Pg/520 Week 1

The author is repetitive on her main argument, “going to a community college is much more beneficial than going to a four year university”. She emphasizes that going to a community college is first is the best option to pursue, “I believe the community college system to be one of America’s uniquely great Institutions” (Addison, p 258). Addison makes it very known throughout her essay that attending college matters and getting your degree is the most prominent part, it's the reason of being in college. The common ideal college

Throughout the essay, Charles Murray stresses the idea that college is the wonderland of finding oneself and to find the career that one would want to follow for the rest of their lives. “College is seen as the open sesame to a good job and a desirable way for adolescents to transition to adulthood. Neither reason is as persuasive as it first appears.” Murray, C (2008) Practically spoken, this is not normally the case. College is a fair amount of work, much more work than one would normally acquire through any course of a high school or secondary school setting. In no way saying that the average student cannot meet the requirement and achieve success over the amounted work, it would also be ridiculous to expect every graduate to pursue going into higher education with the expansion of work that will be given.

For decades, students have been told that college is the next step after high school graduation. Society reiterates this by glorifying individuals that have completed a degree and looking down upon those who do not have one. The problem is that many students have not acquired the necessary tools nor have the motivation to be successful while pursuing post-high school education. Some argue that college provides the foundation of liberal studies that will improve career opportunities. Charles Murray disagrees in his essay, "Are Too Many People Going to College." He states, "Most people should be getting the basics of a liberal education. But for most students, the place to provide those basics are elementary and middle school." (Graff, 238) This raises the question, is a four-year education the best option for all students. College provides many benefits that would be difficult to find elsewhere, such as, writing skills or cultural growth, but college is not meant for everyone. A college education does not guarantee a prosperous career, instead, gaining work experience or completing a trade school is a more intelligent option for the majority of potential students.

Throughout the essay she refers to writer by the name of Rick Perlstein. She gives him credit for his opinion. The main idea of his article is that he believes that the college experience as we know it is coming to an end. Although Perlstein believes this to be true, Addison disagrees with his statement. She strongly feels that community college is the answer. This is apparent through her writing, “The philosophy of the community college, and I have been to two of them, is one that unconditionally allows its students to begin. Just begin (Addison).” College is a time of firsts according to Addison. Addison points out that community colleges are affordable, as well as easily accessible. A place to start dreaming.

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

Colleges and Universities are windows of knowledge that many people try to break, in doing so, people are ready for the next stage of their life. But not many have the option to go the world where knowledge is everything, and end being a simple worker all his life. People would judge a person for not having a degree, bachelor and many more. But do they ever think that colleges or universities are really preparing you for any jobs, does a piece of paper worth a lot now a days. Freeman Hrabowski wrote an article responding to people that think educations is a waste of time, and it is called “College Prepare People for life” (Hrabowski). In the article he mentions many positive thing about going to college and what is the outcome of going to college. But I believe that, he hasn’t done a very good job to explain why college is a good place to go prepare yourself for the real world. I believe that college is very important for our life, but not many of us know if we are really learning something while being in college. I feel like colleges or universities has become a place where we go just to go or try to earn a degree in any field. Therefore, I believe that colleges doesn’t enhance our basic skills, doesn’t give us a certainty of us getting a good job, doesn’t give us the hardships of the real world and it isn’t a place where everyone gets treated it equally.

The issue, “Is College the Best Option,” interestingly is actually closely related to my major in a few facets. The idea of opportunity cost is an often overlooked fact that the first author and second author touch upon. This is that the real cost of doing something is equal to the value you’d gain by doing something else. The example the second author, Charles Murray, presents is an anecdote about the young man deciding whether or not he should be an electrician or not. The boy weighs his various options and the cost benefits of each of them in

In the article, “What Is College For? (Part 2)” written by Gary Gutting we see a description of his ideal vision to improve education and the intellectual culture of our citizens. Mr. Gutting emphasizes that preparing students for employment should be the job of the elementary, middle and high school rather than college. He argues that higher education is basically unnecessary for the practice of many professions.

College started to be the direction many students take after high school. During junior year, all the teachers start telling their student to consider college and the major that they want to pursue. Correspondingly, the students start to take the SAT and ACT tests. In junior year many students start to think if they are ready for college. Also, they start thinking about the major they want to enroll in if they decide to apply for college. More questions come in mind such as, would college be suitable for everyone? And is college worth the money the students would have to spend on tuition every semester until they graduate? From Leonhardt perspective, college is worth even with the debt it comes with. According to Matthews’s argument, college degree is needed because it is becoming more valuable with time. The arguments that both of Leonhardt and Matthews give prove that college is worth it and it is a good financial decision for most of the students.

In this article, Murray argues that many people go to college when it is not actually necessary for them to do so. He begins by explaining that obtaining a liberal education, while it is important to cultural participation, is not a good reason for everyone to go to college. Instead, he says that this education should occur much earlier, beginning in elementary school. Murray also believes that the in depth analysis of information that occurs college is too difficult for most people to enjoy, and many simply aren't academically capable. Even for those who are able, he claims that four years of college is much more than most professions actually need. He states that many people believe that getting a degree is the key to getting a

“In the United States today, there is no more certain investment than a college education”(Carnevale and Melton). Education has always been a major component of American society. One can only go so far without an education, and the more education and knowledge someone has, the better their chances of being successful. Some people believe a high school education is enough, and it is, enough to land a job at a fast food restaurant. I speculate they feel this way because they feel school is not for them, or maybe they just do not want to go far in life. To get far in life people must go above and beyond, and learn things that others do not know to make them

The idea that everyone has to go to college in order to get a good job has been engraved into students minds for decades but is this really the case? As a student going to a high school that is building us up for college, you would probably think I believed college was important, but you would be wrong, just as wrong as it is to believe that college is the only option. Over the next few paragraphs, you will understand this reasoning and learn why college is not the best for some.

What Is College For? By Gary Gutting is an analytical article upon the importance of a higher education to the public, he begins by discussing the statistics of what college has deemed worthful to people after their education. It was evident that many found it to be useful later on in life and helped them mature and grow intellectually. Gutting also points out that although many people find themselves to be successful later on after college that not everybody had the same experience, many had to drop out for the fact that a higher education was considered to be too expensive, or dropout rates too high. It is evident that he deems college to be an investment for many people who were fortunate enough to attend, therefore, providing the habits of mind of engagement, persistence, and openness to display how they play key points to the qualifying traits of a college student.

Caroline Bird’s essay “College is a Waste of Time and Money” explains her beliefs on why, for some people, going to college is an ineffective and inefficient use of their time. She states that many students do not belong in college because they are there for the wrong reasons and they are not happy learning. She also gives evidence to suggest that going to college and getting a degree does not actually allows a person to make more money in their life time. Her final claim is that college does not prepare most students for the real world and the jobs they will have once they graduate.

Getting college education is worth the time and money because it enhances the chances for individuals to become better critical thinkers. Not only is money at stake, but an opportunity to learn how to think critically is as well. Going to college has comprehensive benefits, becoming a better critical thinker as well as being able to demonstrate those skills through any career. Becoming a good critical thinker really has