You don't need college to develop critical thinking and learn how to learn. In fact, by the time students reach college, it's already too late: the main complaint I hear from acquaintances that teach at private colleges is that students don't want to work for the knowledge; they expect an extension of high school with a diploma at the end.

And no matter how enlightening this experience is, we can't ignore the financial side. A young person saddled with $50,000 in debt and no prospect of a high-paying job is in effect a serf. Add a mortgage a few years down the line, and you are ensuring that this person will never be free.

If you aren't learning critical thinking before you get to college, then we're doing high school wrong.

...and if you think you are a plumber without learning critical thinking then you aren't really a plumber.

> It is about learning critical thinking, how to work with others at a high level, and how to acquire new skills easily.

All 3 of which can, and should be learned outside of college.

Hell, of the 3, the second 2 are only really learned out in the work force. After all, learning new skills easily when you are going to school is fairly trivial. It's learning new skills after you've hit the work force. When you aren't spending the day in school, being fed the information.

If all college does is provide you with those 3 things, it's a waste of time.