As fake as the Tooth Fairy

It seems so easy. You go to college, get a degree and find a job. Your degree, this magical piece of paper endorsed by your university, tells everyone you possess the skills necessary to obtain a career in your field and make money. \nI'm beginning to believe this is an urban legend concocted by parents to give their kids something to look forward to. Kind of like Santa Claus -- with a colossal price tag. Or perhaps it's a game for universities to see who can create the best programs to get students out into the "real world" of a workforce that doesn't even exist. The sheer thought of such deceitfulness is terrifying. \nA co-worker and I were discussing just this issue the other day when she told me a story about her recent experience searching for a part-time job. She went to a clothing chain in the local mall to interview for a sales position. While there, she was interviewed with another prospective employee. My friend was just looking for a little extra money. The other woman, however, had a degree in apparel merchandising and was desperately trying to land a $6-an-hour job behind a counter because there were no others to be had.\nDoes this not bother anyone else? Personally, I'm terribly disturbed. Just last semester I had a class on "planning your career," where I was basically told my bachelor's degree in psychology won't get me any further than graduation. Graduate school is a great alternative, except everyone who applies doesn't get in -- and even those who do -- don't always finish. \nSo what is a girl to do? I changed my major. Considering the fact my degree will be nothing more than something for my mom to frame and hang in the living room, I figured I might as well pick any major I want. I practically flew out the window. So I swapped my second criminal justice major and picked up religious studies. For the sake of alleviating my father's fears, I'm keeping psychology on the side, just in case my theory is wrong and some wonderful psych-major-only job falls into my lap. The way I see it, if I'm going to be paying thousands of dollars for a lousy "award" and a job in a fast food restaurant, I might as well enjoy the time I have here. \nThere are exceptions, however, to the "lack-of-future-after-college" rule that has been created to enslave us all to minimum wage jobs for the rest of our lives. Look at Kanye West. His first album, titled "College Dropout," has soared to the top of the charts in its first few weeks in stores. Now here is a role model we can all look up to. This man beat the system. He scoffed in the face of school officials and high school guidance counselors who tried to convince him he was going nowhere. He's not a college graduate, but he's going to be rolling in money for a long, long time.\nSo the moral of the story -- if you have a little rapping talent and Jay-Z's phone number, you can drop out of school tomorrow with no worries. For the rest of us, it's back to the old drawing board. How are we supposed to get jobs with four years (or more) of schooling resulting in a photo-copied document with our name penciled in? If anyone figures this out, please let me know. Until then, I might try working on my own album. I have no musical ability whatsoever, but that never stopped Britney Spears.