acopperpenny via Flickr In an effort to help recent graduates weather the recession, some parents are setting their kids up by buying them a business.

The Wall Street Journal reports that many parents see it as a better investment than another academic degree.

"Some parents I interviewed described it as a way of recapturing for their children a stake in the American dream," said reporter Sue Shellenbarger.

But not everyone agrees that this is a smart way to jump start a young career. One mother lost $250,000 when the fast food franchise she bought for her son went under. Another couple were out $350,000 on their daughter's failed coffee shop.

“I cannot recall a single incidence of a small or mid-size family business being successfully operated by a recent college grad who did not have substantial business management experience,” Ted Leverette, founder of Business Buyer Advocate, told the NYT.

“In fact, some of the business buyers we’ve represented got fabulous deals when a family business had to be sold because of immature management.”

Read the full story at the Wall Street Journal >