How important is education in your SO?

[sigurpol]

I do make exceptions.. obviously, having a degree or in a masters program, etc, is a plus.

 

But, like I said, I make exceptions. If you're a smart person, and make some effort, then we're good. If you simply have no desire to further your education.. well, I'd like to hear a reason.

 

I say this because, I've had some curve balls thrown at me that has limited me to finishing my degree. I'm in school now, about to finish. But I would get irritated towards people who would downplay me as "not on their level" if I don't have a degree.

[EmeraldHeart]

Education isn't important to me, but intelligence is.

I think people often make the mistake of equating intelligence with degrees. There is no correlation between the two.

 

I completely agree.

[VertexSquared]

Eh, I'd say there's definitely a correlation.

[jackson30]

I rather have a man who is willing to let me be the bread winner and who is willing to take a career back seat to me and who wouldn't be afraid to be a stay at home dad one day. <---Not an easy find even with the changing gender roles in modern society but I found one anyway! Perhaps I hear distant weddings bells in 2011.

 

So you're looking for a guy that is willing to do for you what you wouldn't do for your guy, hmmmm, sounds kinda ironic doesn't it?

[Mr White]

I will be achieving my doctorate, and -will- not date anyone who does not atleast have their Master's/PhD... or could atleast provide a significant contribution to our income. In both cases, the debate of "intelligence" and "smartness" rings true. I work very hard to earn my degrees and maneuver myself into a profitable, enjoyable lifestyle- I expect the same in return... and most importantly: my diligence will provide me comfortable lifestyle, will his?

 

Oh, here we go again! So, here's a cautionary note - limiting the dating pool to men with PhDs eliminates 98% of the population. Further complicating the matters is the fact that these men have more options, and also they don't mind going down the educational scale, myself included. So, while I'd be happy - in theory - to date a fellow doctor, in reality I'm more than happy with a less educated girl, simply because marginal increases in level of education are irrelevant next to much more important qualities, aspects of character, and attitudes... Oh, looks too, i forgot to mention that

[Engadget]

Eh, I'd say there's definitely a correlation.

 

Most college classes require memorization, that's not intelligence. The ones that actually require critical thinking are the important ones.

 

I can count on one hand the number of courses I actually learned something in. Stuff like Accounting and Statistics? Nope, just memorize to pass and then forget it.

 

Someone who doesn't know how to turn a stove on, or carry a conversation can get through college easy. A girl I know who aced everything was so dumb it hurt, bad enough that she said "When your ears ring, I heard that means aliens are trying to contact you" and she was dead serious.

 

Common sense, street smarts, etc. all can't be learned. Sure you can be a recluse who can create websites in the blink of an eye, but then if they try to speak to someone they fall apart. I'd rather be smart as I am, which is smarter than many college grads, than be a college grad with nothing substantial between the ears.

[jackson30]

While men often state how "logical" they are, it's not necessarly logical in terms of what is fair and logical to both sexes. It's usually logic based on what would be best suited ideally to a man, or "man logic" if you will. Women are gulity of the same thing. When it comes to the opposite gender, there will be a certain level of emotion invovled in both. But to insinuate that women do not use critical thinking and logic when it comes to arguments is pretty undermining to women as human beings and egotistical to men and their own level of importance. Hogwash like what you stated above gets old..

 

I guess you would not recognize sarcasm if it bit you in the ass. We know how you win arguments, just keep talking until guys get tired, throw up their hands and say "whatever" and walk away while you're still talking.

 

as I'm doing now.... whatever....

[tigressA]

Most college classes require memorization, that's not intelligence. The ones that actually require critical thinking are the important ones.

 

I can count on one hand the number of courses I actually learned something in. Stuff like Accounting and Statistics? Nope, just memorize to pass and then forget it.

 

Someone who doesn't know how to turn a stove on, or carry a conversation can get through college easy. A girl I know who aced everything was so dumb it hurt, bad enough that she said "When your ears ring, I heard that means aliens are trying to contact you" and she was dead serious.

 

Common sense, street smarts, etc. all can't be learned. Sure you can be a recluse who can create websites in the blink of an eye, but then if they try to speak to someone they fall apart. I'd rather be smart as I am, which is smarter than many college grads, than be a college grad with nothing substantial between the ears.

 

I'm in general agreement with this, only--I do recognize that those who put in the work, even though they may not have "street smarts", show at the very least that they're capable of finishing what they started. That's a positive quality to possess.

 

I'm on hiatus from school due to financial issues; I currently cannot afford to continue my education at the school I was attending, and perhaps may not ever be able to, unless I want to go through at least several years of doing a class or two here and there just to get my bachelor's, and I don't, so I'm taking another route that will ensure I live in reasonable comfort. I don't have much in the way of ambition wrt a career; that's just not important to me. I'm passionate about other things and let that show, and I have no problem with dating. Ironically enough, I end up attracting a lot of men who have master's degrees and/or are pursuing a PhD.

[brainygirl]

I place a lot of importance on intelligence, and have turned down second dates with men who clearly came off as being unintelligent. I find smart men who can carry on a conversation about a wide variety of things, such as music, politics, movies, books, cars, and local crap to be very sexy.

