justification for higher education Essay

He never made it college. He saw a dream and college just wasn’t part of it.He worked many

In Charles Murray's article “Are Too Many People Going to College?” he argues that the route that has been set-up, whether knowingly or unknowingly, for individuals to achieve success in their life by obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree (B.A.) is obsolete in a modern world. He espouses six reasons for his position. In this essay, I’ll summarize Murray's position and then elucidate on his points while explaining my position on wach of his views. Lastly, I'll state my belief that getting a college degree is valuable even if it is not the source of my financial income.

Caplan says that, “increasing education across a country’s population by an average of one year per person raises the national income by only 1 to 3 percent,” (14). By conceding his main argument in the side of individuals Caplan can change focus to a larger group, observing the usefulness, or lack thereof, of college for nations. While Caplan successfully harnesses the power of pathos and ethos to support his argument that college is a waste of time and money, he falls short in his use of

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.

A college degree is a valuable asset that could ultimately lead to a productive life in society due to the received education, but people without a college degree do turn out more than adequate in regards to societal success. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, of the forecasted 30 fastest growing jobs between 2010 and 2020, five do not require a high school diploma, nine require a high school diploma, four require an associate 's degree, six require a bachelor 's degree, and six require graduate degrees to get the jobs (College). In an article called “College Education” by ProCon.org,

Colleges are everywhere—they are advertised middle and high schools, television ads show people satisfied with their college experiences, and parents ask their children what school they want to go to. In today’s society, college is expected for many, a necessity for others. People are told the only way to further a country is to educate. With tuition being a part of college, many question if college is worth all the money when there are jobs that only require a high school education. Despite the cost of tuition, a college degree is worth the time and effort—people with degrees experience lower rates of unemployment, more job opportunities in skilled fields, and greater personal gain. Though there are other factors in determining whether college is worth it, these are huge factors in whether the time and money is worth spending.

Hunter Rawlings, the author of College is not a Commodity, protests society’s view of the importance of college and argues the necessity of an education instead of the college title. Rawlings boldly exhibits stereotypical views of college as being unaffordable, creating too much debt, and simply not being worth the hassle. He then goes on to explain his contributing factor the the article, “The value of a degree depends more on the student’s input than on the college’s curriculum.” (paragraph 4) Rawlings displays that a college degree is not just handed to the student, however the expertise of that degree is dependent on the level of education that the student sought to receive. The author inevitably argues that college is not a commodity like

College graduates, on average, make a whopping one million dollars more in lifetime earnings than those with a high school diploma. Those with a college degree now make $17,500 more per year than those without — a wage gap that's doubled in recent decades. Those without a degree are four times more likely to be unemployed.One of the biggest and most important reasons for anyone to attend college is the upper hand it gives with regards to jobs and career. A college graduate has a higher chance of landing a job when compared to an individual with a high school qualification. Further, a college graduate also has better options and opportunities to progress in their

Within the article, “Are Too Many People Going To College?”, by Charles Murray, he goes over the reasons why we don’t necessarily need to go to college to be successful. By this, he is talking about how most liberal arts should be taught properly within grades K-8. What I mostly agree on with him is the topic of how four years of college is ridiculous. From personal experience and the practicality of learning important information, I strongly believe that students should have to spend four years at college. Why learn something irrelevant and have the possibility to fail if you learn the material for your future career sooner and successfully.

The rise of college tuition along with room and board have lead many to believe that college isn’t worth the money. This among with the other factors of how getting a job into society is more difficult and that a college degree no longer competitive due to the high abundance of them. On the other side, many others urge the importance of a degree. They bring up how more jobs today require degrees, the return investment, and many other things.

Bird’s second point is that, contrary to popular belief, college is not the best monetary investment a young person can make. Bird explains this by comparing the money that would be spent on education versus money that is put in a bank for interest. The outcome shows investing money that would otherwise be spent on a college education would earn over half a million dollars more than the earnings of a male college graduate compared to a non-graduate. Bird also states that even if a graduate makes more money in their job than a non-graduate, there is no evidence that the higher income is due to their college education. She attributes financial success to luck rather than a college education. In this argument she mainly puts forth logical reasons why college is not for everyone. She shows actual dollar amounts that logically prove an education is not necessarily the most profitable investment.

Although someone without a degree may have more natural intelligence and ability than their credentialed counterpart, a degree is now worth more than actual capability in the job market. Bankston writes that “the popular emphasis placed on higher education in a society in which higher education has become a broad expectation has heightened the importance of credentials as an asset for obtaining a job at the expense of other assets, such as demonstrated ability or experience in a field” (p. 337). A degree provides a form of merit that employers look for immediately because the degree marks the individual as someone who can supposedly meet deadlines, fulfill obligations, and think critically. Margolis (2007) remarks how “it was the common practice of my colleagues to immediately sift out the [resumes] that didn’t have a degree and just throw them away” (p. 42). Because many employers are searching through high volumes of resumes, they don’t have time to thoroughly look at every single one; they speed up the process by simply filtering out

Many people are confused on why to invest time and money of attending college. A reason for obtaining a higher education is that a college degree can possibly earn a much higher salary than the majority of the people who have a high school diploma. College can be expensive and time consuming for the most of the people that do not have enough money and spare time to go to college. Stephen Rose, a research professor at the Georgetown University, wrote an article on “The Value of a College Degree” to explain if a college degree can be valuable to people to have. Eleni Karageorge, an author on the United States Department of Labor, wrote an article “Is A College Degree Still Worth It?” to give some details on job occupations that compares with employees having a bachelor’s degree or a high school diploma on how much they annually make on their job. Finally, Paul E. Barton, a consultant and a writer for topics related on education, wrote an article “How Many College Graduates Does the U.S. Labor Force Really Need?” on giving details on how valuable to have a college degree in the near future are needed when certain occupations are on high demand with a requirement on having a least a bachelor’s degree. We need to know why going to college is so important for anyone who wants to have professional occupations.

Perry’s article is effective in arguing that everyone should go to college and he is able to make this strong argument with his use of logos throughout the essay. He begins his article by stating a fact that “removing 80-90 percent of our students would interrupt the pipeline of skilled workers, making it nearly impossible to meet the needs of a society that has outlined postsecondary credential as an entry point for most professions” and in doing so he makes a clear basis for what his argument will be and how he chooses to support it (Perry,670). This introduction sets the tone of his article and portrays his logical voice. He makes the logical statement, based on facts that the country needs people who have gone to college. He is then logically able to flow his essay into the idea that “ we need more, not fewer university and community college graduates,” which is supported by his previous argument that it is important for entry into most professions (Perry, 671). Through the use of statistics, Perry strengthens his statement that people should be attending college. His essay follows a logical flow of the rewards or consequences of not attending college, which all stem from his main argument that college is necessary for a good economy and a better standard of

Fortunately, he did not have to pay back the loans. On his first job interview, he got the job and became an accountant inspector and as a result he got his loans waived, and this allowed him to have the money to buy a house. He is currently going to make approximately $90,000 to $100,000 this year and he has been working for less than a year. This demonstrates how college provides opportunities for people to take advantage of. The more education a person gains the more knowledgeable they become and knowledge is money. It gives person the opportunity to live a decent life where they do not have to worry about financial problems. This example proves that Bird’s idea that “college is the dumbest investment one can invest” is not always true. College offers more than just a degree, it provides a job with a decent salary. In Wilson’s experience, he found a job that pays him triple the amount of money that he pay for tuition.