Chase Gallagher was 12 years old when he started mowing his neighbor's lawn for $35 apiece. At first, he had just two clients, but after some aggressive postings — with the help of his mother — he had 10 clients a week the following year.
Now 23, he is part of a growing number of Gen Zers who have chosen not to go to college. But—contrary to some baby boomers' assessment of the generation—they're not just hanging around their parents' house and avoiding work altogether. In fact, Gallagher and many others are picking up tools and turning to traditional crafts.
“I didn't see the ROI of going to college,” Gallagher says. luck. Instead, he put his efforts into expanding his side hustle and turning it into a successful full-time business called CMG Landscaping. But he says it “took a lot of courage” to convey this decision to his family.
“Your whole life, from the time you were six years old, your parents had been drilling into your mind, ‘Hey, you're going to go to college,'” Gallagher recalls of how his future was seemingly mapped out for him. “It sounded great until you realized you had to pay for it.”
Even students who choose to go to college choose differently. Enrollment at career-focused community colleges rose 16% last year to reach the highest level since the National Student Clearinghouse began tracking this data in 2018.
Furthermore, the same data shows a 23% increase in the number of students studying construction trades in 2023 compared to the previous year, and a 7% increase in HVAC and vehicle maintenance and repair programs.
The expectation is still to go to college, and Generation Zeros don't want to be disappointed
Growing up, most Generation Zers luck The people they spoke to admitted that they were originally planning to go to university, not because they wanted to but because it seemed like the right course of action.
“I feel like it's normal for people my age to go to university, and it feels like everyone's next step after school,” says Emily Shaw, a 20-year-old trainee at British construction company Redrow. luck.
All the men in the Shaw family have worked in construction since the 1800s. She is now the first woman in the family to follow suit, and has her sights set on becoming a quality surveyor.
“There is still a stereotype that having a university degree guarantees a well-paying job, but I quickly realized that this is not the case,” she added.
Likewise, 20-year-old Luke Phillips was already at university when he decided it wasn't for him.
“I didn't really think much about it,” he said. luck. “Ever since I was young, it seemed like I was aiming for college all over school and then college.”
Phillips remembers being strongly encouraged to apply to universities in his final year at school – after all, it feels good when a high proportion of students go on to higher education – and then being swept up in the excitement of acceptance.
“I was only 18, had no experience in the world and didn’t really understand what other options were out there,” he says, adding that going to university “was a less scary situation than being unemployed.”
This is what he did, before quickly changing his mind three months later.
Now, Phillips has begun learning how to make jewelry at The Remarkable Goldsmiths in Dartmouth, and feels he must “pay for the privilege.”
“I'm gaining a really good understanding of how to run a business and what being in the workshop actually means,” he adds. “It's not what teachers think it is, or what it was 10 years ago.”
Generation Z doesn't want to go into debt
Earning a degree has long been described as a “necessity” for a lucrative career. But today's Generation Z is keenly aware that the only security that comes with a degree is debt.
“It's simple math to figure out why a young person would choose crafts instead of college,” said Gallagher, who lives in suburban Philadelphia. “Let's say you pay $50,000 a year for your college.
“Multiplying that by four, that's $200,000 for your investment. Plus, you're losing four income-producing years by going to college, so you're spending money and not making money.”
With some colleges charging fees of up to $95,000 this year, Gallagher believes young people are better off getting a head start on their careers by choosing a career, building their wealth, and trying to buy a house before their peers graduate.
“Generation Z is probably the most educated generation in history,” says Topa Vijvosdottir, psychologist and CEO of Kara Connect, a mental health and well-being platform for employees. luck. “They are also more concerned about their finances than previous generations, having experienced some financial crises on their way into the workplace.”
Thanks to TikTok — where countless college-educated millennials can be caught complaining that their paychecks aren't enough to move out of their childhood bedroom — Vigfusdottir adds that Generation Z knows that many of them will never be able to afford a home of their own. Even with a degree.
Not only has social media opened Gen Z's eyes to the shortcomings of recent graduates, it has given business careers a huge boost to their image.
“There was definitely a taboo against people doing the trading,” Phillips says, before quickly adding that those preconceived notions are long gone.
Instead, he points out that young people these days tend to feel “envious” of those who get their hands dirty, realizing that this is a path to solid earnings and the freedom to be your own boss.
Plus they make bank
By the age of 16, Gallagher had already made more than $50,000 from his side hustle mowing lawns, before expanding into public landscaping and hiring his “friend Mike” to help out after school and on weekends.
“I did more project-based work. Spring cleanups, mulches, leaf rakes, that kind of stuff,” he says. “I had upwards of 35 lawn mowing clients a week.”
Now, Gallagher's landscaping company has nine employees, does “everything from stormwater management and sewer work to paving and lighting,” and generated more than $1 million in revenue last year.
However, some still try to convince him to go to college because that's what “successful people” do. “That's not true,” he adds of course. “You can still make 1 percent income here in America and be a business owner.”
Although Gallagher greatly outperforms most of Generation Z luck As I talked about, research shows that the average trade worker can still get a better-paying job than those who just graduated.
According to data from payroll services provider ADP, the average pay for professional services for new hires is only $40,000. Meanwhile, a new construction apprentice can expect to make upwards of $48,000.
Although historically male-dominated, Shaw insists that women too can enjoy a fruitful career in craft making.
Redro Research It found that 39% of young women working in the construction sector were attracted by the high salary, while a quarter were attracted by the possibility of becoming their own business owners.
“There are so many opportunities for women to succeed, perform well, and make a difference in communities,” she adds. “In fact, the majority of the office I work in is made up of women.
“School-age girls need to understand that a career in construction is possible.”
