The college scam is real. Let us prove it to you.

PREFACE: My name is Jamal X and I am the owner of TheCollegeScam.com. I am a serial entrepreneur, stock trader, and investor. I do NOT have a college degree.

In this day and age, it has become popular and even trendy to call college a scam but I was calling it a scam way before almost anyone else said it out loud. I started verbally referring to college as a scam around 2010. My statement was always met with laughter, ridicule, and just plain mockery. Oftentimes in life, going against traditional wisdom and thinking will get you ostracized from the masses. I live my life by a simple code..."don't listen to the masses because the masses are usually dumbasses"

I can't tell you how many situations I've been in in my life where something was glaringly obvious to me but NOBODY around me could see it or figure it out. I was saying college was a scam WAY before it became popular to say it. College not guaranteeing a good job has always been common sense to me but most people don't have any common sense. As time goes on more and more people are jumping on board. The people who laughed at me are forced to admit that I was right...

Every college graduate that I know works at a regular job making regular wages...

College has become the new casino or lottery. Could it work? Sure! Will it work? Most likely not. Just like the lottery or a casino, colleges know they need a few winners to keep the illusion alive. If they can show you a handful of examples where college worked then they stand a better chance of suckering you in. People play the lottery because they've seen news stories where some person actually won.

cognitive dissonance - the state of having inconsistent thoughts, beliefs, or attitudes, especially as relating to behavioral decisions and attitude change.

The average American knows several people with college degrees that work at regular everyday jobs but the myth still persists that "If YoU gO tO cOlLeGe YoU'Ll MaKe A bAjiLliOn DoLlArs". That is cognitive dissonance or in layman's terms, ignoring reality.

This is a touchy subject for most people but with this website, I will try my best to expose the myth that you need college to succeed in life using thought-provoking facts and a few opinions.

Most of us were told since childhood that you have to go to college to be successful and if we don't you'll end up flipping burgers. That is simply not true and most people aren't willing to admit it or say it out loud. I want to be like the kid who proclaimed the emperor has no clothes. If you are unfamiliar with that story click here to watch it. The Emperor’s New Clothes

Truth be told, most college graduates end up being what I call "Triple D". Disappointed, depressed, and disillusioned.

Let's get one thing straight before we get too deep. I'm not against a college education or education in general mainly because I know there are certain jobs that you are legally required to get a degree for. There's no way around that. Also, as a stock trader and investor I had to educate myself on those subjects but with almost all free information that I acquired online. I educated myself in order to become a proficient stock trader and investor. What I want to get at with this website is the lie that so many people have believed for decades. " I need a degree in order to succeed at anything". That is the lie I want to stop in its tracks.

Let's get started:

There are three main reasons why college is a scam and why most people that go to college probably shouldn't:

Reason #1: Student loan debt

Reason #2: Too many people with degrees

Reason #3: The internet

Video library

This is a FULL DOCUMENTARY on the higher education conspiracy...let that sink in for a second.

A comedic look at the reality of student loans and college in general.

"College is going to be one of the biggest investments of your life, which is why you should just trust what the student loan companies tell you without even thinking twice about how much you could be screwed after school has ended."

20/20's John Stossel examines the college scam.

Popular YouTuber, Jake Tran takes a look at how we as a country got to this point.

"Determined to speak up about America's crumbling higher education system, three students at Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism rallied the voices of an indebted generation."

"Over the last 15 years, the cost of college has reached a level that for most Americans has exceeded the benefits of a 4-year degree. Though the mainstream still pushes high school graduates to go to college as a MUST DO to be successful, today's youth are seeing through the propaganda as enrollment numbers have already declined 5 years in a row. The government has now begun to intervene by forgiving debt but they will not act fast enough to prevent this bubble to pop. In just a few years, we'll be at $2 Trillion in student debt if the trend is not radically altered as soon as possible."

" With Americans' student debt now over $1.5 trillion, Hasan looks at how the federal government turned the Department of Education into the largest bank in America in terms of loans, and examines the department's relationship with loan servicers. These private financial companies have benefitted from Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos' hands-off regulation that has made it easy for students to become trapped in debt. "

"The cost of college is skyrocketing. Student debt has exceeded one TRILLION dollars. Students have borrowed more to pay for their college education than they can reasonably expect to pay back. "Voices of Debt" documentary is their voice. A warning, and a call for action about this crisis on the verge of national disaster. Don't Major in Debt. "

" In his second report, this week on student lending, economics correspondent Paul Solman examines the challenges that indebted college graduates face and the debate over whether to forgive some or all of their loan burden. "

"College in the United States is expensive. The cost of higher education just keeps going up. Tuition costs at both public and private universities have doubled since the late 80s, while accounting for inflation."

