Marjorie Dudley

I got asked a question recently that tends to stir some emotion:

“What do you think about four-year college degrees?”

It’s a polarizing topic. There’s pride wrapped up in it. Identity. Status. For many of us, earning a college degree—undergrad, grad school, or both—was a real feather in our cap. It symbolized discipline, intelligence, and upward mobility. For a long time, it was the default path.

But being in this line of work as a coach, I’m seeing something shift—quietly at first, now more loudly.

More and more companies are hiring people without four-year degrees.

Not because standards are dropping but because signals are changing.

These candidates have proven themselves in the marketplace. They’ve shown hustle. Heart. Curiosity. They’ve learned skills in nontraditional ways. They’ve built things. Shipped things. Sold things. Fixed things. And employers are paying attention.

This isn’t new. We’ve all heard the stories of tech founders like Mark Zuckerberg, who famously dropped out of Harvard to build Facebook. That’s not an endorsement of quitting school recklessly, but it is a signal that the marketplace has long valued capability over credentials when the capability is real.

Finish What You Start—But Know When to Pivot

I’m a big believer in finishing what you start. Commitment matters. Grit matters.

I’m also a believer in recognizing when a pivot is required.

And I think we’re in the middle of a massive educational pivot right now.

I call it alternative education—and I don’t mean what that term used to mean.

Traditionally, “alternative education” was code for students who didn’t fit inside a conventional school system—GED programs, alternative schedules, or remedial tracks. That’s not what I’m talking about.

I’m talking about intentional, customized, outcome-driven education.

Education where individuals write their own ticket by learning exactly what they need to learn, based on where they want to go.

Real Skills for a Real Marketplace

I’m seeing this play out personally as I homeschool my son.

I can give him exposure to things like AI and chess—two disciplines rarely prioritized in traditional curriculums, yet incredibly relevant.

AI, because it doesn’t take a crystal ball to see where the job market is heading.

Chess, because strategic thinking—planning multiple moves ahead, understanding consequences, thinking probabilistically—translates into leadership, business, investing, and life.

Those skills matter.

Contrast that with what many students are still being taught.

Even my daughter, who attends a reputable private high school here in Florida, is taking geometry and trigonometry with little to no attention paid to:

• Business math
• Tax math
• Credit card math
• Compounding interest
• Banking and cash-flow fundamentals

I’m left wondering why academia continues to prioritize what looks good on paper rather than what actually works in the marketplace.

When Universities Became Big Business

I say this next part as someone who did go the traditional route.

I paid roughly $100,000 for my MBA from a liberal arts university in Oregon.

And it’s something I now advise most people against.

Are there situations where a $100,000 MBA makes sense? Absolutely.

Was mine one of them? No.

And I don’t think most are.

Universities have increasingly become businesses—often extraordinarily profitable ones—funded by student loans that shift the risk entirely to families and students. Institutions collect the tuition whether the degree pays off or not.

That misalignment matters.

One of my favorite quotes comes from Wayne Gretzky: “Skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been.”

I don’t believe most four-year institutions are skating to where the puck is going.

The Real Cost No One Talks About

Let’s talk numbers for a moment.

At a minimum, sending a child to a four-year college often costs $100,000 or more—whether that’s paid by parents, student loans, or a combination of both.

Now consider opportunity cost.

If that same student spent four years working, apprenticing, or building skills—even earning a modest $50,000 total over those four years—you’re not just talking about $100,000 spent.

You’re talking about a $300,000 gap between what was paid and what could have been earned.

That’s not trivial. That’s life-altering. For the generation that is worried about being able to afford their first home, that is their first home!

So Is College “Bad”?

No.

This isn’t an anti-college argument.

It’s a pro-intentionality argument.

The real question isn’t:
“Should everyone go to college?”

It’s:

• Where is the puck going?
• Where do you want it to go?
• And what is the best vehicle to get you there?

Today, there are focused programs to learn:

• AI
• Accounting and bookkeeping
• Coding
• Sales
• Entrepreneurship
• Marketing
• Finance

Many of these programs are faster, cheaper, more relevant—and directly aligned with real job outcomes.

For some people, a four-year degree is still the right move.

For many others, it’s not.

A Call to Parents—and to Ourselves

This won’t be the path everyone chooses, and that’s okay.

But I want to empower parents—and adults making decisions for themselves—to stop assuming that a four-year degree is the only respectable option.

We owe it to the next generation to help them skate to where the puck is going.

To consider alternative education paths that build real skills, real confidence, and real momentum for the next five to ten years—not just framed diplomas and student debt.

Education should be an investment, not a gamble.

And the best investments are the ones aligned with where the world is actually headed.

Stay Relentless.