After four years of high school you have to make one of the most significant decisions in your life, “Should I or should I not go to college”? For a very long time; college has seemed a requirement for most, something you cannot pass up on because if you do you will end up living in a cardboard box, however, with the rise of new ways to get rich some are choosing to drop college and pursue something outside of schooling. College debt is a massive factor in why some refuse college. College tuition has been increasing every year. The average cost of tuition and fees for the 2018-2019 school year was $35,676. These massive numbers scare away some, but the opportunity to pay that debt back and continue to make money is what drives students to pursue college.
“As of May. 2018, about 44 million Americans owed over $1.5 trillion in student debt. “ (ProCon.org). College education has been seen as the final goal for most kids, because of this a lot of kids are going into debt from college. As the graph shows, however, having at least a degree does mean you are likely to be employed than someone without a degree. Even with the higher chance of getting a job is it really worth the price you have to pay? While some people choose to not go to college the general consensus is still that college is a must, because of this there's been a growing number of college degrees causing inflation in college degrees. Because of all the degrees people now have and are getting it's getting harder to get the job you wanted, in order to stand out you will have to go even further into college getting more degrees or you will have to risk not getting your dream job and be stuck with crippling debt. As you can see on a chart the percentage of degrees being handed out has been increasing. This rise in degrees is to keep getting worse making people have to now pay more if they want to succeed
“Is college worth it”? In the end, that's for you to decide, competition for jobs will keep rising but if you want to be a doctor or nurse you will have to go through college and just hope you can get the job you want. College can be really good or really bad depending on the profession you chose. The cost of college will continue to rise, some people are finding success without a degree while others are finding success with a degree. It's up to you to decide if college is worth it.
“College Education - ProCon.org.” ProConorg Headlines, college-education.procon.org/.
“College Is Worth the Cost. Here's How Schools Can Prove It.” RealClearEducation, www.realcleareducation.com/articles/2018/01/05/college_is_worth_the_cost__heres_how_schools_can_prove_it_110245.html.
I think that the idea of deciding whether or not you should go to college or not is a really good debate. It is a decision that will truly impact the course of your life and can be really hard to make. However, I really think that the answer to if you should go to college or not is something that everyone has to make on their own depending on what they would like to be in life and be smart with their decision. I believe that people shouldn’t just go with the flow of others and go to college, but they should sit down and really look at where they want to be in life in the future in order to make their decision. That way a lot of possible problems will be eliminated, such as realizing a couple years into college that it isn’t right for you or even going to a college that is super pricey when you know that you won’t need an incredible degree to go into a profession that interests you. #GiannisforMVP
ReplyDeleteYou definitely bring up some good points regarding pursuing a college education. It has a significant price tag--but can be seen as more manageable if it is looked at as an investment. Ultimately, with many people spending around a hundred thousand dollars to obtain their undergraduate degrees (with the yearly cost to attend UW Madison around $25,000), it is only wise to invest this money if you believe that there will be significant return on said investment in the form of your salary in the upcoming years. For examples, most premed students are okay with the debt they place themselves into knowing that they are basically guaranteed the salary to repay their student loans. On the other hand, paying $100,000 to learn how to pursue a career that is easily (and more cheaply) learned by an apprenticeship, trade school or a technical college, the salary of the trade job may not lead to as quick of a return on your student loan investment. Ultimately, it is up to the student--and is also very important to factor in your predicted collegiate success in your academics.
ReplyDeleteBy the end of your article, I found you concluding that college may be good or bad on a financial standpoint depending on the career you want to pursue. Yet I believe that there are more factors that are involved. For example, colleges across the nation range in costs. Some people decide to go to public vs private schools or big 10 colleges vs community college. These have varying factors to cost and in turn, different student loan debts. While some careers do not have a very high starting salary, it would be negative to our economy to simply tell students to not go to college if they are planning to pursue a low paying career. In this economy, we need students to take on careers of both high paying jobs and low paying jobs. People who stop going to college for lower salary jobs will end up with a lack of education and an even lower paying job. Therefore, there are multiple factors to consider in choosing if college is right for you in addition to the argumentative points you’ve made.
ReplyDeleteAs seen in this blog post college students leave college with a very large sum of debt from the loans that had to be taken out in their name. Wouldn’t a student that graduated from a four-year college make more money to pay off these loans? In the long run would the lack of income earned from not having a degree even out to the loans having to be paid off, but earning more because of their degree they have earned. Like the blog says people with a degree are more likely to get a job right away, so if you get a job right away and can start paying off loans right away what choice is better, college with loans but a job right away or no college with no loans but not a guaranteed stable job.
