I do not think that people who go to college for years are time wasters. Often they find it very hard to get a decent job after the degree, so they must do a postgrad (incurring even more expense) to get a decent job.
My friends sister did a computer degree 3 yrs ago. She worked in a shop after graduating, and tried to find a proper job. Then she had to do a postgrad to get a computer job.
I got a full grant to college. Even though I got 6 hons in the leaving cert, my parents would not pay for college. They maintained that you would have 4 yrs of work income lost by going to college. They think that people going to college are lazy, and putting off the world of work. I think some of the older interviewers might have this view, so sometimes having full time college education might go against people when looking for a job.
I still remember my parents being very upset, and nearly fighting with me, when I only got a general office job after doing the business degree. They said (quite rightly) that if I had done a general office job for the 4 yrs instead of college, I would have some money saved plus 4 yrs experience.
In the 70s and 80s, college people could walk straight into a good job, as most people did not go to college. These days there are too many people going to college, competition to get a good degree is fierce, and the jobs are not there.
I think a lot of parents believe that college education will set their children up for life, and that they will walk straight into a good job. Parents would be better off to give some SSIA money to children, when the children are buying a house. I believe to have a steady job, and to buy a house are far more useful than a full time college education.
I know that some people who want to do engineering or science may have to go to full time college, as some of these courses are not offered by night.
A lot of parents do not know what it is like in the jobs market. The mother may be a housewife, and the father may have a good job with the same company for years. The teachers want to say there is X number of pupils from their school going to college. The teachers make out that college is the be all and end all. When I was in school in the late 80s the teachers made out that we would never work and be starving & homeless if we did not go to college.