College in The Modern Age
Throughout the first unit we have explored the reasons as to why college may not be the best fit for some. I believe that, like a majority of children, I was raised on the basis that a college degree was needed to be successful. Many may think of higher education as a giant Ponzi scheme, where students are lured into the promise of receiving high-paying jobs due to the fact they attended University. Today I realize that a college degree isn’t a guarantee that you’ll be successful rather it is a way to gain the edge against peers. In this paper, I am going to further evaluate why college was the best fit for me, and how I came to that conclusion.
Foremost, obtaining an undergraduate degree was presented to me by
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I believe that we need someone to step in and provide the training that is required to high school counselors on other options besides college. Fortunately, enough I attended a high school where the counselors were trained on giving students other options besides college. A close friend who knew college wasn’t the right option for him was given information about different apprenticeships he could apply for after college. He is currently a welder and thinks that he has made one of the greatest decisions of his life.
Moreover, While I was in high school preparing to apply for college, I would often see some of my fellow peers struggling to figure out how they would fit the bill for University. As I first began to apply to the big-name universities I was noticing the very steep prices, with little financial aid help. I knew I could obtain various scholarships, however that isn’t the case for most students. Mike Rowe stated that “There is a trillion dollars in debt on the student loan side. That is over five-hundred times the rate of inflation it beats healthcare by over two-hundred and fifty trillion dollars.” I think that student loans are single-handedly the biggest opposition to many students attending University. In my personal opinion, many students choose to follow the things that they are passionate about, but
More people than ever before are attending college due to the endless opportunities that it provides. Louis Menand, a college professor and the author of “Live and Learn: Why We Have College,” explains the meaning of college through three theories that have been developed. Theory 1 supports the idea of the sorting-out process that separates the highly intelligent from the less intelligent. Menand’s second theory explains that college provides opportunities for developmental growth, personal growth, and teaches individuals about the world around us. These are valuable lessons that will not be learned anywhere else. Theory three supports the idea of people attending college to specialize in a specific vocation. I
In her article “Is College for Everyone?” blogger and college professor Pharinet discusses the value of a college education and debates whether or not it is worth it to pursue a continued education. The author’s purpose for writing this article is to attempt to change a popular societal opinion that it is necessary to attend college in order to succeed. She argues that there are students who are often unprepared for the challenges and responsibilities of attending college, but attend simply for the reason that they are expected to. She challenges the idea that “college is for everyone” and encourages college students to question how beneficial a college education is for them personally.
College debt can stunt most students from pursuing their college dream and going to their school of choice. Students get scared of the word debt and the numbers that they would be dealing with outside of college. Students are putting aside going to their dream schools because of the fear of how much debt they will get into after college. There are many reasons why people don’t pursue college, or just from not being able to afford it. Students go back and look at not going to their dream college or college at all and regret not taking the challenge and going with what they always wanted to do. Some students experience not being in debt after college and why they think college tuition is right where it needs to be, but others will make shocking choices to not be in debt. College students are choosing not to pursue their dream college or college at all because of finances they would be dealing with after college, debt.
In the U.S. students are encouraged to earn a college degree, but the cost of an education turns many away. “Driven by the allure of a decent salary with a college degree, Americans borrowed to go to school. Outstanding student debt doubled from 2005 to 2010, and by 2012 total student debt in the U.S. economy surpassed $1 trillion” (Mian, Sufi 167). There are plenty of opportunities to obtain funds for college, including one of the most common, student loans. A student loan is defined as “a common way to fund education, specifically college and graduate school, and they provide educational opportunities that you otherwise may not be able to afford” (Barr). Student debt is at an all-time high in America. Over half of all lower income
In order to be successful in the workforce, having a powerful career there are things needed like higher education. Graduating from college is essential to finding a successful job, since more jobs are making college degree a requirement, more people are going to college. The problem is the cost of going to college outweighs the earning from the career you obtain. Very little people are able to pay for college out of pocket. In 2014, 42% of undergraduates paid for college out of pocket (Sallie Mae). The result of this is that students seeking higher education are forced to take out loans. On average, college students borrows $25,000 to earn their degrees (Alexandria). I just don 't get the concept of college tuition or student loans. It
“In fall 2016, some 20.5 million students are expected to attend American colleges and universities, constituting an increase of about 5.2 million since fall 2000” (National Center for Education Statistics). That number seems to be rising each and ever year, and it almost seems as students feel like they have to go to college directly after high school. Maybe it is because they feel that they have to fit in, even if college is not for them. Although some students attend college for academics, sports, and other reasons, some students attend college for no apparent reason; with that in mind, students should take into consideration the time and money that is put into going to college.
It is a well known fact but there are many people including counselors, parents, teachers, and friends who resist saying it out loud for fear it will sound like discouragement and negativity: college is definitely not for everyone. The pressure on high schools students, especially those that excel, to attend a college or university is enormous. And in the case of a bright, industrious and motivated high school student, attending a college or university is an obvious career choice. For those students, it's only a matter of what university to attend, whether one's SAT score is high enough, and the availability of the money. Then there are the millions of high school students who are not really personally motivated but are being pressured by their counselors, teachers and parents should they attend college if they really don't care? This paper examines those issues.
