Career Expert Says It’s ‘Cruel’ To Pretend Middle-Class Kids Can Afford To Pursue Certain Jobs
She recommended that parents start having serious conversations with their children about their financial futures.
photobyphotoboy | Shutterstock A career expert has advised middle-class parents to stop telling their children to reach for the stars when it comes to career goals. Instead, she suggested a more realistic approach.
In a TikTok video, Hannah Maruyama, one of the "Degree Free" podcast hosts, shared that there are "cruel" jobs that middle-class kids simply can't afford to ever get into. This highlights the simple fact that family wealth gives some kids a huge leg up before they are even old enough to work.
She said there are some jobs that middle-class kids just can't afford to pursue.
"The very ugly truth is that if you are low or middle class, there are some jobs that your children cannot afford to go into," Maruyama began in a TikTok video. Basically, without generational wealth, some young people simply don't have the privilege to pursue these careers.
Her assertion was simply that passion is great, but it doesn't put a roof over your head or food on the table. She said, "Pretending otherwise is a massive disservice to them, not just a massive disservice, it's cruel."
Instead of setting kids up for future financial stress, parents should be having honest conversations with their high schoolers about the lifestyle they envision for themselves. "Where you live dictates how you have to get those things. If your child lives in the U.S., they have to earn enough to be able to pay for those things," she added. "Hinging their financial stability on government loans, government handouts, or systemic overhaul of entire systems is not a realistic way to help them succeed in life."
Parents should be actively helping their children figure out what careers will grant them the greatest chance at financial success. In the comments section, people offered examples of jobs that aren't as financially stable as their children would like to believe, including teaching, social work, and anything in the arts.
Instead, pursuing trades like plumbing could be a better choice, with a higher earning potential, especially since it doesn't require taking on college debt.
A woman with a PhD in Economics explained whether it's worth it to invest in getting a higher education.
In a follow-up response video, an economics Ph.D. named Sarah offered advice for people who were looking to get a higher degree that would hopefully make them more money in the job market. She explained that when people ask her if pursuing a Ph.D. was worth it, her answer was always, "If you have to even ask the question, then no."
"The statistic is that two-thirds of people who earn a Ph.D. have parents who have a Ph.D. to begin with," Sarah said. "There is a reason for that because financially getting a Ph.D. and getting a job that will require a Ph.D., [is] so incredibly expensive."
Sarah revealed that when she was a Ph.D. student, she received, as part of her contract, a $35,000-a-year stipend to live on, health insurance through the university, and her tuition was paid for. She could also have the opportunity to become a teaching assistant or research assistant, which would allow her to make an extra $1,000 a year.
"In your mid-twenties, you are having to live on $40,000 a year," she continued, adding that the contracts didn't allow students to work outside of the university. "Rents and the cost of living are increasing, and, again, this is only a contract for five years. So, if your Ph.D. takes longer, then between your fifth and sixth year, you have to find an additional source of income."
Sarah pointed out that she was lucky to find financial help during her fifth and sixth years of school, but if others were lower- or middle-class, they wouldn't have the same connections.
There's no such thing as 'do what you love' unless you come from wealth.
Natee Meepian | Shutterstock
It's a harrowing reality that parents will most likely have to crush their children's passions for the sake of their future financial stability. Sadly, this makes careers in the arts and humanities a distant dream for many. Daniel Markovits, a professor of law at Yale Law School and author of "The Meritocracy Trap: How America’s Foundational Myth Feeds Inequality, Dismantles the Middle Class, and Devours the Elite," pulled no punches when he told job site Welcome to the Jungle that passion isn’t really available to unprivileged groups. His reasoning? "They need to focus on surviving before thinking about thriving."
The sad reality is, if you're taking out thousands and thousands of dollars in loans for education, you need to choose a career that will allow you to pay those loans back. A doctorate in art history might make you happy, but the stress of trying to pay your bills will suck that happiness right out of you.
It's not fair, and it's something we should all be angry about. It is, however, a reality of our current class system. Middle-class kids today will have to make sacrifices to achieve financial freedom. That's the only way they can secure a future for the next generation so that they can make the appropriate changes to the system and afford their children a path to their dreams.
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
