Jobless woman sues to get $70,000 back

[IDrinkaRum]

Jobless woman sues the college she graduated from in April, 2009 for not helping her finding a job

[Greenday]

Just because they say they'll help doesn't mean they can work magic and find everyone jobs.

[LeChatNoir]

My question is...was the college able to line up interviews for her? Because if she is getting interviews and not getting hired, I think that's more of a personal problem than the college's.

I also wonder what her degree is in. It's unfortunate, but there are a lot of fields that just don't have a high demand right now. It's not the school's fault that the economy is in the crapper.

[DesignFox]

Hah. I heard about this on the radio this morning. One of the callers brought up a great point. So, if she's suing for the 70 grand, does that mean the school gets to take the degree back?

Fuck this lady. Seriously. The economy is in the shit hole right now. Lots of lucrative jobs are just not available.

Since many people have a college degree now, it doesn't mean jack squat. Most companies want people with experience. If you don't have that, you aren't getting the job.

I have a college degree. Guess what I do? It isn't rocket science let me tell you that. And I have more job security working my shit job, anyway.

She paid the school. She got her training and even her degree. They owe her nothing else.

This is like saying you get your money back if you flunk or something equally stupid. (besides which, my SO, who started but never finished his degree has a better job than I do!) I hope the judge laughs her out of the courtroom.

[Boozy]

Hah. I heard about this on the radio this morning. One of the callers brought up a great point. So, if she's suing for the 70 grand, does that mean the school gets to take the degree back?

If the judge (or jury, depending) decides she has a case, she still won't get her full $70,000 back. The degree is worth something, even if the full value of the services promised were not received. So I'd imagine that the court would make a determination about the value of the job placement assistance and reward her that amount. The rest she'll have to pay, since she presumably learned something of value while she was in school.

[DesignFox]

Oh no, Boozy. I don't think this woman has a case at all. I sincerely HOPE this gets thrown out of court.

I just thought it was a funny observation.

[Flyndaran]

She actually believed them when they said that they would help her find a job? I don't know, just because the rest of us know that colleges are full of crap, doesn't mean she doesn't have a case.

[Pedersen]

She actually believed them when they said that they would help her find a job? I don't know, just because the rest of us know that colleges are full of crap, doesn't mean she doesn't have a case.

For many people, colleges may well be full of crap. For me, at least, my college education is probably my second greatest asset to my career in dealing with computers (the greatest asset being my passion for pretty much all things electronic). As to why, my college education taught me something far more valuable than just how to write code in a few specific programming languages: It taught me how to learn new technologies of all stripes.

The specific technologies I learned are already considered obsolete. But my knowledge gained from that time spent getting that degree still assists me every single day. So, for me at least, college was very much not full of crap. And I didn't even get everything out of it I could (lived with parents while I went to local college, got a 2.3 overall GPA, did poorly a lot of the time because I didn't care. And I still think I squandered far too much).

As for this specific individual, the college offers to help find a job after graduation (as do all colleges). They use the resources they can to help her. She still fails to become employed. As long as the college did put forth an equal amount of effort for her as they do for other new graduates who use their job placement services, her case is dead. Amusingly, that's the only possible angle she can take that could benefit her: The college has to be trying harder for other graduates than for her. That's the only case she's possibly got.

I hope the college has enough of their ducks in a row to get the case thrown out during discovery.

[Lachrymose]

This woman is in for a long life of disappointment, methinks.

[anriana]

I think it depends - there is a college near me that promises 99% of graduates a job within six months. If this company had some sort of similar promise and was only focusing on the higher acheiving students, maybe they're falling short of their promised goals.


Of course, her lawsuit doesn't mention anything like that, so whatever.

[Flyndaran]

For many people, colleges may well be full of crap. ....

I meant that we know colleges are full of crap when they talk about how many of their graduates quickly get jobs in their fields.

[BroomJockey]

when they talk about how many of their graduates quickly get jobs in their fields.

Actually, since it's a verifiable number, it'd be against advertising laws to state a specific percentage or number and have it not be true.

[IDrinkaRum]

CNN.com article which includes a pdf copy of the court filing.

[Slytovhand]

I'd have to go with the '99% of applicants' mentality.

We also have private colleges (not universities) that advertise getting you that job in 6 months, or your money back. The most recent one I've attended had that, with specific stipulations. That's got to be the only way her case has any merit... but usually, the advertising blurb is so vague, that it's pretty much meaningless.

I'm presuming she didn't take Responsibility 101 at college....

[Wingates_Hellsing]

Although I don't have all the facts (didn't even read the whole thread) this really looks like another case of 'they said they would help, but they FAILED so their evil'. In which case the whiner needs to be taught that an obligation to help or to try something is NOT an obligation to succeed. The only time they are obligated to succeed is if there's a 'or your money back' type deal, which I very much doubt any sane college would have for job placement. People are bound to be unsuitable for a job to the point that no amount of spin will help, so unless she's being treated different than the other people who didn't land a job, she's got nothing.

I have the strange feeling that all of this has already been said

I guess this is one of those 'I agree but posting +1 is unacceptable' posts