> One of the costs that is often excluded, if you go the "not college" route, is the toll of physical labor on one's body
That's why, for people interested in technology, software development is an incredible blessing. If you're clever about it, and plan ahead in HS, you can easily skip college and come out making $100,000/yr within 3-4 years, even in small markets.
I've never taken a single computer science class, make well over $100,000 in a highly-challenging software development job, and no one has ever asked me about a college degree (with the exception of one job that I regretted accepted and which I quit in 8 months).
There are other similar routes available to people without college degrees. Several wealthy people my parents know started out in construction, but rapidly moved into flipping houses and real estate, and made a fortune. Their physical labor was over by their late 20s.
There are many paths that skip college and don't end up working physical labor after a decade or two. But you have to be clever and proactive (if you're on HN, I'm going to assume you're at least the former).
That's why, for people interested in technology, software development is an incredible blessing. If you're clever about it, and plan ahead in HS, you can easily skip college and come out making $100,000/yr within 3-4 years, even in small markets.
I've never taken a single computer science class, make well over $100,000 in a highly-challenging software development job, and no one has ever asked me about a college degree (with the exception of one job that I regretted accepted and which I quit in 8 months).
There are other similar routes available to people without college degrees. Several wealthy people my parents know started out in construction, but rapidly moved into flipping houses and real estate, and made a fortune. Their physical labor was over by their late 20s.
There are many paths that skip college and don't end up working physical labor after a decade or two. But you have to be clever and proactive (if you're on HN, I'm going to assume you're at least the former).