"ABC 20/20 investigation with John Stossel takes a look at whether or not college is worth the time and money, or if it's really nothing more than another elaborate scam to get people into debt while creating the false hope of a better job and life. "

ABC News' Linsey Davis speaks with journalist Josh Mitchell about his new book "The Debt Trap: How Student Loans Became a National Catastrophe."

University degrees don't seem to guarantee stable careers anymore. The shift is prompting some graduates to rethink their futures and one university to offer a "jobs guarantee."

" America's $1.2 trillion in student loan debt is more than just a number – it's a weight borne by millions of students, often for decades. Some have no degree to show for it and are on a “debt strike.” Others are resigned to the fact that they'll never pay it off, get married or own a home.

This video focuses on many of the same ideas that this website does. Give it a watch.

"I definitely did not understand what I was signing up for."

"Here is why college is a total scam"

Another satirical look at the college scam.

"Should you go to college? Of course, you're absolutely nothing without a college degree. Plus, the best way to get ahead in life is by starting out behind in $100K of debt."

"$150,000 in Student Debt...For USELESS Law Degree!"

"It seems like college gets exponentially more expensive while a degree is also becoming exponentially more useless. College and the education system as a whole sort of resembles a Pyramid Scheme; When you look at the ROI of college its very hard to make a case that it's worth it especially if you're taking some bs Major; And it's even worse when you analyze exactly what you're learning and doing because most times you will find that a majority of what you "learn" is absolutely useless. Despite all of this college still becomes progressively more expensive while also becoming more and more useless in the 21st century. The reason for this is simple and it's because this entire Ponzi Scheme that is college is completely predicated on the idea that a higher education is the only path for almost every single person. So because of this they can freely increase tuition cost; Banks increase the loans which results in increasing debt."

Hasan Minhaj explores how universities became corporatized over the past few decades and if the rising costs of college are still worth it in a post-pandemic world.

"For-Profit Colleges, The $100 Billion Legal Scam"

EXTRAS

Money management

Everyone wants to make more money and their plan for doing this is to go to college. No one ever stops to worry about how they will keep the money. No one worries about money management. Making more money is useless if you spend it all. Look at some professional athletes. They'll get paid millions of dollars and still end up broke. Let's say you do go to college and get a nice 6 figure salaried job. It sounds great but the average American would blow it by buying a fancy new car, a new house, a new wardrobe, and other crap. Making more money is not a cure-all.

There is a not-so-new phenomenon occurring amongst college-educated millennials where they earn high wages but still live paycheck to paycheck. The fact that they even earn high wages is extraordinary, to begin with, but the predicament they are in proves my point nonetheless. Part of the reason these people are so broke is because of having to repay student loans. People in this situation have even been given a nickname...HENRYs (high earners not rich yet). Check out some of these YouTube videos for a full breakdown of this growing trend:

Always remember, it's not all about how much you make it's about how much you keep.

The can opener test

I've noticed a phenomenon amongst college students and recent graduates. Most people who have recently gone to college lack basic life skills, common sense, street smarts, and critical thinking skills. This is most likely because college, parents, and society only preach SCHOOL. It gets drilled into their brains so much that they block out everything else. If you put a can opener and a can of beans in front of a recent college graduate and ask them to open the can they probably couldn't do it. Opening a can would be classified as a basic life skill. What does all of this mean? A college degree doesn't amount to a hill of beans!

Survivorship bias

"Survivorship bias or survival bias is the logical error of concentrating on the people or things that made it past some selection process and overlooking those that did not, typically because of their lack of visibility. This can lead to some false conclusions in several different ways. It is a form of selection bias."

In other words, you only focus on the success stories and completely ignore the number of people who didn't succeed.

People will oftentimes try to justify going to college by bringing up one person that they know or maybe even themselves because a degree worked for them or the person they know. You can't focus on what happens to a small minority while completely ignoring what happens to a large majority of people. That will get you into extremely hot water quickly.

