Abbi again

 I have to continue the Abigail story. As I am sure I noted earlier she is graduating from college this Summer. Foe quite a while she has been working (on her mother's insistence) her continuing education. Her number 1 choice was Columbia University which according to her gives the best choice of programs of what she wants to study.

So, this past week she received a letter informing her that she was accepted by Columbia. And this brings up mixed reactions from me (naturally!). First of all, we are all very happy and proud of her because this is a real achievement. But and there is always a but...

Abigail is living in a vacuum or dreamworld. Has very little understanding of money. Loves to buy expensive clothing, loves to select the expensive stuff in restaurants and this is why (in my opinion) Columbia was also her first choice. Ok, it is a name brand and probably people coming out of there she will do better than the average. But still! In my opinion it is not the institution that will make the person but the person.

Abigail believes that by coming out of Columbia she will have the education, the knowledge, contacts and the respect that will help her get better jobs. Maybe so, but she will also have a gigantic expectation she will have to live up to. They will not give her the money because she is cute and a Columbia graduate but because of her knowledge. I always worked with engineers, college graduates and we never asked them what school they came from. It was how they were able to adapt to the job and how did they perform.

In my experience, college will not provide the education necessary for any profession. maybe doctors are the exceptions. College will provide the basics so they can be trained to do what that particular job requires. At least that was the way where I worked. Companies have their own way of doing things and they will train the prospective employees. But whenever I tried to discuss this with her, I am shot down by her comment that I am old and things are different now from when I worked. Maybe so but I don't believe they can be that much different. Nobody is giving money away without getting something for it.

Oh, I forgot to mention that Columbia master's program is damn expensive!