Maverick Garza has been living on his own since he was 19 years old. 

His story, if not unusual, is at least not widely discussed. But his story deserves more attention because, unlike many recent four-year college graduates, Garza achieved financial independence immediately after leaving school. 

A 2025 Sallie Mae survey found that nearly half of Americans who had graduated from college within the previous five years were still living with parents or other relatives. Which majors are most likely to move back home is less clear, though one 2015 analysis found that roughly 15 to 16 percent of humanities and history graduates still lived with their parents at age 29. Major aside, more college graduates are living with their parents as high housing costs and student loan debt put financial independence out of reach. As I argued last week, these financial woes are also fueling political frustration among many highly educated young adults. 

But Garza never had to move back in with his parents. 

Today, at 22, he works as a rig welder in the Houston area. Depending on overtime and per diem, he says he can surpass six figures and has been earning nearly that much since age 20. He has no student debt and tells me that he has recently formed his own LLC for side work building fences and gates. He also hopes to become a Certified Welding Inspector soon, a credential that, he says, carries substantially higher pay. 

His decision to pursue the trades was not born out of hostility toward higher education. He initially enrolled in a business program, but after a few classes, he concluded that earning a business degree was unnecessary to accomplish what he wanted. 

“I realized you don’t need a degree to own a business,” Garza said. “I decided to work with my hands because you can start your own business based off your skill level and how well you perform.” 

Although his parents wanted him to pursue a four-year degree, Garza instead enrolled at South Texas College, a public community college in the Rio Grande Valley, where he earned an Associate of Applied Science in Welding. According to the school’s tuition calculator, the 60-credit program costs about $9,840 for in-district students and $10,440 for Texas residents—a fraction of what many students pay for a bachelor’s degree. 

In an era of declining public trust in higher education, community colleges have largely escaped the reputational decline afflicting many four-year institutions. Peter Wood and I noted in February that while four-year institutions have preoccupied themselves with activism, community colleges have remained focused on workforce preparation and serving students priced out of traditional four-year institutions. This has made community colleges a hot commodity. 

For Garza, community college just made sense. “I chose a two-year degree with certifications,” he said. “I came out with no debt, already finding a job because the trades are needed.” 

Still, he is notably restrained when discussing higher education. Rather than steering young people away from a four-year degree, Garza encourages them to consider all their options before assuming it’s the only path. 

Not everyone encouraged Garza to make up his own mind the way he now encourages others to do. When he first entered the trades, many people questioned his decision. “They’d ask, ‘Why would you go into that? You’re not going to have a big degree under your name,’” he recalled.

Those questions are often asked by people who measure the value of work by the credentials attached to it. As Gary Frankel, editor of the James G. Martin Center, recently quipped, some people think the “lawn guy must have a doctorate to be worthy of acknowledgment.” 

Garza, however, believes attitudes are changing. “I’ve seen people with four-year degrees completely say, ‘I don’t like it,’ and they go to the trades,” he said. “You get your certifications, build your skill level up, and you’re already making more than someone with a four-year degree at a starter job.” 

Prestige, either way, doesn’t seem to interest Garza much. What he talks about is craftsmanship: “I’ve always said take pride in your work. When you take pride in your work, people will see it.” 

After all, welding isn’t for the dumb or faint of heart—”You’re lifting stuff daily. You’re getting your body moving. You’re getting over 10,000 steps. You’re sweating,” he said—and Garza doesn’t describe that as settling for less. 

“Don’t be afraid to go in the opposite direction,” he said. “Don’t listen to the outside noise.” 

Garza’s story doesn’t prove that everyone should become a welder. But at a time when so many graduates of traditional four-year colleges are struggling to achieve financial independence, it does suggest that other paths to a successful life deserve more serious consideration. 

Follow Jared Gould on X.