I once heard a girl say she would be successful with her college degree because her father went to college and he makes lots of money. My response was basically "what the hell does that have to do with you?". Her father went to college 30 years before she did. You have to be a serious idiot to think the effectiveness of anything would remain the same after 30 years. This girl is also the same person who didn't know how many continents there are or how many states there are in this country. People like that are just in for a big disappointment. A school doesn't magically help you if you aren't that bright, to begin with.

Also, you really need to start asking recent college graduates about their experience after college. Basing your expectations on what happened to someone 30 years ago is just asinine and ignorant.

Kids are most likely to skew their minds with the survivorship bias because they haven't developed the critical thinking skills it takes to realize only the successful people are the ones being written about, featured on news segments, podcasts, and receiving awards. Kids truly believe that everyone who tries at something succeeds at it.

Example:

A 10-year-old kid might really believe they are destined to play in the NBA and that kid uses the logic of "well Lebron James made it to the NBA so I will too". That's the way a child's mind really works. That kid has no idea that hundreds of thousands of basketball players have never reached NBA status.

Children believe in college

The largest demographic of people who believe in college are people who are in college or on their way to college...in other words, children. Children often have a naive and childlike way of looking at the world. Children are sheltered from reality well into their twenties. An alarming number of college graduates receive a rude awakening after graduating. The ideal 6-figure job is not waiting for them like they thought it would be. The world is not their oyster as they had been told it would be many times throughout life.

I am by no means religious but I believe this bible verse sums up this passage perfectly:

1 Corinthians 13:11

When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

The sad reality is most kids would never believe you if, before they graduated, you told them college is a scam. When I was younger I would often hear a saying from older people that applies here. It went "I can show you better than I can tell you". That saying basically means "you arent going to listen to me and heed my warning anyway so you will just have to learn the hard way". People learn best when they actually go through real life situations. Verbal warnings are pretty useless in this situation.

Colleges prey on the naivety of children for their own financial gain. They know the majority of kids who graduate from their schools will still end up with regular jobs but they don't care. Once you waste the years of your life and the money on college you never get it back.

Real-life contradictions

I often base my opinions on real-life people that contradict everything you were told growing up. The majority of people I went to high school with that got degrees work at regular jobs. They're teachers, warehouse workers, postal workers, customer service reps, etc. Everyone has this fancy, rosy-eyed view of how their life will turn out because they go to a building with doors and windows a.k.a. college. Life is not some pretty magical place where everyone makes millions. Someone has to work at the post office regardless of whether or not you have a degree. Accountants have college degrees but the last time I checked they weren't rolling in dough from crunching numbers. Social work, graphic design, family therapy, news reporting, and radio announcing all require a degree and they all usually pay under $50k/year. Just going to college is not going to magically put lots of money into your pockets.

You have to adapt. You can't expect the effectiveness of anything to remain the same over decades.

Here are a few examples of entire industries that have been completely changed forever because no one had the foresight to adapt...I'm sure the major players in these industries thought the party would never end:

cable TV - replaced with streaming services
roadmap companies - replaced with Google maps
encyclopedias - replaced by the internet/Wikipedia
travel agents - replaced by Travelocity, Expedia, Airbnb, etc.
magazines and newspapers - replaced by blogs and internet news sites
video stores - replaced with Netflix, Hulu, etc.

Underemployment

Underemployment rate of U.S. college graduates by major 2020. This statistic shows the number of recent college graduates who were underemployed in the United States, by college major. As of July 2020, around 73.2 percent of recent college graduates who majored in criminal justice were underemployed. - SOURCE

READ: 41% of Recent Grads Work in Jobs Not Requiring a Degree

Restaurants employ TONS of college graduates

When I was 27 I was the manager of a sports bar. While working there, there were two cooks that had college degrees. Both of these cooks were older than me and obviously made less than I did. This was an obvious sign that college was no longer a good investment. Having worked in the restaurant industry for years I met several bartenders, cooks, and servers with college degrees. None of these people were working in restaurants temporarily. They were full-time restaurant employees well into their 30s and 40s.

Loud about graduation. Quiet about their job.

Have you ever noticed that people love to brag about how they just graduated from college or that their son or daughter just graduated but rarely ever talk about the job they land? I've noticed it and I know exactly why that happens. Graduation is seen as an accomplishment and most people will treat it as such but the average graduate ends up working at a BS job that would never warrant a celebration. The BS job they get is swept under the rug. People are loud about graduation and quiet about the jobs they land afterwards. College is more about a status symbol than an actual useful achievement.

