Higher Education (novel)
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Higher Education is a 1995 science fiction novel by Charles Sheffield and Jerry Pournelle. The novel starts in a future dystopian earth where the United States has become a feudal aristocracy where the public school system is primarily interested in promoting self-esteem rather than learning. The book is told from the perspective of the main character, a high school student who quickly finds himself expelled. One of his former teachers encourages him to get a job for the Vanguard Mining corporation, whose primary financial interest is in space mining of asteroids in the asteroid belt. The book follows his progress through an initial examination period on earth, initial training on an asteroid in a high orbit of earth, and through an apprenticeship on another training facility in the asteroid belt.
