..Armanjot Lakhen
Cedeno
AP Language and Composition E319
30 April, 2018
The True Usefulness of College
Figure 1. Starting Life With Student Loan Debt, from Jeff Parker, Student Loan Crisis; 6 October, 2010; Web; 29 April, 2018.
College has become an issue for debate amongst many parents and teens. As displayed in the satirical cartoon above, it is clear to see the stereotype that many families are concerned about the high costs of college and whether pursuing college is worth the cost (figure 1). The idea of pursuing college has always seemed like the standard for the modern day family raising a child; but, is the idea of going through a college education the right path for every student? Due to the multitude of factors present in deciding if attending higher education is worth the personal and financial cost, students must look at the positives and negatives when deciding. Through consideration of the costs and benefits, along with the transcendentalist views of higher education, it can be concluded that higher education is a smart investment for those who wish to pursue careers that they believe are suited for them and require the education that college provides; however, there are options for all individuals to better themselves and prepare them for the future.
Although it may seem like the debate over the true purpose of college is a recent topic, it had been discussed by transcendentalists long before the modern-day debates arose. In some of author Ralph Waldo Emerson’s works, it is clear to see the transcendentalist view on education and how it shows that college seems to appeal more to the idea of career training rather than the individual growth of the student. In an essay put together after Emerson’s death, a compilation of addresses and speeches, show Emerson’s views on education. Emerson states:
“The animals that accompany and serve man make no progress as races. Those called domestic are capable of learning of man a few tricks of utility or amusement, but they cannot communicate the skill to their race. Each individual must be taught anew. The trained dog cannot train another dog. And Man himself in many faces retains almost the unteachableness of the beast.” (“Emerson on Education”).
Emerson’s analogy of dogs in captivity to humans trying to learn true lessons based off of college, indicates that Emerson believed that the true growth of an individual stems from their individual teachings and self-reflection, rather than that of another man trying to teach them. In another of Emerson’s works, Self Reliance, Emerson discusses the same freedom of man, by stating, “There is a time in every man's education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance…no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him but through his toil bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to till”. Emerson shows that it is truly up to the individual to decide what they wish to do. The extended metaphor on humans being corn, only being able to grow by using the land we are given, only further proves Emerson’s idea that humans can only grow through themselves, not through college. Emerson’s views show how college may be career training, but is this necessarily a bad idea?
In the modern day, it seems as though college is still career-oriented rather than a center for creativity and individual thought. Looking at a study conducted by The Pew Research Center, Michelle Adam summarizes the survey and conveys her thoughts as to how the American public views the modern day college education system. When looking at the survey and what people thought the purpose of college was, Adam summarizes this portion of the study by writing, “Looking at the public opinion, a large percentage said the main purpose of a college education should be to teach work-related skills and knowledge (47%) rather than foster personal and intellectual growth (39%)”. The idea that nearly half of all respondents felt that college should be career-oriented only goes to show that many people feel as though that the function of college is to attain higher skills in careers. A career-oriented education is not a bad thing, but it should be made clear that this should be the goal for individuals going to college. For example, if an individual was only going to college to get a better paying job than they would get now, then the idea of going to college would be fruitful due to the alternatives that allow for high pay (discussed in paragraph 6). Individuals who have a clear goal in terms of what they want to pursue should consider college due to its sheer benefits to their journey in working in that career. To say that a college education should only be career-oriented, however is not a realistic idea. In the same article by Adam, it is shown that college graduates believe that college should place more emphasized personal growth (52%) rather than career preparation (35%); this was the opposite of people who were not college graduates (51% for career, 34% for personal growth). Through the data, it can be shown that college graduates, having gone through the experience, needed the development of character with the career training. To say that education institutes can and only should focus on one thing takes away from the beauty of education, the heart of what makes individuals prosper and grow. Many individuals today believe that this has actually been the case, and that college has turned into a negative putting people in holes that they should not be in.
College, although beneficial for many people, does have its negatives that make people look to alternatives. Some of the negatives include the high cost, the perceived low value of a degree, and the impact the debt has had on student’s lives post-graduation. When looking at the public opinion, it is clear to see that Americans do not see a high value in a college education. Going back to the same article by Michelle Adam, Americans do not feel that colleges are giving good values for the money that students have to pay. Adam writes, “For example, 57% of those surveyed said they did not get good value for their money with higher education, and 75% said that college is too expensive” (“Is College Worth It?”). It is clear to see that a majority of Americans, nearly sixty percent, believe that college itself is not worth it. This, along with the seventy-five percent who said that college is not worth it, suggests that college is not actually worth the sacrifice, despite it being a goal of Americans for a countless period of time. In the same study summarized by Adam, it was found that the college debt had impacted individuals after college severely. Adam states, “Many of those with degrees are paying back loans that impact their quality of life. According to the report, ‘Among all survey respondents who took out college loans and are no longer in school, about half say that paying back the loan has made it harder to make ends meet; 25% say it has made it harder to buy a home’” (qtd. from The Pew Research Center). Having half of all college students be impacted negatively from a college education only shows that there is a clear issue within the tuition rates and the actual expenses that students must cover.
