Jobless Grad Sues College: Higher Ed Bubble To Burst?

It should have been filed years ago: A lawsuit against the alma mater for not providing what it implicitly or explicitly promoted.  Well, now it has. 

Jobless graduate Trina Thompson is suing Monroe in the Bronx.  Thompson contends she didn't get adequate career opportunities or help from Monroe's job-placement function for her $70,000 in tuition.  I have long predicted that higher education, like BigPharma, is going to get nailed for failure to label the benefits and risks of pursuing a degree.  That label, I am also convinced, should include possible side effects such as an inflated sense of self.   

This litigation could signal that the bubble is about to burst in higher education. In late June, THE NEW YORK TIMES covered the issue:  What is a Master's Degree Worth?  Boy, did it ever get a response from readers, mostly negative about the marketability of advanced degrees.  It was Mark C. Taylor, Columbia's Chair of the Religion Department, who described the dynamics of higher education as "the next bubble to burst."  He went on to opine, "Education is big business and, like other big businesses, it is in big trouble."

Needless to add, law school has been a very big business.  When will the outrage of the jobless JDs reach the flashpoint?

Comments

[College Research Paper]

I appreciate the work of all people who share information with others.

[Term Papers]

Thanks for share this information, i really didn't know about that, will get advantage from this,Thanks for share this

[Term papers]

I really admire this, I mean it really looks interesting! I'm actually glad to see all this stuff...

[Custom Term Papers]

A great article indeed and a very detailed, realistic and superb analysis, Thanks for share

[Custom term papers]

It’s great to see good information being shared.

[Pam]

So many well educated people can't find work. I am an experienced teacher (5years FT..granted tenure, BA,MS...years of subbing all academic subjects grades K-12)and have been unable to secure a teaching position for MANY YEARS.I have applied in New York City, Long Island NY, Florida, Oregon, California and even Lousiana after Hurricane Katrina. Even after numerous visits by car and plane (at my own expense) to set up meetings on sight I am told there are no openings. America is told we need teachers. Truth be told, America has an over abundance of teachers and the individual state certification rules leave out many more qualified candidates and promote the hiring of less educated, less experienced candidates. The perpetual hiring of these new grads perpetuates the myth further and funnels more and more money to the higher education business.

[Jane Genova]

To Dandelionsbane:

I am not a lawyer. I have no vested interest in this other than I sense I too had been sold a bill of goods by society on the professional value of higher education. I don't seem to be alone, unfortunately.

Trina Thompson doesn't seem to have a strong case. But she is shedding light on the issue of the hyperoptimism about education, education, and more education. This focus can serve to alert consumers that it is a Buyer Beware market.

Today the BBC interviewed me. Remember, there are the overeducated unemployed around the globe. They can be a source of great social, political and economic unrest. They probably didn't need all that education and their nation has no way to hire it or put it to work for the common good.

[dandelionsbane]

You're a lawyer. Of course you encourage this sort of litigation - frivolous and infinite in variety. The lawyers win no matter the outcome, and the more infamy the bigger the win. Trina may or may not win the suit, depending on how the jury feels about free handouts. However, employers are much less likely to hire a potential vexatious litigant who is known to bite the hand that feeds her.

[Karunya]

Hi!

I'm working with a global radio show and we're running this story today. We'd love to include your opinion on this. Please do email me if you'd be interested in taking part in today's show!

Thanks!

[Law School Podcaster]

We hope to soon do a show on what you can expect in law school. It will also deal with issues of how to land a good job.