ReplyDeleteI think that this is a great article because it is talking about a topic that has to do with all of us at this point in our lives. Although college is a huge price to pay, you can see from the graphs that the amount of people going to college is still rising. This shows how getting a degree is even more important now because most people have them. Without college experience it would be very hard to get a job over someone who has the experience. At this point in time if you decide to skip college and go straight to work your choices are limited to being an entrepreneur or getting a job that may not be beneficial to you. Overall I believe college is a great way to get a better job and learn more about a career you are interested in even if your bank account may take a hit.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you are trying to argue here. A lot of people and statistics report what we would make with a degree and without a degree; however, with the advance in society, there has been an increase in jobs that are more accessible that can make us enough money to be able to live. There are some jobs where a degree isn’t really needed and you won’t be cast down or not hired for not having a degree. An influencer for example. When YouTube first started, it was extremely difficult to build up a following enough where you started getting paid for your videos. Now, all you have to do is post a viral video and you’re set. Now it is so much easier to “go viral”. Anything and anyone can become a viral video. Wouldn’t people much rather have a job where they basically work for themselves, get lots of money, and have no student debt? With that and to answer your question, a lot of people would think that college is not worth it. Depending on your dream job, you don’t need a college degree or background education to get the job that you would like.
ReplyDeleteI agree, college does come with a heft cost. Now obviously, the cost includes the cost of room and board, books, tuition, and all other expenses that come with living on campus. However, the fact that college tuition alone is on average $35,676, this is a quite hefty cost and it seems to be way overpriced. Yet, most students feel it is necessary to fall into this economic money-pit of college in order to have the chance to secure a successful future. I am included, it is basic that generally speaking, more schooling equates to more pay for the future. However, even though colleges can charge a lot due to the high demand and willingness of the "consumer" or student to pay, this doesn't mean it should be like this. There are scholarships and financial aid, but education is a privilege and even with those subsidies it is still expensive. People shouldn't not go to college because of the economic factor and that seems to be a strong factor, just because someone didn't grow up in wealth. For someone to be successful in making money, they must get an education to escape the poverty cycle because competition for jobs keeps increasing. In result, for future success a college education is necessary, however I think that it should be more strongly subsidized.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth Laning
College is one of the most overpriced institutions in America. However, in my opinion, the price one must pay for college is more than worth the money one must spend. There may be some exceptions of people who are very rich and did not go to college, like Steve Jobs or other business leaders, but these stories are few and far between. I would be interested to look at the wage gaps in jobs that are had by those who have college degrees and those who do not. In truth, the gap is wide, as most jobs that one can get directly out of high school are entry level jobs with little room to move up in the chain. Those who do not go to college or have a higher education often find themselves in a cycle of poverty, and struggle to find work that has a wage that one can live on, and limits their economic freedom. While I do believe that college should definitely be cheaper, I still firmly think that college is worth the price. As others have stated though, the decision of going to college should be up to one person's decision, and not be pressured by society's expectations or demands.
ReplyDeleteOf course you’re going to come out of college in tons of debt, everyone is floating the same boat. I agree with Matthew, that the decision to go to college is ultimately up to you, not the economy or the government. However, as much as being in debt sounds terrible, I think it’s a necessity for an economy like the United States. If all universities in the US (private and public) set a flat tuition price, or maybe even made college free, I think that doesn’t demonstrate a “free market,” because the businesses, or schools in this case, can’t set their own prices. The student is the consumer, and in the end chooses where he goes to school; the school chosen would essentially be the best school for a couple reasons. One reason would include the pricing. In conclusion, going into debt after college is hard to overcome unless you don’t go to school at all, but in my perspective, tuition pricing demonstrates a free market economy.
ReplyDeleteAs the need for getting a higher degree increases, is it really worth the marginal cost of pursuing a masters or a doctorate? From the information presented above, it seems as though a higher degree is needed to get a job that once would've required a lower level of mastery. With that in mind, do you believe that college should have lowered prices to adapt to the amount of want or is this more incentive for colleges to raise prices given the student debt now? Because of this should jobs have to raise their wage rates?
ReplyDeleteI agree that while college can be seen as an extremely valuable opportunity, the experience is not for everyone. Although, I believe one of the biggest issues arising with this is that since college has always been seen as the mandatory next step after high school, most kids will go for their freshman, sophomore year without knowing what they want, and proceeding to drop out. This is what I believe is the cause for most of economic downfall. Dropping out after spending nearly $80,000 after two years and getting no real benefit causes increasing debt. With loans and interest pilling up, they are swimming deeper and deeper in their debt that piles up the numbers creating $1.5 trillion in debt. By helping students understand what they are getting themselves into will help them for their future debt.