 

Guys who can only spout sports stats are boring.

[VertexSquared]

Most college classes require memorization, that's not intelligence. The ones that actually require critical thinking are the important ones.

 

I can count on one hand the number of courses I actually learned something in. Stuff like Accounting and Statistics? Nope, just memorize to pass and then forget it.

 

Someone who doesn't know how to turn a stove on, or carry a conversation can get through college easy. A girl I know who aced everything was so dumb it hurt, bad enough that she said "When your ears ring, I heard that means aliens are trying to contact you" and she was dead serious.

 

Common sense, street smarts, etc. all can't be learned. Sure you can be a recluse who can create websites in the blink of an eye, but then if they try to speak to someone they fall apart. I'd rather be smart as I am, which is smarter than many college grads, than be a college grad with nothing substantial between the ears.

 

Come on, that's a cheap shot, haha -- not everyone is that paranoid or dense as you climb up the education ladders.

 

I'd argue that common sense *can* be learned, because common sense, like anything else, is largely empirical, much like any other form of specialized knowledge is often the result of exposure. People who don't know how to turn on a stove simply haven't had to use one (be it they weren't exposed to one or had someone else do it for them all their life). Granted, as we leave the bubble of education/school and enter the "real world," those who lacked "common sense" certainly have a lot of catching up to do. But I wouldn't say that these people are "dumb." If you don't want someone calling another "retarded" for not knowing how to do a simple integral, I think it's equally silly to call someone "retarded" for not knowing how to operate a stove. Granted, some bits are knowledge are just so widespread that it's incredibly ridiculous to go through life without knowing them, but my point still stands. Someone not knowing how to do laundry at age 23 doesn't make them stupid. It means they were likely privileged. Doing laundry is really easy... once you know how it's done.

 

It reminds me of those guys who used to give me **** for "not having the common sense to understand how to get around a city" when I first moved from the rural areas of the west coast to the cities of the east coast... of course, like I said, it's all empirical. I was able to get around in no time.

 

Back on topic though, I do agree that many classes require a certain degree of memorization, but unless you're taking very easy classes, you'll need some degree of intellect to put it all together. Not all courses are merely "regurgitory."

 

Usually those who are critical thinkers/observant/fast processors/adept at making rational decisions/witty (which I tend to associate with the "ideal" form of "intelligence" that I'd want in a woman) tend to pursue some form of education past high school, even if they are only this way in the first place because they had a leg up in being raised (which usually means there is a stronger underlying support to begin with). Again, there's definitely correlation.

[Engadget]

I'm in general agreement with this, only--I do recognize that those who put in the work, even though they may not have "street smarts", show at the very least that they're capable of finishing what they started. That's a positive quality to possess.

 

I'm on hiatus from school due to financial issues; I currently cannot afford to continue my education at the school I was attending, and perhaps may not ever be able to, unless I want to go through at least several years of doing a class or two here and there just to get my bachelor's, and I don't, so I'm taking another route that will ensure I live in reasonable comfort. I don't have much in the way of ambition wrt a career; that's just not important to me. I'm passionate about other things and let that show, and I have no problem with dating. Ironically enough, I end up attracting a lot of men who have master's degrees and/or are pursuing a PhD.

 

Right I mean it's not always the case, but this belief that people with degrees > people without is a load of horse ****.

[GoodOnPaper]

Education in my SO falls in the it-would-be-nice category. There are other ways to be compatible. I have a PhD and my wife has a Bachelor's. When I was single I felt I would be more compatible with someone with similar education and professional goals but it didn't work out. In college, the brainiest girls just plain didn't act interested in anybody, and in grad school, the women in my program were going after older doctors/lawyers or "hot" party-boy undergrads who didn't have a care in the world.

[TaurusTerp]

Regardless of how "street smart" you are, your earning potential is extremely limited without a degree. For every billionaire entrepreneur that didn't need college there are a million people that will be relegated to menial jobs.

 

In my opinion, not having the motivation to spend 2-4 years to get a degree that is a requirement for many jobs is just as much a sign of stupidity as anything else.

[impz]

I won't reject a woman because she did not have a degree (my wife currently only has an associate degree). However, I do want to know that my other half is keen and has the potential to pursue education at least to the same level as I do. Some might say that college work is regurgitation or even memorization. I will say that you are not going to the top universities taking the best classes out there.

 

Memorization and remembering every single fact in all the tested books will just get you a pathetic C, it's how you synthesize, associate and correlate information. That requires some serious wit. These people might not have the street smarts to accompany it, but at least they can hold a decent conversation on anything. I do not want someone who cannot discuss with me about social issues in an in-depth manner, something that people with a higher educational level are more likely to be competent in. ^^

[kassy]

Most of my friends went to Ivy league schools, or oxford or cambridge, I have a masters and a great job. But I live in an expat society and almost everyone has a top tier education. We joke that you would struggle to date someone who isn't educated and earns bucketloads here... yet I managed to find that guy and want to date him:rolleyes:

 

If someone can hold his own with my friends, have witty banter, and I find attractive. That is great. The fact that he has had a number of successful companies without any degrees and currently is pursuing his dream with a new start up (which will never make him rich, but he'll be sustainable) is pretty attractive to me. I could never date someone who earns craploads but hates their job, it does have an impact on personality and outlook on life (well I've done it before and never again). It may not be ideal financially if I did end up marrying this guy, but hey I earn a lot so really he doesn't need to. I respect his opinion and he can hold his own talking to anyone.

