I Have One Lamp Of Experience

Jacob Neusner’s commencement speech points the finger not only at the graduating students but mainly at the faculty members. He sways towards how easy-going, laid back, and forgiving the professors and other faculty members were towards their students. In that sense, Neusner clearly states that these students aren’t prepared for what’s about to come because they have always had someone hold their hand every step of the way and shown forgiveness in this fantasy called “college.” College is supposed to help you get your feet wet and aid students with preparation for the harsh so called real world. Many thoughts ran through my brain while reading this speech as did my emotions which were up and down like a rollercoaster. As much as I agree with Jacob Neusner on the fact that college and the “real world” are

Because of the remedial classes, Keene then began to believe that she can attain whatever she needed to become successful through life experiences. Although, this belief did not last long, she returned to community college and attained a higher persistence in completing a two-year degree. As a result of Keene’s persistence and studiousness, she acquired a new perception of academia at Columbia College, “I met two professors, Ted Hamilton and Paula Clarke, who fundamentally challenged my worldview, my expectation of academia, my sense of own academic potential, and my understanding of responsibilities as a citizen.” (Keene 65) It is after taking these courses is when Keene came to the conclusion that colleges need to challenge its students intellect. After achieving this new perspective, Keene was able to transfer to several universities, as well as an ivy league university. Later on her life, Keene experienced the other side of the spectrum. She began teaching at Columbia College,

What we get out of the college experience, we use in our day to day lives. Even the things we think aren’t important or useful end up becoming helpful. The material we learn in college is fundamental when it comes jobs and life in general. We are taught to make choices. We are taught how the real world works, and how to turn our education into our way of life. “…the really significant education in thinking that we’re supposed to get in a place like this isn’t really about the capacity to think, but rather about the choice of what to think about.” (Wallace 199).

In Freeman Hrabowski’s piece, “Colleges Prepare People for Life,” he mentions the differing opinions between going to college and choosing another path. Many people find college too expensive, and once a student graduates, he or she will face enormous debt and potentially risk still being unprepared for the working world. Hrabowski acknowledges this, and also notices that many students who do attend college occasionally make the wrong decision in terms of choosing a school and major. But while the stakes are high, he argues that college not only provides financial stability, but also allows students to become more virtuous citizens in the long run. He does this by providing information to backup his claims, using a passionate tone to explain his beliefs, and paralleling college attendance with good intentions.

“Colleges Prepare People for Life” by Freeman Hrabowski, is an informative essay about how college is a crucial step for the preparation of a successful future job opportunity as well as future life. Hrabowski is the current president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and has been in that role since 1992. “In 2012, President Obama named him chair of President’s Advisory Commission on Education excellence of African Americans” (Hrabowski, 2013, p. 259). This quote goes to show the amount of knowledge and respect Hrabowski has earned throughout his life by proving himself and his ideas to others. Although college is a crucial step for the preparation of a successful future job opportunity as well as one’s overall wellbeing of life; some might disagree that college is the key to success. From this essay, messages within the text will be made known by analyzing the real meaning behind Hbrabowski’s words. As well as reasoning, as to why a college education is essential to one’s overall quality of life.

A long 20 years have passed for me to be on page 87 of my autobiography. My life is at a secure base, something that helps me feel confident in my abilities. As my last semester at John Tyler starts to wrap up, I can see how much progress I have made and how hard I had to work to get where I am now. My classes are fun yet challenging, and my peers are encouraging me consistently to do even better than the last test or project. Even though I plan on graduating at the end of this semester and attending a new college, I will never forget the experiences that John Tyler gave me to prepare me for VCU.

Students today have been raised to think that college is just the next step in life after high school. Decades ago,going to college was a huge achievement and not many people enrolled. Today, however it is almost expected that you go to college. The purpose of college has been changing over the years. Students and professors have lost sight of what to get out a college education. Gary Gutting explains in his article, “What is College for?” that students are losing passion for higher education. He also believes that professors are not realizing what their true job really is, and are not doing the necessary procedures to help their students succeed. “In On the Uses of a Liberal Education”, Mark Edmundson shares similar ideas, and gives a first person point of view of Gutting’s ideas about the quality of the college experience. Mark Edmundson would agree with Gary Gutting’s claims that the quality of colleges is declining and is negatively affecting the students and faculty members.

