Examples Of Portfolio Reflection On College

People attend college or university for several reasons, including exploring hundreds of career opportunities, pursuing their passions, learning critical thinking skills, and achieving their maximum potential. According to Dr. Richard Vedder’s, “For Many, College Isn’t Worth It”, attending college or university is not worth the time, effort, or money – Dr. Richard Vedder wants to solely focus resources on private universities and institutions. Vedder describes how many graduates with Bachelor’s degrees do not even obtain jobs in their specific field and how they will never start a career in their area of academic study. In his article, Richard Vedder describes how there should be more stringent standards placed on college undergraduates; he believes that public universities are not necessary and only private, more elite universities should remain operational. I personally believe that obtaining a college degree from an accredited university is worth the risk and the money, not only for one’s self but for society as a whole. Instead of shutting down undergraduate universities, we should consider raising collegiate admission standards throughout the nation.

Charles Murray’s essay proposes that American colleges are being flooded with individuals who are either unprepared for higher education or who are simply forced into attending college and can’t succeed because of the lack of certain innate abilities. Murray’s essay goes on to take issue with the idea that the pursuit of a traditional college education is somehow strategically creating a separation of the American class system. While Murray makes many salient points with regards to America’s obsession with college education as a standard into a class of the intellectual elite, the essay fails to take into consideration the various motivators that can lead to student success, despite

A look back at the institution of education over the past 20 years will reveal that once upon a time a bachelor’s degree was long since considered the marker of ultimate success, the highest level of achievement that one could make in their lives. In those days, if for some reason you failed to march across the stage on graduation day after an epic, four-year stretch of high tuition, long nights studying, and unrelenting professors that found great joy in riding your back, then you had indeed failed at life.

College is an important place that can lead us to a bright and successful future. College success is more than academics; for us it’s learning how to become an adult for the first time in our life. In college we will develop skills to have relationships with professors, counselors, and with our peers. The whole college experience enables us to truly succeed. Meeting new people, becoming acquainted to different ideas and cultures, and mostly, the enjoyment of the four plus years of being in school. A couple of years from now we will look back at college as either one of the best or worst times of our lives. The one thing that motivates people to go to college is “career

College: What is Was, Is and Should Be, by Andrew Delbanco takes both a historical and analytical approach to the evolution of higher education institutions in the United States. While thought provoking, some of his views balance on the verge of extremity. Many colleges provide students with the skills necessary for what is happening in society at that moment. This is exemplified in how the application process has changed from the earliest colleges to today. Also, when colleges were first introduced into society, students were recommended by members of society to attend a school, which is much different than the process today. Another aspect of what Delbanco discusses in his book is the disparity between a small liberal arts college and

Gary Colombo, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle in their book “Rereading America” feel that commencing college is a very disturbing experience. So many things we have to deal while starting college, but the major challenges are expanded difficulty levels and higher expectation which we are not familiar over the years of high school. In order to solve this issue, we have to remodel ourselves by taking up the challenge and rethink about our strength and flaws. To succeed in college we need to be mentally strong and dedicated towards our goal.

On December 2, 2016, in the opinion editorial, “How to Get In,” Susan Estrich, best-selling author and liberal columnist for the Creators, argues that hard work, not college acceptances, determine people’s future successes, challenging the notion that people’s opportunities and potentials are defined by the colleges they enter. Refuting the misconception that “getting into the right college is a meal ticket for life,” Estrich argues that GPA’s and LSAT’s may decide the difference between rejection and acceptance, but ultimately, tenacious hard work throughout life counts “for more than anything else,” before concluding that the “secret to a good application” is honesty and that, although she understands admissions can be partisan and erroneous through personal experience, in the end, she “did just fine”- an echoing sentiment to all prospective college applicants. Estrich

“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.

After twelve years of mandatory schooling, eighteen years of listening to parents, the time has come. Senioritis kicks in, and students are wondering if four more years of school is the right choice for them. College is expensive, is a lot of work and takes a lot of valuable time, that could be spent making money. Two questions that arise are Is a college degree worth what students are paying? and Will they be getting what they want out of college? Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus answer these questions in their article “Are Colleges Worth the Price of Admission”? This article outlines what colleges are doing poorly, such as offering too many sabbaticals, not spreading donations around, not engaging all students and not making them use their

Pharinet, the author of Is College for Everyone, explains an important factor in today’s society about college. He talks about how everyone cannot attend college like today’s society expects us to do so. Many are not able because they cannot maintain the grades and are not financially stabled. Money is a huge problem when it comes to attending college. Books expense, living situation and receiving student loans are examples of some of the issues students never think about, but endure. They only know about attending because it sounds and looks good after high school. Some high schools do not give their students the proper education to meet the requirements to attend. That is why ACT and SAT scores and high school transcripts are needed to meet college credentials.

Starting in high school, students are not given equal opportunities to excel because of family background. Furthermore, the admissions process itself has its flaws—legacies, minorities, and athletes are being chosen over exceptionally gifted valedictorians. Even after college, the problems do not end; possible joblessness and student debt are unavoidable. On top of these major problems, educators and parents continue to convince kids everywhere that college is the only option to become successful, and choosing another path is heavily looked down upon. The newest generation’s life is centered around the climax of college while at the same time, more and more students are unable to attend universities because of cost or rejection, but this is a paradox. The more high schoolers work hard, the more high schoolers will get turned down to their dream schools, and the more the college admissions process effectively become a lottery, leading to “many highly talented, brilliant, creative people thinking they’re not” (Robinson). The widespread college problem has no easy fix, nor does it have a single solution. Rather than working to fix the unfixable, adults must stop putting such emphasis on the college pathway, and instead stress that there are other options. The future of the job world is unknown; there is no way to know if an expensive college education is the right choice. College, with all of its flaws, is just one option in preparing for the future; it is not necessarily the best. Therefore, the single word, “college,” should stop dividing the academic from the non-academic or the successful from the unsuccessful, and instead be considered a single path in an array of worthy

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.

Students go to college in search of knowledge, a new lifestyle, and the hope of a job after graduation. For many young adults, college is a rite of passage into an independent, mature new lifestyle. Not only is higher education a rite of passage, for some, it is also an opportunity to have a better life. Overall, college is a wonderful part of many people’s lives, yet the way the college education system is conducted wastes students time and money. College is basically composed of two parts: general education classes and major specific classes. General education courses are the source of wasted time and money, and should not be required of students. A few of the problems associated with general education classes are that they are

Throughout history, college has been a staple for people in America. Young high school graduates continuing their education to guarantee themselves a successful future in a career they feel passionate about. College helps build and expands one’s mind. Not only do students learn more in classes, the build social skills and critical thinking. Students attending college grow in all aspects of the mind. For most students in the 21st century, it has become somewhat of a norm to apply and continue education after high school. Every student wants to push themselves to achieve greatness. The rush of college applications includes a lot such as: writing essays, applying for scholarships, and taking the SATs. The SAT is a worldwide recognized test that

Television and movies portray college to be one big party with lots of kegs and girls who go crazy. While there is that, the main reason for college is to academically evolve and get a higher education. Without the necessary grades, one cannot stay in college. High school graduates tend to forget about this requirement and focus on the partying more than the studying. For example, at the University of Tampa it is required for most majors that students maintain a 2.0 grade point average (GPA) if they wish to stay in the institution. There has been the case where students cannot keep up with this lifestyle, juggling between schoolwork and excessive partying; forcing them to drop out during their first two semesters. According to Reuters: “The United States has the highest dropout rate in the