Not only are there high costs currently, but it seems as though college is going to continue to get more and more expensive as time goes on. In an infographic poster by The Institute for College Access and Success, public college tuition in 2012 was $25,550, 25% higher than the cost in 2008; at private non-profit colleges, the 2012 tuition was $32,330, about 15% higher than that in 2008. The rising tuition only adds to the concern of many individuals that college is becoming more and more expensive for many individuals. This, along with the American public opinion that college is not worth it, demonstrates that there are many issues with the cost of tuition that cause an opinion that college has many detractors. These negatives may draw people off, but there are also many benefits that college can provide for those willing to go through college.
Attaining a college education allows for individuals to experience greater job security, higher pay, and personal satisfaction. It is well known that a college degree will allow for people to earn higher wages, which is why is has become an expectation for many young students; but how large is the actual wage gap? In a New York Times article by writer David Leonhardt, Leonhardt argues that college should become a standard due to its many tremendous benefits. Leonhardt discusses a statistic that only goes to show that college graduation almost guarantees a stable source of income. Leonhardt states that “the unemployment rate in April for people between 25 and 34 years old with a bachelor’s degree was a mere 3 percent”. It is known that the average unemployment rate in the United States sits at around eight to ten percent. Ensuring graduates that their job will be about three times as secure as a normal individual allows for a greater case to be made about college education and its worth. When detailing the rising wages for both college students and high school graduates, Leonhardt writes, “The average hourly wage for college students has risen only 1 percent over the last decade, to about $32.60. The pay gap [between college graduates and those with lower educations] has grown mostly because the average wage for everyone else has fallen-5 percent, to about $16.50”. This high wage gap illustrates that college graduates earn almost twice as much as those without degrees, with the gap only widening as the wages for non-college graduates continues to fall. The widening wage gap only further helps the case for becoming a college graduate.
While job security and high pay may be the most pronounced benefits, many people look for satisfaction and happiness in their careers rather than a high pay. However, it has been statistically shown that college graduates are more satisfied with their jobs. In a survey conducted by The College Board, it was shown that on average, there are about 18% more college graduates that are satisfied with their jobs than are those with only a high school diploma (figure 2).
Figure 2. Job Satisfaction by Education Level, 2008. College Board. Web; 30 April, 2018.
The difference only goes to show that a college degree offers emotional and financial stability down the road, making it seem as though a college degree is worth the sacrifice to pursue. For those who want to be happy, for those who want higher pay, or for those who want to be secure, studies have shown that college will almost guarantee all three. However, college is not the only way individuals can pursue the three main components of happiness around a job, there are many alternatives.
There are many alternatives to a bachelor's degree, such as an associates degree through community college or trade school, that offer nearly as much, if not, the same amount of benefits as attaining the full bachelor's degree. In an article by Gail Marksjarvis of The Chicago Tribune, titled “Why a four-year college degree isn’t the only path to a secure lifestyle”, Marksjarvis discusses why the standard of getting a four-year degree should not be the only way to think of guaranteed success. Marksjarvis, when discussing the job opportunities for those not having a college degree, writes “There are still 30 million good jobs that don’t require a college bachelor’s degree, and people in them earn an average of $55,000 a year” (qtd. by Markjarvis). The sheer amount of jobs that can be found without a bachelor’s, and their pay, shows that just because an individual does not have a college education, does not necessarily mean that the will not be able to find work, but that through searching, can find an amazing job that offers many benefits for them. For those who do not wish to attend school for four more years, and would rather complete schooling within two years, community college and the attainment of an associate's degree allows for high pay and the benefits of a normal four-year degree. It is well known that there is a correlation between school time and pay, but this does not necessarily always hold true. Marksjarvis discusses wages between associate's and bachelor’s, writing “the four year degree doesn’t guarantee top pay. Anthony Carnevale, director of the Georgetown center, has found that 28 percent of people who get associate degrees from community colleges end up with better jobs than those with bachelor’s degrees” (qtd. by Marksjarvis). Nearly one-third of associate degree graduates earn more than those with bachelor’s degree, an absurd number that only shows that the only path to a well-paying jobs. The pay only goes to show that it is not necessarily about meeting the modern day standards, but rather committing oneself to their preferred career path, sticking with it, and reaping the benefits of it. The standard that four years of college is the ONLY way to succeed has been time and time again proven wrong by statistical data, meaning that the traditional standard should be challenged to allow individuals to pursue what they wish.
Trade school allows for individuals to specialize in their chosen career with only a short timespan of education, lower cost, and hands-on training. According to Trent Hamm, author of “Why You Should Consider Trade School Instead of College”, trade school totals around a cost of $33,000, which is about $94,000 less than the average college degree (around $127,000). This allows for individual freedom in choosing education and attaining it without regrets. Many individuals may think that the low cost comes with a trade off in terms of wages, but this is simply not true. According to “The High Value of Trade School: 5 Proven Advantages”, individuals who graduate trade school earn abou 30% more than those who have just graduated high school, meaning that trade school offers a moderately well pay, while allowing individuals to have more freedom, along with less debt while pursuing their career of choice.
Though there may be many disagreements as to whether the pursuit of a four-year college degree is worth it or not, it can be fully shown that college, although dependent upon the individual, is worth the sacrifice. Although college may not be the best option for everyone, there is an option for everyone to pursue what they truly love to do, allowing people to then pursue happiness and contempt with their careers. There is an option for everyone, despite what societal beliefs hold, and individuals should feel free to pursue what they ultimately want to.