowing what is truly the best pathway for a highschool graduate, going into the

military or getting a blue collar job has been elusive to many on not only its pay but the benefits

that come with it. Though going into college is still a pursuit of life after high school education

the more valuable, rewarding, and wiser pursuit are within the jobscape of joining the military or

getting a blue collar job.

College is highly known for its debt and the seemingly high paying job afterwards

though in fact the pay for an average blue collar job is higher paying then a job straight out of

college. “The median pay for an electrician is more than $55,000 per year, according to the U.S.

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The average starting salary for Class of 2018 college grads

was roughly $51,000. Many entry-level jobs that typically require a college degree pay

significantly less than $50,000.” Not only is there a very high demand for electricians currently,

there is also various opportunities for the different varieties of electrician jobs. Furthermore the

hourly rate for an apprentice electrician is 27.82$ which can vary from person to person and raise

over the amount of time you are a apprentice especially if you become a journeyman or master

electrician the pay increases. Not only that but to become an apprentice you don't need a degree

past high school and only need one training program which can take some time though you can
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work during it and the cost is many time less than an average college’s 4 year program cost. Blue

collar jobs aren't the only field with these opportunities, the military can offer you college for

free though it comes with more responsibility “Joining the military has huge benefits, everything

from the low cost of living to free college. Yes, they will even pay for your college. Kiplinger

said about the GI bill, “The Post-9/11 GI Bill covers the full cost of in-state tuition and fees at

public colleges for up to 36 months (four academic years), or up to $23,671 per year for private

colleges and foreign schools. You’ll also get a housing stipend and money for books and

tutoring.” The military is very structured unlike college your not on your own, its not a “sink or

swim” situation theres someone always pushing you to keep going and pushing you ahead in

everything you do. You also get basic military training which includes Self-discipline,

Teamwork, Combat skills, Night training, Hand-to-hand combat and weapons training, Basic

rifle marksmanship, and Physical fitness. Not to mention the financial benefits and travel

opportunities, for the financial benefits you get paid housing, food, healthcare, and with the post

9/11 bill (the G.I. bill) you get money if you later decide to further educate yourself. Which in all

means they pay for you to live and even go to college if you really wanted to.In all the blue

collar or military life is the greatest and only pathway of life you should be taking because the

benefits of both outweigh the college experience.

Some may believe that college is the best pathway of life that any recent highschool

graduate can take and that it will lead to a more lucrative life.College graduates tend to have

better career and financial outcomes. “In 2022, they earned 75% more on average than their high

school-alone educated peers, according to the San Francisco Fed, and had an unemployment rate

of 2%, compared with 7% among high school graduates, according to the National Center for

Education Statistics. This testimony is not necessarily true for a fact blue collar jobs provide a
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high pay without needing a college degree as you read in the past paragraph how so. Also the

unemployment rate may seem low but is high for both sides of that issue. “College is highly

known for its debt though Some may believe that college is the most prosperous pathway of life

after highschool though is it truly the way people should be taking, and why do so many chose

this way. So throughout the past years people have told me about how the push and drive to go to

college has risen including all around college debt and and how less and less people are going

into basic trades including electrical, plumbing, HVAC, etc.. and how were slowing getting to

the point of barley any people doing these trades. Not only all that but enlisting into the military

provides discipline, teambuilding, travel experiences, and even more benefits.” This supports

how college is generally seen as a great decision after highschool though when debt comes into

play and the general pay rate directly out of college compared to the military and blue collar jobs

its just incomparable because of how much greater the pay is in blue collar fields and how low

the debt is to get to such a high pay as say an electrician. Blue collar/ military not only pays

more, has more benefits, and the greatest thing is that you don’t out of either of them with the

10,000$ or more in debt.

College is the main life pathway that the majority of people not only take but are pushed

by their parents to take. Though through research and testimony’s it all shows and proves that

going into a blue collar or military job will lead to a more equitable and rewarding life, because

of their benefits, pay, and experiences. What do you wanna do with your life? Its a question i've

been asked multiple times from my dad and starting back to when i was younger i always wanted

to be an engineer and go to a big ivy league school, Then to 8th grade i realized that all that

school work wasn't for me and i decided to go to a tech school and pursuit the electrical field, but

over time there it wasn't fulfilling what i wanted to do and just last year i decided to go back to a
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normal highschool. I decided this because i found that either joining the military as an electrician

or something would inevitably lead to me being more happy with my life. So all this leads me to

ask you, what do you wanna do with your life and you really need to think about all the different

parts of each life path because you never know what you truly love till you find it.
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Work Cited

Necaibew, neca. “Are You Smarter than a College Grad?: NECA Ibew Electricians.”

NECA IBEW Electricians | Union Electricians and Electrical Contractors throughout

Warren, Ohio and Youngstown, Ohio, 21 Nov. 2019, necaibewelectricians.com/the-case-

for-becoming-an-electrician/#:~:text=The%20median%20pay%20for%20an,pay

%20significantly%20less%20than%20%2450%2C000.

Hanson, Cole. “Why Joining the Military Could Be Better for You than College.” Spartan

Shield, 2021, spartanshield.org/15117/opinion/why-joining-the-military-could-be-better-

for-you-than-college/.

McNair, Kamaron. “Should You Still Push Kids to Get a Degree? Yes, Experts Say:

‘There’s Not a Better Substitute for College.’” CNBC, CNBC, 7 Oct. 2023,

www.cnbc.com/2023/10/07/is-college-still-worth-it-how-to-discuss-the-question-with-

your-kids.html#:~:text=get%20a%20degree%3F-,Yes%2C%20experts%20say%3A

%20’There’s%20not,a%20better%20substitute%20for%20college’&text=The%20data

%20in%20support%20of,better%20career%20and%20financial%20outcomes.

Side note: i know i didn't go into more range of blue collar jobs but i understand the electrician

side more than any.