The headline is a bit of an attention grab, the article doesn't really get into any negatives about college, but I think this concept is spot on and why many 20 and 30 somethings find themselves unemployed or underpaid these days. You can gain a lot from college if you use it correctly, but it's become the thing you "have to do" when you finish high school. The problem is, many high school grads don't know what they want, or how to make college work for them, and so they end up floundering between majors and eventually graduating with some general degree. This of course means they are facing 2 huge challenges for finding a job upon graduation: 1) they likely have no real employable skills 2) they likely have nothing to differentiate them from the thousands of other candidates who also graduated in a similar position.
High school students: if you don't know what you want to get out of college, don't go. Or put it off for a few years. Apprenticeship, entry-level work (where you learn a skill or trade, not flipping burgers), travel: these things will help you figure out a goal for your life. The adults around you telling you that college is the only way to get a job are out of touch with the realities of your position as a young, inexperienced adult entering the workforce.
I'm not sure how you read that as I was suggesting just travel. Travel was suggested as one alternative, but so was working entry level or finding an apprenticeship, the implication there being you'll learn a skill and get paid.
I do think everyone should find time to travel at some point in their life, and it's usually easier when you're young. You'd be surprised how cheaply you can travel if you're willing to live on a budget. But if you just have no money, by all means work. And save.
But what I'm tired of seeing is the legions of teenagers who end up $50k+ in debt with a meaningless degree in communications or something, who then complain they can't get a job. They ended up in that place because they went to college because they were "supposed to", but had no idea how to make it useful for themselves. Doing other things for a few years will help you gain perspective into how you might use college for yourself, or realize that you don't need it.
High school students: if you don't know what you want to get out of college, don't go. Or put it off for a few years. Apprenticeship, entry-level work (where you learn a skill or trade, not flipping burgers), travel: these things will help you figure out a goal for your life. The adults around you telling you that college is the only way to get a job are out of touch with the realities of your position as a young, inexperienced adult entering the workforce.