Category: Education
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Coding bootcamps are better job training than most CS degrees
For getting hired as a working developer, intensive bootcamps often outperform four-year CS programs. The reason is alignment, not academic rigor.
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Need-blind admissions is a marketing claim, not a policy
Need-blind admissions sounds rigorous and is largely promotional. Here’s what colleges actually do, and why the gap between claim and practice is wide.
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The four-year degree should be killed and replaced with three
The four-year bachelor’s is a historical accident, not a learning requirement. A three-year degree saves money, time, and student burnout without losing rigor.
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Admissions consulting is legal cheating and Ivy League schools love it
Elite admissions consulting costs more than tuition and bends the rules without breaking them. The Ivies know exactly what’s happening — and benefit from it.
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The college essay is a class signal dressed up as personal expression
Admissions essays claim to reveal authentic voice. In practice, they reward access to coaching and a specific cultural register most applicants can’t fake.
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529 plans are a tax break for parents who didn’t need help
529 plans deliver real tax savings, but the families using them are mostly wealthy. The policy is regressive by design and rarely scrutinized that way.
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Financial aid offers are deliberately confusing because schools profit from it
College financial aid letters mix grants, loans, and work-study without clear labels. The confusion isn’t a bug — it inflates net tuition by design.
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Trade schools have been culturally smeared and the data is embarrassing
We told a generation that college was the only path. The earnings, debt, and employment data on trade schools tell a different and embarrassing story.
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Humanities departments earned their decline
Humanities enrollment is collapsing and the field blames everything but itself. Here’s the case that the decline reflects choices the discipline made.
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Harvard’s endowment should be taxed like a corporation
Harvard’s $50 billion endowment operates like a hedge fund with a school attached. The current 1.4% excise tax is a token. Here’s the case for treating it as what it is.