Higher Education At The Liberal Arts

In past years, when people was talking about higher education, they had no hesitation to mention university immediately. When others were mentioning that college also belonged to higher education, sometimes they reacted with a wry smile, and shook their heads. Yes, even if it is for today, university gets the higher appraisal than college, and even many people think ‘‘college as America used to understand it is coming to an end.’’ As parents, they prefer their children to study in university instead of college, no matter how high of tuition the university it is. They ignore the value of college. Although sometimes college is viewed as critical by other people, we still can find its value, and how it is really beneficial for our lives, even if we don’t pursue a degree.

We are told to “go to college” by family, media, and teachers, but we are never given an explanation on why it’s important for us to get a higher education. The importance of higher education is so we can obtain a career that can support our needs and wants. It’s also important because it gives you an advantage when trying to get a job. Employers require a higher form of education, which is necessary for our society to advance. There aren’t many jobs that accept people with a high school diploma as their highest form of education. Employers want people that know what they’re doing, and so does our society. In order for people to go into the career field they want, they need to go to college to learn everything that comes with that career.

First, the logic of the article focuses on why students should have a balanced, well-rounded understanding of the world to be successful in life rather than having a career-based education that is only focused on one aspect. There were no obvious fallacies found in Ungar’s argument beyond the generalization about costs for all colleges thus not focusing primarily on the financial situation.

Living in the "Digital Age" it is not uncommon to believe the STEM fields- science, technology, engineering, and mathematics- are far more superior degree choices than its outdated counterparts, the liberal arts. However, Sanford J. Ungar attempts to shed light on the highly scrutinized and critiqued liberal arts education by clearing up seven common misperceptions. In his essay, "The New Liberal Arts," Ungar strings together counterarguments on why a liberal education still holds value in a modern society (656-662). Despite some strong rationalizations, Ungar 's argument is rendered ineffective.

Every person has his or her idea of what education should be. One wants to be educated or go to universities so he or she could have a higher degree. Some other person wants to get education just to fulfill one's self. Many people get college education thinking that they can make more money. Education is not about money; it is a lifetime process that enables one to satisfy one's inner self. It makes a person feel good for who they are inside.

Steve Jobs once said that “The reason that Apple is able to create products like the iPad is because we've always tried to be at the intersection of technology and the liberal arts.” Apple is now a multinational company selling more and more products every day. Their success can be credited to the balance between knowing what people want and how to give it to them. Figuring out how to give people what they desire is the technological part of Job’s foolproof equation. The word liberal is loosely defined as free, free speech, free thought, free healthcare… The liberal arts degree is seen as the study of expression in different medias like visual art or literature. Many want to completely obliterate the liberal arts degree and others think more

In the article "The Value of a Liberal Arts Education in Today’s Global Marketplace", the author, Edward Ray, talks about the importance of a liberal education in large companies. He believes that a STEM education is important, but a liberal education is the key to be successful in all fields of work. There are characteristics of a liberal education that everyone needs to have success in your career. This article was enjoyable because Ray made it clear that a degree in liberal education is important in the workforce by using examples of large businesses, statistics, and how it could help our country.

The specific focus of this article is looking at how likely liberal arts institutions will adapt to their peer groups [similar liberal arts institutions in a consortium] by offering and awarding degrees in professional areas of study (e.g. business, communications, public affairs, etc.). The article also considers the influence of other institutional variables that may be more or less likely to predict the adoption of these professional programs. These additional variables seem to relate back to two previous discussion points, resource dependency, and field-level dynamics. Kraatz (1998) does discuss both of these phenomena in his findings (p. 637) of how “resource dependence, and a prior history of change” affected institutional

Perusing higher education can be done for a few reasons; either wanting to obtain a professional degree for a job or a liberal arts degree for a set interest. Either way, higher education has become a mandatory thing in many peoples lives. Ronald Barnett and Martha Nussbaum both have similar views on education. Barnett believes that there will always be more to learn and a proper education should make you realize that there is always more to learn. Nussbaum’s approach to the situation states that the way the United State’s education system is built, students are almost forced into caring about learning the humanities and such. I believe that higher education is something that can be used to teach students how to act and react when pushed

There were a vast number of literature about evolutionary, revolutionary and disruptive change that applied to various subject matters, such as social change; subsequently, I chose to focus on organizational change and education. The following are articles that I found to be instrumental and applicable somewhat to my area of study:

A liberal arts education as a dictionary defines it, is a holistic teaching approach that provides an overview of many different subjects. It aims to deepen your understanding of the world that surrounds us all, rather than dive whole-heartedly into one concentration right away. The education is focused on the idea that every subject has something to offer your mind that perhaps can be later used in an unexpected way. Knowledge is power, they say. Being able to reference a book you read in your freshmen seminar, in a Chemistry class, encompasses this belief that knowledge can be effective everywhere. When I first began looking at colleges, I didn’t know what kind of education I was searching for. I had an idea that I wanted to go into a medical

“93 percent of Americans consider the arts to be vital to providing a well-rounded education for children and a critical link to learning and success” (“Why” par. 3). Going against this though, school budgets give less to arts programs each year. This can be exemplified in the lack of liberal arts programs that schools across the country are able to provide. In 2009, a mere four percent of schools offered theater classes and an even lower three percent offered dance classes (Metla par. 3) Of course the school must give time for the basic english, math, and history classes, but those classes can be amplified in what students get out of them by the addition of liberal arts courses. If students have an art or music class that gives them passion,

Before proceeding any further in a discussion of vocational and liberal arts education, it is important to define and clarify the differences between the two systems. In a vocationally-based education system, students are trained to perform the specific job that they have chosen. While a vocational education system is not solely devoted towards working on the skills needed for the job – as it will provide some sort of general education, the general education that students will receive in a vocationally-based education system will be in order to achieve basic competency in general subjects such as math, reading and writing. On the other hand, a liberal arts education system is one which provides a general education for students in areas such

While the concept of the liberal arts dates back to antiquity, I firmly believe that its relevance and necessity couldn’t be more contemporary. When ancient scholars formulated the intent to inform students in myriad areas of study, their ideology centered around the concept of shaping citizens such that they might be empowered and educated in order to ideally perform their respective civic duties. Being informed was a necessity. More than ever before, my peers and I enter a higher education environment where acceptance of plurality is paramount. No area of study or research is insular, in fact, majors and disciplines are more interconnected than ever. Understanding multiple viewpoints, various belief systems, the way science relates to religion or sociology is inextricable from economics—this is why liberal arts is essential and effective.

The liberal arts curriculum and small student body at Hood strongly appeal to me. I started off at a large public university and did not feel a strong sense of community. Hood College would be the ideal institution for me as the small class sizes would enable me to work together with the other students and form close connections with the professors. I believe a liberal arts education will leave me well-equipped with a diverse and valuable set of skills for the workplace. If granted the opportunity, I am confident I will thrive in the collaborative and challenging environment at Hood.