ReplyDeleteThe topic of college is one that is touched on heavily throughout our lives. Ever since we were born, our parents have started assembling a “college fund” to ensure we will have money to go to a desired school by the time we turn 18. I will definitely agree with the fact that student debt is a large deciding factor for high school students. Some do not want to have to deal with all of the problems once they graduate from college, and would rather try to jump-start their career right out of high school. Everyone worries about the money; it truly is a big problem for many families. The chart showing unemployment is also any eye-opener to high school students and their families as well; if one does chose to start working after high school, there could always be the risk of not acquiring a suitable job for the future. People must think ahead to the future before making a large decision such as this one; if one does not think about the consequences, it could result in regret and more money loss than actually going to school (no jobs).
ReplyDeleteI liked your whole idea on how college affects some people, I agree that every highschooler don't know if they want to go to college or not. Most people decide not to go to college because of their financial situation. Most of us cannot afford college because we don't have enough money to pay for college.Whereas to help people with their financial situation government is providing FAFSA scholarship, to help everyone attend college. Because most people want to attend college but they can't, so for those kind of people government is providing scholarships which they have stored or collected from your taxes. Now a days, normal association degree does not provide you a lot money than the masters degree. People who have master's degree tend to earn more than people who have association degree. So the higher you degree, the chances the more money you'll make.
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ReplyDeleteThis is a good debate and one that everyone has to consider in their lifetime. While I agree that college is beginning to be looked at as not a necessary path for a lot of careers, I believe what it comes down to is what you want to do with your life. What career do you want to pursue? Your future career is really what will decide if you should go to college or not; not the cost of college or the time. For example if you want to go into the medical field or business, college is going to be necessary but if you want to go into the trades, for example carpentry, you might not need to go to college. #BucksIn6
ReplyDeleteI do agree that college can be worth it based on the profession you plan to pursue. I think it is very interesting that today so many jobs require you to have a higher level of education. However some individuals get a higher degree and do not get the job they panned to pursue, then maybe college was not really worth their time and money. In some cases you do not need a full four year college degree to be successful, that's why college can be a good and a bad thing.
ReplyDeleteCollege is worth it because with a college degree you are more likely to get a job then someone without a college degree. You made the point that people that get a college degree may not get the job of their dream job or there are to many people wanting the same job has you. There are so many different forms of the same job and going through college will still help you become whatever you want to become. You aren’t just going to college for no reason. Going to college can benefit you.
ReplyDeleteI agree that college seems like a requirement after high school completion. College prices are continuing to increase as it is becoming more popular for students to attend college to become the career that they desire. School is getting harder and students are becoming more intelligent so it is becoming harder to get into college. In the end I believe that college is a smart choice as you can get degrees and it is easier to get the higher end jobs that you may desire. But I also believe that not everyone needs to go to college. We are going to need people to fill the construction jobs, or restaurants that you can attend right after the completion of high school. If so many students are going to college to do the higher end careers like doctors or nurses we will need more students to not go to college so the jobs that don’t require a college degree can be filled.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Matthew that college is a large, expensive decision that is needed to be made in a difficult time in students’ lives. During junior and senior year, young adults are just now starting to understand themselves and determine what their strengths and weaknesses are when looking at a potential career. As a result, many students, specifically 20-30%, go into college undecided in what degree they want to obtain (https://studybreaks.com/college/undecided-how-to-pick-college-major/). Thus, with this undetermined choice, many students waste time and money when deliberating their degree choice, resulting in an even larger increase in college debt. In order to possibly aid in this loss of money, students should seriously consider a gap year, in that they can better find themselves, their interests, and possibly even make money to save up for college spendings. Overall, college is meant for some and not meant for others, and is ultimately a personal choice of the student, but does allow new and wider opportunities for those who go.
ReplyDeleteI would agree is college really worth it there are many factors that come into play when you are talking about this things like higher education, Possible better jobs after, but most of all debt, these are important factors when talking about college, but me personally I don’t believe college is worth it. If you are someone that hate going to school and hate being there, then your gonna go to college and not like it and drop out within a year or two, then be deep into debt. So for me college is not worth it.
ReplyDeleteCollege is a fundamental part of life, that greatly determines whether you’re successful or not. Yet one of the biggest reasons that some can’t go to college is just because of the cost, and if you completely rely on your own money, then going to college is a difficult decision. I completely agree there. Obtaining jobs after graduating college is becoming more difficult as more people are graduating, but that also means that less people are taking jobs requiring any kind of manual labor. Think about it, people nowadays want to become programmers, engineers, technicians, doctors, and other similar jobs. Have you ever heard somebody recently say they want to become a plumber, or an electrician, or any of those sorts of jobs? No, but that means those jobs pay more due to the higher demand, and if you can’t afford college, you could do worse than becoming a plumber.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the worth of attending college differs from person to person. There are so many different factors to take into account that it can’t be decided for a society as a whole. You need to take into account not only money and scholarship possibilites, but also if your desired career is worth the expensive schooling. For example, a doctor must certainly go to college. Other careers like those in manufacturing require programs of study, but not necessarily through a 4 year college. Figuring out the cheapest option to your desired career may help you really decide if college is worth it. I find it very interesting that 44 million Americans owed over $1.5 trillion in student debt. This is the effect of numerous factors and this number, as it is, will not be going down anytime soon. This is why I truly believe that you should think about your decision to pursue college, whatever is best for you.
