Mandatory public service for young Americans

[Boomhauer]

He would be better off career wise. They value hands on experience. One of the reasons a major company hired my BIL after he went into engineering was he had years of practical experience as an auto mechanic

The high schools push college because they get a kickback and it makes them look better to have more students go on to four year colleges. They don’t give a flying *expletive deleted*ck about what’s good for the student. Couple that with the the way society looks down upon the trades and little wonder the extreme need for replacements for the retiring ones.

[lupinus]

If I may, I believe his point was sperm is cheap, eggs are priceless.

And my point is that short of something even more appalling, priceless is about accurate since it's a worthless comparison.

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[brimic]

He would be better off career wise. They value hands on experience. One of the reasons a major company hired my BIL after he went into engineering was he had years of practical experience as an auto mechanic

The high schools push college because they get a kickback and it makes them look better to have more students go on to four year colleges. They don’t give a flying *expletive deleted*ck about what’s good for the student. Couple that with the the way society looks down upon the trades and little wonder the extreme need for replacements for the retiring ones.

I am in awe of what's out there that I never knew about when in HS. My best friend worked in the chemistry field for 15 years, learned business concepts/lean manufacturing on the job, then taught himself machining, and more importantly CAD/CAM/CNC by watching youtube videos, and bought himself a VMC and a lathe so he could make niche market race car parts out of his garage. He now manages a large machine shop.

The day After Christmas, I had a sewage/septic problem. Called a plumber, who referred me to a pumping service, which quickly came to my house. I spent a couple of hours helping the guy running hoses, electrical cords, holding flashlights and asking him questions. He ended up pumping the septic, testing the system, roto-rootering out the soil pipe, fixed the problem. $475 for 2.5 hrs work- and I felt the money was well worth it.

[MechAg94]

As an engineer, I can tell you that the more hands on experience you have, the better off you will be IMO.  It helps you learn and understand the classwork if you have applications in mind to make it a little more real.  Hands on experience teaches you a little bit more about how simple everyday things work so you can get past the simple and get on to the real problems.  

My boss is not an engineer, but when he hires process operators he said his favorite question to ask what hobbies they have and see if they know how to work on small engines and such.  Maybe fall back to asking how a toilet works with the float and plug and stuff.  If they don't know that simple stuff, they are going to have issues trying to understand how an 11,000 horsepower reciprocating compressor works.  

 and 2) I think many employers like seeing more than just a fast food job on your resume.