Academia is not a monoculture, but people who take the path suggested by the administrative faction are the ones ending up in debt. The marketing is like that for dodgy credit cards or subprime home loans. (The Ivy League strata is more about getting to network and socialize with clubs of the wealthy and powerful, possibly getting a lucrative position as in the British Empire's public school system, so set them aside as a special case.)
Otherwise, for people who want to learn arcane technological skills and curious knowledge for the science and engineering world, community colleges and research universities are the way to go. Two years in a community college at low cost, ideally some kind of grant/scholarship for 2-3 years more at a research university, preferably in collaborative/teamwork situations with actual professionals in their fields. You also have access to tools and equipment that you'd never get to use otherwise, and experience with such setups can lead right into a good R & D job.
It's not worth being weighed down with debt at the end, though, since the loan payments will eat up revenue that could have gone to savings for a home, founding a startup, etc.
Students should thus view the academic finance system as a hostile adversary that's always trying to force them to take on as much debt as possible. Student loans are traded like subprime mortgages were in 2008, I imagine tranched into pyramid schemes, and the industry always needs fresh meat.
Otherwise, for people who want to learn arcane technological skills and curious knowledge for the science and engineering world, community colleges and research universities are the way to go. Two years in a community college at low cost, ideally some kind of grant/scholarship for 2-3 years more at a research university, preferably in collaborative/teamwork situations with actual professionals in their fields. You also have access to tools and equipment that you'd never get to use otherwise, and experience with such setups can lead right into a good R & D job.
It's not worth being weighed down with debt at the end, though, since the loan payments will eat up revenue that could have gone to savings for a home, founding a startup, etc.
Students should thus view the academic finance system as a hostile adversary that's always trying to force them to take on as much debt as possible. Student loans are traded like subprime mortgages were in 2008, I imagine tranched into pyramid schemes, and the industry always needs fresh meat.