We were all somehow exposed to different backgrounds, as well as lifestyles. Therefore, it’s safe to say that the statement “Is College for Everyone” doesn’t imply to certain people who were raised to think otherwise. However, Pharinet seems to think that most kids should consider not going to college at all. Pharinet went on to explain how most students will find themselves working full-time jobs to help pay the expenses of college, in result their grades begins to drop. Then the student decides to drop to a part-time worker, register for less class hours to find more time to work on improving their grades.
There are many colleges and universities that have tried to improve their graduation rates and have succeeded in doing so (Davis, 2010). Graduation rate of any country is a reflection of far more than what may seem. The number of college students graduating from a college shows an insight to its accountability and transparency. The graduation rates show a great deal about the college itself and a low number of graduating students may indicate an unsatisfactory performance by the college or it may point towards something faulty within the organization (Sealey-Morris, 2015). The constant increment in the wage given to the students in order to increase the college graduation rate has been unsuccessful in tackling the situation and the increased amount of students enrolled in college courses are not directly proportional to the amount of students graduating from these colleges.
He goes on to say in the second misperception, “college graduates are finding it harder to get good jobs with liberal arts degrees”, but “the recession has no differentiated among major fields of study in its impact” (192). Ungar believes students who focus on one particular field of study do not learn necessities such as writing and literary texts, and this puts them at a disadvantage when compared to a liberal arts graduate. While long-standing jobs, such as doctors and lawyers, will not become extinct soon, liberal arts graduates have a better chance of employment in most areas. 95% of employers surveyed would give hiring preference to graduates with skills to contribute in the workplace. 74% would recommend a liberal arts education to a young person they know today, so they will be prepared for success in today’s global economy.
What good does Jill’s degree do then? The cartoon points out that sometimes degrees don’t even matter. If you attend college and pursue a major not currently in demand, then what good does the degree you earn do? Today, picking and choosing majors wisely is important. With the expense of college continuing to rise, most people cannot afford to pursue something they will not make money and benefit from later on.
Outside of the U.S., a much smaller percentage of students attend college. Half of the students who enroll in college do not complete their degree. Secondary schools are primarily designed to prepare students who are planning to attend college, and are not nearly as good at preparing students for a career that does not include college. Having degree is a screening device for future employers. The college you got into says a lot about your ability and how a student stuck it out for four years, but the degree itself doesn’t qualify the graduate for anything.
I do support Caroline Bird’s position that not all people should continue their education to college. College may not be for everyone. On the other hand, I’m not sure if Caroline Bird establishes the actual need for a college education in order to make any significant amount of money in the future. Although studies are done on the amount of money that people earn with a college degree, there are some cases where people who do a certain trade make the same amount of money as those with a degree. They have to work harder, but it can be done.
Murray and Ungar Synthesis In the many recent debates about how to approach higher education, one issue that has constantly appears is the question of students benefiting from a liberal arts based education. Some argue that a liberal arts education is helpful in teaching students the basic life skills, others claim that a more specific field of study is necessary in order to b successful in life. In Ungar’s essay “the New Liberal Arts”, he claims that with a liberal arts education, students can benefit tremendously when they receive their jobs. In Murray’s essay “Are Too Many People Going to College”, he proclaims that a liberal arts degree is not highly recommended because the more difficult careers want students to take classes that are more specific to a job. Sanford J. Ungar and Charles Murray both conduct and display their own opinion towards the facts they learned through their own strenuous research.
Of course, it was always also very expensive, so very few could afford to go. Times has changed. The prices of colleges remained high, but the importance of college education is different. Nowadays it is almost a requirement. There are still companies that promote only within, but even those positions usually require if not at least a two year degree, then proof of college enrollment.
Rodrigo Cubedo WRT 101 December 4th, 2012 College: Is It Really Necessary? Go to college, get a degree, and find a well paying job. Everybody should be doing this, right? According to Charles Murray apparently not. Murray presented his book “Real Education: Four Simple Truths for Bringing America’s Schools Back to Reality.” (2008) Where he talks about his point of view on higher education; he doesn’t believe it is something everybody should be doing, since not everybody is prepared to attend college and struggle with all that is involved in the process of getting a B.A.
Academics in the last year of high school are pushed to the end of the list of importance; therefore, it makes academics unimportant. Senior year is a waste because by the time students are seniors they have already been accepted to the colleges and universities they want to go to or decided college is not for them at all. Senior year is a waste of time because most seniors focus on extra curricular activates instead of the new endeavor of going to college. Seniors are so focused on senior pranks than the thought that after senior year they will no longer be a child, and will have major responsibilities. Most seniors do not think about careers the last year of school, and definitely do not think of the next four to seven years they will spend preparing for one.