Our daughter felt very lead to go to a private Christian college after high school. The price tag on a Christian college as oppose to a state college is very, very different. We are a larger family on only one income so that helped with FAFSA, but it is still spendy, as they say up here in these parts.
As we looked at this, and as I think I know my
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daughter’s heart, I am pretty sure she will not make a huge income, if any, after she graduates. Her major is Youth and Family Ministry, and we all know ministry is not a financially profitable field of employment, rewarding in so many other ways but not financially.Will she be a stay at home mom? I don’t know. Will she ever make as money as she put into this education? Again, I don’t know.
What I do know is that knowledge is never a waste of money. The experiences gained are not a waste of money.
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The knowledge and experience gained from an education may not bring in an income if you choose to be a SAHM but it is not at all a waste. You are equipping yourself for a life of raising your children![MP900399498[1]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUCW-tWY4cuVV8oGhYFjcW5Izhi0Md17fhfX7CQXOX9imtmwYilVx5YiMbKRr7zjUW7zd2M0hEWFEFaLwC8_PNaOtd2a7_Bu_5we14_0GamBhMUF29LE9y6pvr7A1xdGtfhNU-y_-K54h5/s1600-h/MP900399498%25255B1%25255D%25255B2%25255D.jpg "MP900399498[1]")
and running your home.Can you raise children and manage a home without a degree, of course. I have done it and you still can, but the next generation is very different than mine and it will be a great benefit to your family if you have gained that educational experience, plus it is not a bad place to find a spouse if you have no prospects.
I do want to say that going back to school once you have had children needs to be handled very carefully as not to effect your goals of being a godly wife and mother.I want to encourage mothers who have earned their degree to stay true to the convictions they have, to stay home with your children either part time or full time. If using your education to raise your children is considered a
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waste by others, they may need to take a look at what they deem as important to them. Follow God’s leading not the world’s.
God Bless
Jeannie
I love this post. I couldn't agree more with you. I was a CPA who has been home now for 20 years with no regrets of my college or my decision to be home. I have been a subscriber of yours and have enjoyed your blog and your boldness. I have nominated you for the Liebster Blog Award. Read the details here:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thelostapron.com/2012/12/liebster-blog-award.html
I struggle with this question a lot. I had no idea that I would ever have the desire to be a SAHM, but here I am! However, as my daughter gets older, I have found myself much more comfortable with where I am and appreciative of the knowledge I do have. God is revealing really interesting ways to use my gifts. :)
ReplyDeleteIt's not a waste!! Here's my reasons:
ReplyDelete1. Your education can benefit your child whether you home school, help them with homework, or help them find "learning opportunities" every day.
2. My MIL wanted to be a SAHM. But her husband died when my husband was seven and his brother 5. She had no choice but to work then. With no degree she was supporting two small children on minimum wage. Life can throw you curve balls like this - a degree can be your back up plan.
3. It's sad, but the divorce rate is 50% now. Even God-fearing Christians aren't sheltered from the sadness of divorce. If this sadly happens to you, you'd need a way to stay on your feet.
4. Someday your children will leave the nest. What will you do all day when there's no longer a need to rear children full time? Returning to work could be part of this new phase of life.
5. A degree can enable SAHM's to do side work. Even SAHM's need something that's THEIRS, that has nothing to do with being a mom and wife. Whether it's a hobby or paid employement or volunteer work something of your own is an important part of being a whole person and your education can come in handy in this regard.
6. Not every woman gets married in her early 20's. I didn't find my perfect match until 35. I had to support myself in the meantime. Don't assume you'll marry early.
I definitely feel that I am wasting my education, and that I am cheating society out of a good nurse. I stopped working recently because my husband took a new position with insane hours. We would have had to have a private nanny in order for me to continue working. Mine is a Bachelor's degree in nursing, I'm an RN. My solution is that I'm applying to do an online graduate degree that I can work on while the children are at school. There is just no need for me to be sitting around the house all day when I could be out saving someone's life, except that I can't find that miracle shift which only lasts from 9-3. By the time I'm finished in a few years, I will be qualified for a position that only requires "office hours" instead of the crazy demands of hospital nursing hours. -Christine
ReplyDeleteYou know, I believe God puts everything into our lives for a reason. Their maybe an important reason He wants you home for this season. I know that recently my husbands work has been crazy for him and I am glad that I can at least make life at home somewhat calm and less crazy than work.
DeleteWhile I agree that gaining knowledge and experiences aren't a waste of money, I do think there is much knowledge to be gained outside of a college situation. Had I felt called to be a SAHM, I definitely would have stayed away from a four-year private college and the associated (insane) debt.
ReplyDeleteI think it's great for girls to go to college, *if* that is something they'll realistically use in their future. There's nothing wrong with being a SAHM, but if you already know this is what you want to do, then college is pretty much a waste of money. Much of the humanities and liberal arts can be learned from home, for free, after all, and these jobs aren't going to require a four-year degree. I actually work full time from home, and even my job doesn't need a four-year degree (though I do have one -- and yes, it was sort of a waste of money). I don't completely regret my degree, since it has helped me gain clients I would otherwise not have, but it does seem excessive.
As for the "wasting your education" school of thought, that's more for non-humanities majors that are very competitive. For example, nursing, as Christine mentions above. There is a very real shortage of doctors and nurses in the world, and medical school is very competitive. So if a girl goes through medical school only to stay at home with her kids for 20 years, she is depriving the world of a nurse or doctor. Plus, she took a seat in a medical school that could have gone to someone who would be working those 20 years, instead of staying home. So that's something to think about.
Obviously, as in the case of Christine, sometimes things just end up that way -- there's an unfortunate turn of events which necessitates a life change that's not necessarily ideal. That's not what I'm talking about -- I'm talking about women who specifically go to college even though they know (or, at least, feel very strongly) that they will stay at home with their children and likely not enter the workforce.