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0 pointsgumby4y ago0 comments

> Right, most people are there for the parties and get degrees in underwater basket weaving. But the hard sciences and engineering are usually for the credentials.

Did you intend to include a "not" as in "not for the credentials"? I would think you do a tough EE or Physics (or Classics) because you want to learn the stuff.

That seemed to be the case when I was at MIT, though that was a generation ago. Everybody seemed into their work, despite claiming to be upset by the course load. Complaining about it (IHTFP) seemed to be more of a ritual or social activity rather than earnest protest.

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5 comments · 2 top-level

Mathnerd3144y ago· 2 in thread

No, I meant "for". If you just want to learn the material, you can learn it about as effectively for free with self-study and online MOOCs. It's the credentials that cost money, and the economic assumption is that the credentials are why people attend universities. Did you go to MIT because you wanted a high course load or because you wanted a prestigious degree?

gumbyOP4y ago

Thanks for your answer — I really thought it likely a typo.

Seems like a colossal waste of time and resources to pay for a school and not enjoy it much less learn anything. A modern bonfire of the vanities.

I still learn a lot by reading, but many things do require interaction and guidance.

> Did you go to MIT because you wanted a high course load or because you wanted a prestigious degree?

I lost my diploma within a couple of hours of receiving it and nobody has ever asked me for it. I went there to learn things I thought I wouldn’t be able to learn anywhere else. At the time (early 80s) my high school classmates didn’t even consider it a prestigious school — those were the ivy leagues.

SamBam4y ago

I mean, nobody has ever asked for my paper diploma either (I lost it as well, the day after it was given) and I've never heard of anyone asking, but that doesn't mean the degree is useless. I certainly have "BA from such-and-such, MSc from such-and-such" on my resume. Evidence, if anyone cared, is only a phonecall away.

t-34y ago· 1 in thread

There's probably a pretty big correlation between expense and how interested you are in actually learning. A super-famous super-expensive MIT is obviously going to have a different student population than a cheaper and less prestigious institution.

caddemon4y ago

Most of the less prestigious 4 year institutions aren't functionally cheaper than MIT though, i.e. once you account for financial aid. The average tuition paid at MIT (and other "elite" schools) is lower than it is at the majority of private schools and even out of state public schools.

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