Photo Credit: UVU Facebook

Money. Learning. Jobs. College is sometimes worth the money. College is expensive and not every job will give you the money required to pay back your student loans or other expenses. There are other reasons to go to college but you should always be able to pay for it. 

College is expensive. Though there are many ways like grants and scholarships to lower the cost of college. Many people have to get student loans to afford the high cost of college. This high cost is the main reason why anyone who is considering going to college should choose the exact major they want to do before they start college. Also not everyone is cut out for college because it is very difficult to accomplish getting a degree. In 2025, 53.5% at four year institutions (Education Data Initiative).

A different consideration is what do the employers in that field want you to have at what school. Wood shop teacher Mr. Nuttal (Lovingly called Big Nutt) said “I probably would have not gone to college for cabinetry if I had talked to the employers and learned that it was not a requirement.” If he had done that he would have saved a lot of money and time getting into the trade. Though it seemed like wasted time and effort, if he had not gone to college, Mr. Nuttal would not be teaching here at Bingham because he got his teaching licence at BYU due to a lack of need in cabinetry. 

If college does not seem like it is the right fit for you then you could go to trade school. It is normally 2 years instead of 4 and it will teach you more about a trade than you could learn in other ways. It can be cheaper than college paths along with it would normally look better to potential employers if they know the place you went to and it was the same trade or job you went to school for. 

Some trades can be a middle ground where it is learned at a technical path through a college. At UVU you can learn trades and get a degree in it but only if it is through the trades they teach. Some of the trades taught at UVU are diesel tech automotive tech and autobody. It is possible to get a degree in the trades taught but you can also get a certificate and take less classes but if it is needed to get more schooling the certifications will not help you get a different degree. Though there are many different ways to get good schooling It really depends on what you need and what you can do.