My dad is a man of many mantras, one of his favorite being, “Don’t go to school for a job you don’t need a degree to do.” This philosophy has been one that has stuck with me and I believe that it makes a strong argument for higher education, whether it be trade school or a traditional four-year degree. In Steven Pearlstein’s article, he expresses his anger at the direction millennials were taking their education. He blamed the emphasis on STEM centric degrees on overbearing parents and misconceptions about job availability for degrees in the arts on misinformed media (6). As a millennial who has her own opinions on the subjects Pearlstein writes, my philosophy on higher education and its purpose tends to differ greatly. Contrary to the biased beliefs of Steven Pearlstein, I believe the purposes of college, or any form of higher education, is to explore the potential within, to allow young adults to experience their first real taste of academic freedom, and, most importantly, to turn a passion into a career.
The purpose of college is one of self-exploration, it is the time to do everything, expose yourself to things you’ve never seen before, and to test your limits. It is important, however, to remember that while college is about growing as a person, you are there to learn the academic skills necessary to become competitive in the career field of your choice. College is the time to explore the things that interest you, which is why eCampus writes that it’s crucial to take “a wide variety of classes, broaden your horizons, and give you a better perspective of your own field of interest” (eCampus, 2). eCampus is an online source available to college students and their families designed to give advice to students struggling with the transition into college. Exposing students to a wide variety of classes is crucial to a wholesome education. However, this does not mean though that the only means to a well-rounded education is by pursuing an education in the arts. Pearlstein argues that because a student has an interest in a liberal arts class it means they should pursue a major in the arts (17). Pearlstein makes statements about millennial students, such as, “They’re 18 years old, they haven’t had a chance to take a course in Shakespeare or the history of economic thought, and already they’ve decided to devote the rest of their lives to accountancy” (Pearlstein, 17). While taking classes such as Shakespearean literature and the history of economic thought, the gained knowledge may provoke new thoughts and invoke new beliefs. This, however, does not equate to the need to pursue a major in these fields. So take a History of Football class as a Biology major, push yourself, and test your intellectual limits, but always remember why you are here.
One of the benefits of college is the ability to make choices on the direction of your education. You are the pilot of your education and you can take the classes that excite you most. In high school, there was little control over the direction your courses went, and there was a checklist of mundane classes which were merely a means to an end. In college, that all changes. Gone are the pressures and influences from teachers and parents. The students of Baker University state that they believe, “…not relying on parents as much gives students the chance to make their own decisions, take responsibility for their actions, and gain independence. Student’s don’t have to be entirely independent, but doing so progressively will allow them to be responsible contributing members of society” (8). Pearlstein’s main argument in his article is the alleged over-involvement of parents in their children’s lives. While Pearlstein may be partially correct, he falls victim to dealing with the exception rather than the rule. Pearlstein gives the parents too much credit, and the students not nearly enough, because ultimately the experience in college is the students. The students are the ones registering for classes, not the parents. There is a reason young adults turn to advisors, professors, and parents when in need of counsel. Tthey have more experience with dealing with life in the work force. Asking for advice on an important decision does not make the decision any less yours.
The objective of higher education is to take a passion and turn it into a career. College students are afforded this luxury due to the immense academic freedom given to them, as well as the opportunities college affords them as they journey to become well-rounded individuals. Passion is one of the core backbones of society. Without passion there would be no progress of growth in any aspect of life. Passion is crucial to living a fruitful life, for without passion, life becomes an endless cycle of simply going through the motions. However, we are a people of many passions, one of the beauties of human nature, but that doesn’t mean we should follow every passion we have. This is where my opinions differ with that of Steven Pearlstein. Pearlstein encourages the readers to follow their passions, but he seemingly assumes that it is only possible to have a singular passion. He writes of assigning a book in class, and being shocked that none of the students who expressed interest in the book were liberal arts majors (1). This was off-putting to me, as it felt as though Pearlstein was allowing his bias as a professor in the liberal arts to prevent him from acknowledging the other passions of the students he writes about. Maybe they did love the 800-page book on the life of Andrew Carnegie, but it could be that they both passionate about the arts and accounting and chose the most practical option. It would be an injustice to fault a student for being practical, as it shows an adult way of thinking, which is one of the main teaching points of college. Mike Rowe states, “when it comes to making a living it’s easy to forget the truth, just because you are passionate about it won’t mean you won’t suck at it” (1). Rowe makes the point that having passion about something doesn’t mean you have to devote your life to it, it is important to be practical. In an ideal world, everyone would have their dream job and look forward to going to work, but this is the real world and not an ideal world. The life we live must be one of both passion and practicality. Rowe sums it up with the sentiment, “Never follow your passion, but always bring it with you” (2). I believe this ideal is one we all need to adopt, because if we have passion for our lives and careers, then we have a purpose.
As a science major writing an English paper, I believe that is a testimony to my belief on the purpose of college. Will my future endeavors consist of mainly writing articles? Most likely no, but I see the purpose of this English class reflects my views on college. In this class I will grow in both my academic skillset and my perspective. This class is a way for me to expose myself to new thought processes and that’s one of the main takeaways from college. College and English 1304 at Baylor University have a bigger purpose than what meets the eye, and both will help to produce well rounded, independent thinkers who are passionate about the work they pursue. Applying this philosophy to my research paper would be the only way to do the assignment justice, with this in mind I hope I can select a topic that both incites a passion in my intellectual mind, as well as one that challenges my way of thinking.