Pursuing A Career In College

When it comes to the topic of attaining a college degree, most will readily agree that it is essential to securing a successful career post-graduation. Whereas some are convinced that a college degree does not guarantee entry into a career in one 's field of study nor does it determine success in one 's career, others maintain that a higher education is, in fact, the way to job security and financial success. What comes into question is whether the investment in a college education is truly worth it or not in order to accomplish a student 's goals of success. I think it could be said for most prospective college students that the reason for going to college is to gain the credentials required for most jobs today. What many of those potential students may not realize is the substantial percentage of graduates who do not acquire a job related to their majors, how much debt they will incur, and just how many students don 't graduate at all for reasons such as an overwhelming workload and a poor work/ life balance.

One implication of college is that it’s the only route you can take to be successful. Charles Murray’s article “Are Too Many People Going to College” disagrees and believes that college really just prepares you for life. With still good focus towards a career but, there are many circumstances where individuals can get equal experiences going straight into the workforce. Murray uses the quote from John Stuart Mill who in 1867 told his students at St.Andrews that “Universities are not intended to teach the knowledge required to fit men for some special mode of gaining their livelihood” to help promote his argument. He claims that college is mainly preparing you for life, and I feel that there is still a heavy stress on the topic and learning the material. On the other hand I agree that kids that go straight to work out of high school be equally successful if done right, and do so without paying thousands of dollars a year on college. Do not fall into the illusion that college is the only option, look at everything there is to offer.

David Leonhardt in his article “Is College Really Worth It? Clearly New Data Say” goes over the biggest negatives of college that deter students and even returning adults from receiving a higher education and earning a degree. He talks about the struggles of finding work after college and the accumulated student debt. Daivd Leonhardt points out that “Americans with four-year college degrees made 98% more an hour on average in 2013 than people without a degree.” (Leonhardt). Which shows that as much as college costs, you get that back multiple times over after graduation and after you are employed. The stress and struggles that undergraduates face such as deciding a major, the issue of time commitment and large financial sacrifices are worth

Many think college is not worth it, however when I think of college not being worth it, I ask myself what is “it”? Is college not worth the sacrifice, time, or stress? In this case, many are not college material, simply for lacking the amount of effort and self motivation it takes to get through college. I oppose with the statement “For many, College isn’t worth it” because college is worth everything it takes for you to become great in the field you choose to study. Many people are not able or do not have the mindset to get through college, but that do not mean they will never have the mindset. Most people do not work hard under pressure or have great skills at testing or learning at a slow or fast pace. Some people believe that after highschool, since it is required, that going straight into an occupation is better for them. In my opinion, college is a stepping stool for achieving higher education and newer knowledge for the area you decide to infiltrate. I believe the educational world is bias to the brainpower of many people and people of the world is bias to the things they are capable of doing. Therefore, I am confident in stating college is worth it because having a college background ensures you quicker job opportunities, college gives you knowledge to become disciplined and self-motivated, and; college also enhances your communication skills.

“On average, the benefits of a four-year college degree are equivalent to an investment that returns 15.2 percent per year, … more than double the average return to stock market investments since 1950.” (Greenstone 1). This is an amazing deal of a lifetime is anyone asks me, from any investment. The general population is better off entering into to college to get into a better workplace, even if that means dropping out if it becomes over whelming, many find college a life changing experience.

As kaufman states in her article, “Yes, college is worth it, and it’s not even close. For all the struggles that many young college graduates face, a four-year degree has probably never been more valuable.” In today’s studies, it has shown that the pay gap between college grads compared to others has reached a high point, with college students making 98 percent more an hour, which has increased from 89 percent five years ago. If more high school students planned on going to college and graduating the pay for these students would decrease. As many teenagers do not choose to face the challenge of college, the pay for those who do graduate increased.

Even though tuitiion costs have raised by almost 50% over the course of 30 years people still argue that college is still worth the price. One supporting reason that will always apply to this argument is, the fact that college graduates earn more money and have a much easier time finding employment than their peers who only have a highschool diploma. Others might state that though not all careers recquire a four-year degree, most do. With that being said a college degree can almost always give you ta head start and better skills for/in any field. Opposers also use Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg to say their choices to leave school were based off of billion dollar ideas, and that the two were already computer geniuses when their decisions were made. To add to that supporters of attending college would say , it’s not all about the learning material. The choice to attend college gives students the opportunity to gain financial responsibility, students usually learn how to put needs before wants when they attend college. Lastly whether it’s your peers or professors college provides students with the time to meet, and get to know new people, with new ideas who may challenge, inspire, encourage or even work alongside one another. This would be used by college supporters to show that college is also a networking tool, or maybe a student could just want a change of scenery. For some people the number 1 reason to go to college is to go away/move to a new location. Some may want to just escape the cold and move down south, others may want to get out of small towns and explore the world. There can be many reasons to attend college like just to live in dorms and experience a home without parents, all of these prove to opposers that college is still worth

This can be further illustrated by Andy Blevins, a college dropout who left college to pursue a warehouse job. He now thinks that he could've done more with a degree. He laments that when looking for a job "A lot of places, they're not looking that you're trained in something,They just want you to have a degree. " This contradicts one of the key parts of many people's conceptions of the american dream, which says that if you work hard, you’ll be rewarded accordingly. Rather, the key to a successful career is a college degree.

