Asheville author gets attention on Wired.com, Huffington Post for new book “Better Than College”

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Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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Asheville author Blake Boles, who’s recent crowdfunded book scored attention from CD Baby founder Derek Sivers and NYT bestselling author Dan Pink, strikes again. Today Boles appears on the Huffington Post with a guest post (“How to Build a Successful Life Without a Four-Year Degree”), and on Wired.com in a book review.

From Boles’ article in the Huffington Post:

Imagine the plight of the typical college-bound 18-year-old today.

On one hand, we bombard her with stories and data that show college to be an increasingly poor return on investment. Go to college, spend five years there, and when you graduate — if you graduate — you’ll be rewarded with terrible job opportunities and an ungodly amount of student loan debt. Good luck.

On the other hand, we continue to talk about college as an irreplaceable, golden opportunity. College graduates earn more and get employed more! They have incredible life experiences! So take on that debt, ignore the dire job forecasts, and push on, young explorer — even if you don’t think college is right for you.

Instead of only giving 18-year-olds (and education-seekers of all ages) this Sophie’s choice, let’s give them a third option: self-directed learning.

From Wired.com’s GeekMom blog book review:

Study, get good grades, excel on tests, and stand out in extracurricular activities to get into the right college. Once in college, do it all over again. For generations this has been the highway to success. Now with ballooning student debt and crushing unemployment, other paths beckon with greater allure.

Blake Boles found his own path. This adventurer and entrepreneur runs Unschool Adventures, a travel company for self-directed teens. He maintains a community for self-directed learners called Zero Tuition College. And after years of helping young adults build productive and engaging lives he’s written the handbook Better Than College: How to Build a Successful Life Without a Four-Year Degree. It’s packed with concrete ways to achieve success without college.

College students and teens can download Boles’ book, Better Than College: How to Build a Successful Life Without a Four-Year Degree, for free.

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Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

  • 1

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