The way out of poverty is to have a desirable skill set. Now the problem is its hard to get that skill set. Many people have too many liabilities and responsiblities to afford schooling. For instance you are not going to be able to afford college working minimum wage coming in with massive debt and liabilities like car payments, insurance, kids and so forth. Minimizing liability rather than working more hours is the key to affording schooling be it college or trade school. For instance I went to a state school to get a degree. I had very little liabilities. I had no car so that meant no insurance payments. I had multiple roommates so my rent and utilities were extremely cheap. I found a cheap phone plan and outright owned my phone. I received health insurance through my school. I used the bus system provided by my college to get groceries. I took out federal loans to pay for the cost of tuition. My monthly liability was my apartment, cell phone, and food. This cost me about $900 a montg ($600 for apartment, $150 for food, $30 for phone, remaining for misc expenses). I was making about $1800 a month working an on-campus job plus a $1000 a semester stipend for being a TA. My loans and federal grants covered the cost of my schooling. I only went for a major that has a desirable skill set. I graduate early to lower the total cost. I graduated with about 20k in student loans but I now make 4 times that at an entry level job in my career.