College is a great place for many to experience new things and to further education. However, college is not for everyone. According to the film Ivory Tower, college teaches people valuable skills such as networking with peers and extensive knowledge. College also provides students, upon graduation, with a degree and proper credentials. Based on a survey done by the Pew Research Center; the article “The Rising Cost of Not going to College,” states that “economic analysis consistently find that college graduates regardless of generation are doing better than those with less education,” this shows that there is a reasonable gap between a college degree and a high school diploma. On the other hand, it may not be worth the rising costs. Carolina Bird, author of “Where College Fails Us,” mentions in her article “in the current slowdown it has become evident that there were never, and probably never will be, enough jobs requiring higher education to go around,” (59-60) this shows some people's job outlook may not be aligned with their major. Jeffrey Selingo’s article “Is College Worth the Cost? Many Recent Graduates Don’t Think So,” says that “nearly half of college graduates in their 20s are underemployed, meaning the jobs they have do not require a bachelor’s degree,” this brings up the possibility of college not being beneficial to many. College can be needed because of higher salaries after graduation and providing people with the tools to succeed. On the contrary, going to

As the evidence substantiates, college is worth the time and money. In this situation, worth means of high value. College has been proven to yield people a better financial future. In this time period, where jobs are hard to acquire, attempting to obtain a quality, well-paying job is nearly impossible. As displayed by the Hill, the average high school graduates salary is $35,615 per year. Meanwhile, the average college graduates yearly income is $65,482; this evidence was taken from a US Congress census; again from the The Hill. This exhibits the fact that college graduates, on average, make 48% more than high school graduates. Having a little advantage in pay is beneficiary in this time period. By going to college people are not only thinking about themselves, but for the better of their family. In the case of someone coming from a menial background, going to college can change their monetary needs. In the same way, only 260,000 people with college diplomas are working in minimum wage jobs. Around 72,000,000 or 33% of the adults in America have gone to college, proven by another US Congress Census. That means that 1 in every 277 people who attend college have a job paying minimum wage. Furthermore, a Georgetown University study has shown that 99% of the post 2008 recession jobs, have gone to college graduates. After reviewing this piece of evidence, going to college is a major bonus in the job market. A college degree of any sort can help in most leagues of study. Many employers noticed the college degree, and almost immediately hire that person. According to evidence number 15, the unemployment rate for someone who went to college is 3.8%. On the contrary, the unemployment rate for someone who only attended high school is 12.2%.

     It seems in the society we live in today, having a college degree is a necessity. Years ago it was the norm for people to just go right into a full time job after high school, if they even finished high school; they did this to support their families. In today’s society a person has a difficult time getting a decent job without a college degree. During an adults working life, bachelor degree graduates will earn about $2.1 million and a high school graduate can expect to earn an average of $1.2 million (Day and Newburger, 2002). This is quite a difference and it puts a college education in

I take my college career seriously I read my material try to study as much as I can, even though sometimes I may not have as much time as I wish. I have tried to stay focus on my goal by working hard and building study time and finding the exact classes I needed to take to get my AA and transfer to Cal-State. Up to this point I have done pretty good, I am having a very hard time understanding statics but I have decided to continue to study as much as can and continue to do my best and if so happens to be that I have to take the class again then I will, but I will pass it. This is now one of my biggest challenges in school, at least up to now, but this is what I need to move forward in my college career. Believing in me, I would think is my

Conservatives also like to point out that college students are underemployed. This point is grounded in a New York Federal Reserve Bank report that claims between 30 and 40% of college graduates are underemployed. Underemployment us the condition in which people in a labor force are employed at less than full-time or regular jobs or at jobs less adequate with respect to their training or economic needs. With such a large statistic suggesting that a degree will not guarantee a job, college seems more like a gamble than an

As I graduated in 2018 like everyone here, I worked hard to be able to get scholarships and go to my dream University. As a teenager I was working at a franchise where I got paid low minimum wage, with the money earned I decided to buy car to be able to move around and not rely on anybody. I finished the long years in college and traveled as I wasn’t sure what career to pursue. As I stand here I can’t believe 10 years have past through quite fast. My life has been great thanks to the people who believed in me. At the age twenty six I’ve decided to purchase a house after renting a duplex for the past 3 years. There is many things I have accomplished during these past 10 years. One of my main dreams was opening my own multicultural restaurant

Most expect that by attending college and graduating they will be able to find a good paying career with benefits in a field that will interest them. It seems that from high school it is drilled into our heads that we must attend college to be successful in life and contribute to our society. However, college graduates often find themselves working in a field that is unrelated to their degree. This could be due to how many people are also trying to apply for jobs in that specific field, or it could be that that job does not provide them with enough money to live off. The most important thing that students really need to ask themselves before they attend college is, “is a college degree really enough in today’s world to get a good career