People go to college to get a good paying job, have job security, and get a degree. Well at least that’s what it should be about. That’s what Charles Murray believes in his essay “Are Too Many People Going to College.” Murray counters the argument of Sanford Ungar who believes colleges should have a more liberal approach towards its classes and have students actually learn a broad range of real life skills instead of just going into a career just because it pays well. In Ungar’s essay he explains the misperception that Americans have on obtaining a liberal-arts degree and how they believe it doesn’t translate well to the real world.
In “Is College Worth It? Clearly, New Data Says,” David Leonhardt claims that because a four year degree benefits individuals both professionally and economically it is more than worth the investment. Throughout the entirety of Leonhardt’s article, he claims that education is the answer to all financial problems because it provides many financial benefits. He emphasizes that going to college is the path to living a bourgeois life because students will earn more money in the long run.
In his article, “Are Too Many People Going to College?” Charles Murray argues that too many people are going to college universities when they should be focusing on other lifestyle options. In his opinion, whether or not to attend college is a personal decision that should be thoroughly thought through. When weighed with the unrealistic prerequisites, the financial expenses, and the time needed to obtain a degree, many people will find that attending college will not be beneficial to them. Speaking of this Murray attests, “The question here is not whether the traditional four-year residential college is fun or valuable as a place to grow up, but when it makes sense as a place to learn how to make a living.
In his essay, "College isn't for Everyone. Let's Stop Pretending It Is," Michael Petrilli uses the title of his article to clearly state the opinion that college is simply not for everyone. He supports this opinion on the statistically low college graduation rate of lower income students. He links this low rate of graduation to poor performance in high school, which leaves students unready for college upon completion of twelfth grade. On the job technical training is presented as a viable alternative to college, where a skill can be obtained to provide a career.
“College in America” Caroline Bird thinks that a college education may not be the best choice for all high school students because college education does not bring about social equality, it does not benefit them financially, and it is not guaranteed that college will lead them to an elite profession. First of all, high school students are expected to bring about social equality through four rigorous years in college. However, college is an expensive way to categorize the highs and lows in society. It is pressuring to younger students to pursue a higher education that only a few could achieve, and is also difficult for them to established an identity in society. Second, a college education does not benefit the youth financially because it is
I recently read an essay called “Should Everyone Go to College?” by Stephanie Owen and Isabel Sawhill who write a great argument stating that going to college should depend on the situation instead of stating that everyone should go to college. Stephanie and Isabel go over the rate of return on education through graphs and statistics that show that those that go to college are often time more successful than those that go straight into a career. However, going to college should be dependent on the chosen career path more than anything else because some career paths do not require a college education. Also, the rate of return is a big thing to think about before committing to going to college because paying for college to go into a career that
The Greek Philosopher Aristotle identified “The years between puberty and age twenty-one as the formative time for mind and character.” It was customary for young Greek men to attend a series of lectures that resembled our notion of a college “course”(Delbanco 36). Aristotle is a believer of education and the power it has on the development of the young mind. Likewise, he believes college is a place to establish one’s character. Caroline Bird’s essay, “Where College Fails Us,” definitely does not correlate with the opinion of Aristotle.
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 my opinion, I agree with Murray’s claim that four year college is not worth, job satisfaction for intrinsic reward, and the dark side of the Bachelor's degree. In my view, Murray’s is right, because college requires student to take 32 courses in four years or longer and not all courses are relate to the field they study with. More specifically, I believe that four years college will take more time to achieve our goal and knowledges doesn’t teach us how to make a living in our society. Murray described in his article, “More people should be getting the basic of a liberal education. But for most students, the places to provide those basics are elementary and middle school” (235).
In “Are Too Many People Going to College?” Charles Murray offers his opinion on the number of students that pursue a B.A. He believes that two year or four year colleges are not needed for a majority of students who could instead pursue other life paths. He discusses the ability for the general knowledge needed to be learned in primary and secondary school, and for a lessened need for a “brick-and-mortar” institution the problems with the current secondary and higher educational issues including the lessened need to acquire a B.A. All members of society need certain skills in order to be productive members of society. They need to know general facts about the country they live in, general history, and general geography.
If a person’s parent or guardian drilled the idea of college into your head, or if they told you ‘do what you want’ or ‘I don 't care’, or ‘You’re not going’. While college is great, there are other means of education. The value of college is a low because there are people who do not qualify for a college education, and also because there are other ways of post-secondary education other than college. College is not valuable because many people will not make it into a 2 or 4-year college, much less graduate from one. To support this, in the article Why College Isn 't For Everyone, it says, “As a general rule, I would use graduates in the top quarter of their class at a high-quality high school should go on to a four-year degree program, while those in the bottom quarter of their classes at a high school with a mediocre educational reputation should not.”
There is an ample amount of information that leads people to believe that college is a great choice. In Source F, it is shown that, “Adults who graduated from a four-year college believe that, on average, they are earning $20,000 more a year as a result of having gotten that degree. Adults who did not attend college believe that, on average they are earning $20,000 a year less as a result.” Also, provided in Source F, “...55% say it [college] was very useful in helping them prepare for a job or career.” While these statistics are true, the negatives still outweigh the positives.
Is College the Best Option College is a place that people go to study in and get their degrees. College helps students get educational and be more knowledgeable. Also, it teaches them who to take responsibilities and do their works. College helps students and gives them a degree which will help them get a better job. In my perspective college is the best place for people to go and get their degrees.
The essay “Three reasons college still matters” by]Andrew Delbanco brings up a controversial topic. . Delbalco proclaims three major arguments in favor of a college degree, which include economic, political, and self-development factors. The newer generation may not be getting higher education compared to the former. Delanco expresses his personal concern about the fact that American High Education is suffering from a calamity. He says “college doors” remain closed for numerous students.
Authors should also include more about that college degree do not give job. It only helps you find a job that person would not do and it is not sure that when a person has a college degree then the person will have the job. In the article, authors should include that when a person to get the job he needs a college degree to make his profile better. Authors should more include about financial aid information and describe to the students and parents. In the article authors include everything why should students invest in college but authors did not present any data or description on how much college cost to finish in four years or in six years.
