The entire situation seems a little drastic to me, but I do think Thompson has a pretty strong grievance: her so called "career center" hasn't done their job in helping to assist her. As someone who found little to no use for the "career center" at my university I can completely relate. Granted, Maryland is currently in a deficit and the University of Maryland has seem major cuts in the last few months, but I feel like one woman in no way constitutes a "career center."
I've never been one to blame my problems on others, but this may become a fad if she follows through...and wins. The last thing our economy needs is a trend of young, lazy college graduates blaming schools instead on putting their nose to the grindstone and sticking this crappy economy out.
I disagree. School is a huge investment, and a good job is an reasonable expected return on investment.
ReplyDeleteI think there is a taboo in suing one's school, and I don't expect in this case, that the student will win. But these types of cases will continue if schools are not preparing students for the real world.
I think also, that there is institutional resistance to more practical career based approaches, because some areas of subsidy are of "cultural" and not economic value.
I completely agree with you that it's warranted when schools don't properly prepare their students. In journalism, and really any career, networking is an important skill to be familiar with, but especially in journalism. It's all about who you know, yet that's something that was never mentioned in any of my classes. Not once.
ReplyDeleteThere are practical career skills that teachers who have been in the profession for so long completely overlook when a new generation comes along. It's a huge handicap to be taught by teachers who only think about how crappy the job market is instead of providing the right tools to succeed in that market.