Are College Graduates Worth It?

Vincent Valk looks at the dogged pursuit by cities for new college graduates, and asks if that strategy really pays off in the end.

1 minute read

June 28, 2010, 2:00 PM PDT

By Tim Halbur


Valk comments on a recent article in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel bemoaning the stream of educated young folks that leave the city. As Valk notes, local talent is not necessarily as valuably as new talent:

"Indeed, it may not be graduates that you want, necessarily, but migrants. Migrants are especially entrepreneurial, and the further they've come to get to your city, the better."

Valk also notes a tinge of classism in the courting of college grads. "I think the phrase 'attracting talent' has come to imply 'attracting yuppies, or yupsters.'" he writes.

Monday, June 28, 2010 in Next American City

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

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