EclectEcon

...I've heard even crazier rumours from people I know up in the oil patch.

Apparently some of the fast food places near there have become so busy they are offering stay-at-home mothers $120/day (under the table) to come in for two hours to help with the kitchen staff during the lunchtime peak hours.

My decision to go to university is looking more and more foolish by the day....

I will add this though about the Alberta job market...for the people who simply go to do grunt work in the patch, their opportunities could be limited one day if the sands dry up where they are working...for the people who go to a technical institute and acquire a skilled trade, not only will they be profitting during the boom (on some sites, welders can make over $50/hour during OT hours), but also they will be able to find steady employment somewhere even if the economy in the province cools down....So while I can see university enrollment going down in the next few years in Alberta, I'll also be interested to see how enrollment in technical institutes fare (e.g., the Northern Alberta Technical Insitute ran half page ads in the Toronto Globe and Mail last year for part of the year)...