 

Degrees only get you your first job, what you do after that is much more important. I know lots of people who are educated to the max, and might be good at theory... but well they just aren't that good in reality.

 

Intelligence is in my opinion not related to education, and booksmarts have little bearing on how far people will go in their career. Unless you are a quant

 

But also, those who think you need a masters to earn more... yeah, not so. Almost all the uber successful people I know (in their late 20's early 30's) only have bachelors but are highly successful lawyers, bankers, engineers etc etc. All a masters would have done for them would be give them more debt and taken up more time that they could have been earning.

 

If you are intelligent and ambitious, well then you can probably make something of yourself regardless of formal education labels. If you have a PhD... well you might just end up stuck in some backward university somewhere... it's not a sure fire correlation to being rich and successful as some people here seem to be suggesting.

[spookie]

I will be achieving my doctorate, and -will- not date anyone who does not atleast have their Master's/PhD... or could atleast provide a significant contribution to our income. In both cases, the debate of "intelligence" and "smartness" rings true. I work very hard to earn my degrees and maneuver myself into a profitable, enjoyable lifestyle- I expect the same in return... and most importantly: my diligence will provide me comfortable lifestyle, will his?

 

Having a bunch of degrees is not a prerequisite for a high income....

[allina]

I don't think I would ever settle down with a man who was uneducated.

[spookie]

Having taken my damned sweet time to acquire a measly BA solely for the purpose of having the confidence of being "legit" to back up my intelligence and experience during job interviews, I feel it would be hypocritical to disqualify someone based solely on educational background.

 

That said, I don't even have any friends anymore who don't at least have a BA. In this day and age, I would have to at least inquire why someone didn't finish college - with all the financial aid out there, even "poor" is not a good excuse anymore. I know it's POSSIBLE not to be a loser and not have a degree, but in my experience, I'm the only example I've got.

[Mr White]

Having a bunch of degrees is not a prerequisite for a high income....

 

Yep... most doctorates prepare people for academic positions, and those pay less than many positions that require only a BA. I know, because I have one , in decent university too .

[Ruby Slippers]

Though I have one, degrees are pretty meaningless to me. I would never make a dating decision based on a piece of paper.

 

Intellectual compatibility has to be there, though. He doesn't have to have the same IQ or higher, but he does have to be able to converse intelligently, see through the BS in the world reasonably well, and be able to operate with his heart and mind over his gut and sex when needed. Free thinking, rather than being lazy and following the pack, is very important to me.

 

The problem I have encountered is that men with lower levels of education or intelligence often feel insecure about it. And I stopped dumbing myself down to appeal to men more way back in high school. I'm not going back!

[D-Lish]

The smartest man I ever dated was a mechanic. He read a lot, and knew a lot about everything. I had so much respect for him- he owned his own house, earned a great income at an Audi dealership, and had a great head on his shoulders.

 

I myself have two degrees and two diplomas- but I don't require someone I date to have a university degree.

[SarahRose]

To me, the prospect of a long-term relationship with an uneducated woman is low. I've found that people with college degrees simply see the world differently than people with high school diplomas. I'm not particularly well educated (bachelor's degree from a public university), but trying to have an intelligent conversation with a high school graduate about anything other than day-to-day affairs is very difficult. They have a tendency to adopt views that are popular no matter how ignorant, or subscribe to wild theories that have no basis in reality. Of course, this isn't true in every case, but I get tired of playing teacher.

 

I find that to be true also.

 

There is that sheep mentality where people never question the popular opinion, that buy celebrity gossip rags, whose idea of fun is parties and drinking.

 

 

Those kinds of things are dealbreakers.

 

I would stay away from the perpetual student too. They keep getting more degrees and never seem to get a real job. Or the person who feels so insecure they don't think they can change careers without getting a new degree.

 

I am fortunate to work in an industry with a lot of really smart people and I enjoy it. When I am out around the general public, I find most of them annoying stupid.

[blueberries]

education matters to me, and it matters to my family. i don't think i could marry (or date) someone who isn't on the same/similar page

[Choboto]

Bill Gates doesnt have a degree. is he not smart? alot of famous people never had degrees. you cant equate a degree to intelligence.if when you talk to them and all you hear is "DUUUUURRRR durrr durrr" then nah craig. Plenty of people go to college to party or forced by parents. not education.

[knaveman]

I'm actually a little disgusted with some posters opinions of those of us without a college education.

 

Personally, I don't date an education or a degree, I date a person. If that person has trouble dealing with others face to face or carrying on a conversation then they're not for me.