Four years of my life drained away at this place called Troy High School. After this year I will be walking away from Troy, worn and torn from the hours of anticipation for grades to be posted, the next weekend to arrive, the answer to whether that special someone will say yes to the next dance, or the unbearable wait for that painstaking bell to ring. Troy is a place of education, a very good one at that, with its Blue Ribbon Award and national recognition, you’d think I would be walking away with knowledge that will serve me well for decades to come, but no. I could have learned the same things I learned at Troy anywhere, it is the insight I picked up that will take me far. “What insight?” you ask. Its priceless wisdom really, it’s a

I came to college knowing, that so much of what I was over the first eighteen years of my life would be put to the test. Not simply because I was a conservative, in a liberal environment, but because I would be faced with four years, in a place that was in such

In her essay, Two Years Are Better than Four, author Liz Addison states that “It is here that Mr. Perlstein will find his college years of of self-discovery, and it is here he will find that college does still matter.” In other words, Addison believes that it is at community college that one can find himself and seek out his future, that community college is a stepping stone into life, and gives you a boost into the real world. In saying this, she believes that college is still relevant in today’s society, and is needed to succeed in the future. In recent discussions about college, a controversial issue has been whether or not college as America used to perceive it is coming to an end.

In “Colleges Prepare People for Life”, Freeman Hrabowski writes about the benefits of going to college and the things that are, and should be, available for potential college students. Hrabowski says that more opportunities come to those with a college degree, rather than those with a high school diploma (690). His argument is effective because of his strong ethos, while it is ineffective because of his weaker logos and pathos. Hrabowski has been the president of the University of Maryland for the past 23 years.

Upon considering the events and experiences that have been a precursor to my interest in CCU, I am burdened with the decision of expressing a single cumulative moment that bears the most gravity upon myself to this point. Could it be the diligence of a dedicated family that bears the most impact? Could it be the countless teachers, instructors, and counselors that have selflessly invested in me? Is it the economic, political, or geographic tides that have surrounded my existence? Perhaps it falls within the lines of the many passages of books read or entangled in the conversations made by superior minds? Or is it held in the delicate grasps of a fragile moment too unknown to be remembered and too small to be noticed? Could it be that, in a

But by the end of my two years as a community college student, I had only dipped my toe into the vast pool of academic potential. Not only does the University of Washington offer infinite career and social opportunities, it provides a community of diverse student body and experienced professors all aiming toward the same goal of success. At the University of Washington I can continue my education and work toward a major that utilizes and builds upon my existing

Further elaborating this example, a senior leader criticized the merit of this course and the General Studies degree. The argument was that it had little value to the department. The remarks bruised my excitement and motivation adding to the disappointed of not completing my architectural engineering degree in my youth. To meet my employer’s concern, I decided to create a win-win by transferring to a better-suited degree meeting both our needs. I contacted my Drexel advisor, however, I was quickly disappointed to learn that my career in construction management barely qualified me as a sophomore. This meant I had to forfeit more than half my credits. Keeping my eyes on the prize is now challenged and a reminder of my superstition of jinxing the outcome by envisioning the end. However, to exercise Stephen Covey’s second habit, I reflected on our unit-5 assignment that highlighted Prof Kitao’s, The Usefulness of Uselessness where she states; “The substance lies more in the studying done than in the lessons the courses teach” (Kitao, 1999). Acknowledging her wisdom, I forge ahead with the end in mind and intent to combine my fulfilled personal, and very successful professional life-experiences with the learning skills gained in my earned degree.

Now that I am reaching the end of my undergraduate career I feel like it’s fit to reflect on how far i’ve come and some high and low points during this time of my life. Some people may say that these four years of college are the most wonderful times of their life, and for the most part that is correct. But there is this whole other part of college life that is super stressful and even scary. During this paper I will address my personal development and how certain experiences played a role in those developments. Even though I feel like i’ve grown a lot and have developed and learned new things, I have run into some issues. Those issues being family/culture, social and emotional growth, intellectual growth, values and beliefs, citizen and community member.