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There’s a new, and frankly, an alarming trend many are beginning to notice in the U.S. Seems as though there’s a growing sentiment of college not being worth the investment. This sentiment is not reserved just for recently-graduated high school kids who want to do anything but commit to more education; some parents and studies are beginning to question whether the investment’s worth it. There are more than two million high school graduates who enroll in college courses each year, says A. Harrison Barnes, career coach and founder of EmploymentCrossing.com. One out of three will drop out after the first year. What does this mean in dollars and cents? More than $9 billion is wasted every year on tuition, books, dorm fees and everything else that goes with getting teens in college.

That’s not all, though. The EmploymentCrossing.com founder says these kids, who are nonplussed and have no sincere desire to get a college education are spending their time cutting classes and of all things – spending the lion’s share of their time on any number of social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter. The course loads are getting lighter too and the courses these kids are signing up for are surprising, to say the least. Let’s face it, spending close to one hundred thousand dollars is a bit surreal when the degree is in surfing. Lest we forget the U.C. Berkeley course titled, “Arguing with Judge Judy”.

We asked A. Harrison Barnes to break the numbers down for us. Here ‘s his breakdown, based on statistics and available information:

  • The cost for a single day in an average college costs a bit more than $150.
  • More than 20% of college students have no concept of how to manage their finances or balance their checkbooks.
  • College students average ten hours a week at keg parties while only sacrificing eight hours for their studies.

Take a deep breath before you read this next fact:

  • The average college student spends more than nine hours each day on Facebook, electronic games, their cells and PDAs and watching television.

The EmploymentCrossing.com founder also says a full 45% of college graduates do not have strong enough credit to purchase a home after graduating. Again, speaking of the average student, each carries more than $3000 in credit card debt.

To be sure, these numbers are staggering and for many, and certainly for parents, it’s disheartening. So does this mean parents shouldn’t encourage their slacker teen to consider a college education? Barnes says no parent wants to do that; we all want the good things in life for our children. But if Mom and Dad are shelling out thousands of dollars each month in an effort of getting little Billy educated, only to have him skip entire semesters, then clearly, the purpose is defeated.

Frankly, some say those kids are show up at campus ready to party are likely to become one of the saddest statistics at all: 1,700 college kids die each year from alcohol related injuries.

It’s a tough call, to be sure. Careers don’t just happen; it takes commitment and dedication and it appears these two qualities are sorely lacking in some of these would-be college freshmen.

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