While this is often true, it can create problems when a student does not have the money to pay for a quality education. The cost of college has risen an estimated 250-500% over the last 30 years while consumer price index has only increased by 115 percent during the same time frame (White, 2015; Eskow, 2014). The amount of student loan debt is increasing, along with the cost of college. The income of many young people today cannot keep up with the rising costs of college education and housing. Part of the problem with student loan debt begins when students choose to attend a college that exceeds their financial resources and rely on federal student loans as well as private student loans to make up the difference. Eskow found that even public colleges and universities are becoming difficult to pay for without taking out student loans often averaging $30,000 for tuition, room, and board (2014). Since many people do not have enough money to cover college education expenses, they rely on student loans, both federal and private, to fill the gap. Financial advisor Ramsey stated that often the loans students take out pay “for an off-campus standard of living, and no debt was needed to get the degree” (2013). “The Project on Student Debt reported in 2013 over ⅔ graduating seniors were leaving school with student loans” averaging approximately $28,400 (White, 2015). Taking on almost $30,000 in debt before even starting a career can have a significant impact. It can force people to get a job just to pay off the student loans, not based on what they got an education for prepared for or what they studied. This also can cause a setback in future plans, having to delay many adult milestones due to lack of
In her article “Is College for Everyone?”, blogger and college professor Pharinet discusses the value of a college education and debates whether or not it is worth it to pursue a continued education. The author’s purpose for writing this article is to attempt to change a popular societal opinion that it is necessary to attend college in order to succeed. She argues that there are students who are often unprepared for the challenges and responsibilities of attending college, but attend simply for the reason that they are expected to. She challenges the idea that “college is for everyone” and encourages college students to question how beneficial a college education is for them personally.
In “WHY GO TO COLLEGE?,” Robert S. Feldman, a psychology professor at University of Massachusetts, provides a number of reasons why students should attend college. Feldman promotes the positive outcome students will obtain by furthering their education. Nevertheless, the financial security that students can achieve. Feldman also implies college graduates, on average, make more than those who only completed high school. Feldman believes, as technology progresses, college will become more of a need. The author makes a point by stating education beyond high school gives students a lot of other benefits, including meeting new people, taking part in new opportunities to explore the student’s interest, and experiencing success.
Rutherford B. Hayes once said, “let every man, every corporation, and especially let every village, town, and city, every county and State, get out of debt and keep out of debt. It is the debtor that is ruined by hard times.”(Hayes 56). Although students seek to succeed in life and choose to further their education, the cost of colleges and universities almost seem to be exorbitant. The emotional toll of worrying about how the various expenses will be paid and covered for makes it very onerous for one to pay attention in class. Society says, “we want our students to attend college, we will even provide a small stipend.” The money that students are given is not nearly enough to pay even half expenses that they are responsible for. Scholars all over should be informed about the logistics of loans and debt- related fees in order to alleviate financial stress that comes with paying back loans.
Does college really give graduates the tools and knowledge required to succeed? In the article “Where College Fails Us”, author Caroline Bird attempts to argue that college may not be worth as much as people are led to believe. Bird believes that with the rise in college graduates being well above the Department of Labor Statistics anticipated job needs, college is quickly becoming a waste of time. Moreover, several reasons listed depict colleges many shortcomings, including the stress it puts on students and the unrealistic expectations it gives them combined with huge financial burdens. The author believes that the successful college graduates would have been successful regardless of their education, and that the majority of students felt forced to attend. Finally, she states that before wasting your money on a college education the reader should reflect on her article and determine if there is still value in a college experience. Although Caroline Bird presents many persuading arguments against the college experience in her article, I believe her logic to be outdated and generalized, and her content lacking of discrediting information. I disagree that all college graduates are taking dead-end jobs, and universities have withdrawn from the social side of their educational experience.
College degree is the road to success in life. I come from a culture where a college degree in the community is a privilege. When I was a teenager, I did not realize how valuable college degree is. I thought, in life as long as you have a job, why would you need a college degree? In today’s life there are some controversies between people, especially amongst the young generation about whether to have a college degree or rely on their high school diploma. In this review essay, first I will summarize the main point of the article, contextualize, and lastly I will write my own analysis why I think a four college degree is so important in our life
With rising cost of tuition, it has become more and more difficult for young adults to pay for college. Those who do choose to acquire a college degree spend years after they graduate paying off their student debt. There are many situations where they aren’t able to graduate, get a good paying job, or their lender is making it impossible to pay off their debt, therefore they end up spending the rest of their lives paying off their student debt. On average, student debt has become so high and is only predicted to increase in the future. There are many costs to attending college aside from student debt, and those costs differ depending on the student spending habits and choice of college. Considering the economic education students receive at home, to the decisions they personally make in college, banks and politicians will determine whether or not students will be able to escape falling into debt.
If an aspiring college student doesn’t have the necessary funds to attend school, there is another option they could use to pay for school. Student loans are a popular choice so that the student can pay for school. While this may seem like a great option for affording school, it can be a devil in disguise for many. The New York Times reports that Americans owe over 1.4 trillion dollars in student loan debt (Kelly 1). This happens when a college student takes loans with the belief that the college degree they get will help them achieve a higher salary which will in turn will help them pay off their debt. This often isn’t the case. A student takes the loans and attends school, but does not receive the salary that they were hoping to acquire from attending school. A standard payment plan for students is to pay off their debt in ten years, but according to a study conducted by US News, the average bachelor degree holder takes twenty-one years to pay off (Bidwell 1). This is a common occurrence as well, a report conducted by The Institute for Collee Access and Success shows that in 2012, seventy-one percent of college graduates had student debt (Serrato 1). The current system that the government offers to help those struggling to afford a secondary education is a flawed program that needs restructuring.