The same concept applies to marriage. How many times have seen a couple make a big deal out the wedding (especially women) then end up divorced after a few years? They were loud about the wedding but quiet about how miserable they were.

The "connections" myth

One of the justifications people use for going to college is that you'll make "connections". That is one of the biggest loads of BS I have ever heard in my life. You don't make connections in college because everyone there is just like you...broke. In ten years they will still be broke. Broke people can't help other broke people.

Is College Really the Right Choice?

This blog is jam-packed with thought-provoking posts that shine a light on the question of "is college really necessary?".

2019 college admissions bribery scandal

The 2019 college admissions scandal, which involved some of the biggest names in Hollywood, revealed some of the lesser-known reasons why college is a scam...Click Here To Learn More.

Solutions

Dose of reality

Stop pretending that EVERY kid that goes to college will end up making six figures. Who is going to be a janitor? The sad reality that most people don't want to accept is that with or without a degree a large percentage of the population will be regular. NOBODY wants to accept that.

I am not against education. You need to know something about something but there are a plethora of inexpensive and more effective alternatives to traditional higher education.

Investing/Trading

Trading and investing are my favorite alternatives to traditional occupations because I have been trading and investing for a very long time. I began trading stocks around the time that most people would have entered their sophomore year of college. I had no real debt so it was probably the most opportune time to begin trading. If I had gone to college and taken out student loans I wouldn't have had any money for the stock market. I would have had a load of debt after graduation and a crappy job that would have never allowed me to pay the debt back. Even as a kid I was more financially savvy than the average American.

The way I learned the stock market was by looking up information online for free. When I did spend money it was on cheap books on Amazon. I taught myself how to trade and invest in stocks for about $300. Over the years, my return on investment has dwarfed what any college graduate could ever hope for.

Start a business. Online or traditional

When people brag about having a degree they're doing it to get a pat on the back but that pat will never come from people like me. A truly informed individual only applauds a healthy investment portfolio filled with stocks, real estate, business ventures, etc. Just going to school doesn't warrant a celebration. It means you went to a school and learned some stuff. What do most people do after learning that stuff? Not much.

My two main revenue streams are the stock market and my websites. They are both excellent income streams and have served me better than any job or degree ever could have.

It doesn't matter if you want to start an online business(website, online store, software, etc) or a traditional business you can find all the information you need online. Just look for it. College is no longer the only game in town.

The Three C's

To be successful in this day and age you have to be a master of the three C's:

Be CREATIVE
Be CLEVER
Have COMMON SENSE

People place too much emphasis on gaining a lot of useless knowledge and forget about the three C's. The three C's will make you rich if you employ them correctly.

Affordable online learning

Skillshare

Coursera

Udemy

YouTube

All of those platforms offer courses in subjects like computer coding, marketing, photography, video editing, music, graphic design, photoshop, and the list goes on and on. If you can think of it you can learn it online cheaper.

My favorite of all those platforms is YouTube because it is 100% free and it is the place where I learned the majority of what I know about the stock market. The main strategy that I use in the stock market came from a YouTube video that I watched around 2010. Over the years that strategy has allowed me to have single days in the stock market where I made between $4,000-$10,000.

The world has changed and it is up to you to either accept and embrace the change or stick your head in the sand and watch the world pass you by. College had its run but there are better alternatives out there. The choice is yours.

TheCollegeScam.com

TheCollegeScam.com

"Go to college, get all the degrees you want, but after that, for the love of God, DO SOMETHING."

College scam reading material

Quora discussions

Reddit discussions

Video library

More videos 📺

Comic relief

EXTRAS

Is College Really the Right Choice?

GETTING A COLLEGE DEGREE IS A SCAM

Solutions

Still Think college is a good idea?

WAKE UP!!!

Featured on

TheCollegeScam.com

"Go to college, get all the degrees you want, but after that, for the love of God, DO SOMETHING."

College scam reading material

Quora discussions

Reddit discussions

Video library

More videos 📺

Comic relief

EXTRAS

Is College Really the Right Choice?

GETTING A COLLEGE DEGREE IS A SCAM

Solutions

Still Think college is a good idea?

WAKE UP!!!

Featured on

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