ReplyDeleteI would agree that college is overrated. There are plenty jobs and opportunities available to those who don’t have a desire or need to go to college. One especially successful job is that of an entrepreneur. You don’t need to go to college to start your own business. However, the chances of you striking it rich with your business is slim to none, and other non-degree available jobs are slim. But I would disagree that it is not important. A bachelor's degree can provide a cushion for those who don’t want to go into entrepreneurship or work straight out of high school. In fact, those who get college degrees on average are paid more than those who don’t, therefore, the whole student loans problem eventually evens itself out in the long run.
ReplyDeleteDeciding whether or not to go to college is a hard choice for many students after high school. In fact a lot of students don’t know exactly what they want to do after high school, so going to college could be a waste of money for them. There are also careers out there that just require for you to have a high school diploma, so wasting money on college is to determine if it's really worth it if you don’t know what you want to do. Deciding whether or not to go to college is an example of opportunity cost because you can decide to spend your money on college or spend your money on something else and you have to determine what will benefit you the most. However, if you do go to college there is loans that come with it sometimes, so you also have to decide how you are going to pay for those loans and then you are missing out on using that money for something else, so that’s another example of opportunity cost. Many people will decide to go to college right after high school because they want to get there degree right away, so then they don’t become unemployed and end up living on streets, however it may be more beneficial for some students to work first before they go into college in order to get the money they need to pay for college so they don’t have as many loans in the end. Overall, this all comes down to opportunity cost and what opportunity is better for you and what you are willing to miss out on by deciding when you go to college and what ways you will pay for it.
ReplyDeleteIn a world where a getting a college degree, for the most part, is the norm, the economic factors associated with it are making more and more people ask the question “is college worth it or not?”. You stated that the average tuition for college today is over 35k a year, which to some, may not seem like much but to most, is far more than can be afforded. With the digital age upon us, many people exiting high school see entrepreneurs making a career out of social media (YouTube, Instagram, etc) and see that as an alternate route to success. However, people that actual make a career out of this are few and far between, so this really is not a feasible option for most--nor a secure one. The cards almost seem to be getting stacked higher and higher against people wanting to get a college education these days which makes the option of opting out of college moire appealing. With minimum wage and entry level jobs being taken over by automated processes, the level of education needed to secure a job goes up--but of course, the tuition is increasing every year which makes it even more challenging to obtain the necessary degrees without a massive amount of debt that many people do not want to be saddled with for decades. When it comes down to it, I agree with you in saying the decision a person makes should be based on how they see their future economically and what they see as a sustainable path for them.
ReplyDeleteCollege can be an interesting debate. Very few jobs out of college are not high paying jobs, in fact, most are on the low side. The problem is college tuition is increasing at an exponential rate while the salary for jobs is staying rather consistent. The issue with that is college graduates have more debt and a median income job. An excess amount of degrees only hurts the students. Now, there are more graduates with the same degree as you and you need to compete in the same field as them. Not only do they now have to compete in the same field, but if they get the job and you don’t that debt is still following you around.
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ReplyDeleteToday many people are stuck with the decision if you should go to college or not. Within the past 40 the price of college has skyrocketed. Tuition has tripled since 1980. Although college is expensive people should still attend college. Jobs today require more advanced education. When having a 4 year degree you can have more benefits and salary increase compared to someone with no degree. Going to college will help you out in the long run because you will most likely have a higher salary because of your background. Overall, people shouldn't be afraid of the price of college because there is always ways to earn money; scholarships, having a job, etc. Attending college will help you out in the long run.
I agree that for certain jobs, like being a nurse or doctor, you need to go to college. But in current times, many employers are looking for applicants that have pursued their education farther than high school. In past years, a bachelors degree was enough to get a job, but now people look for education even farther than just a bachelors degree. For many, they can pay off a college degree quickly, depending on the degree they get. I believe the degree is the best option, as no matter job you are looking for, seeing you have pursued further education is something many employers like.
ReplyDeleteAs the need for getting a higher degree increases, is it really worth the marginal cost of pursuing a masters or a doctorate? From the information presented above, it seems as though a higher degree is needed to get a job that once would've required a lower level of mastery. With that in mind, do you believe that college should have lowered prices to adapt to the amount of want or is this more incentive for colleges to raise prices given the student debt now? Because of this should jobs have to raise their wage rates?
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ReplyDeleteYes college is important and college is now the main hiring determinant most careers want to see 2-4 years of schooling. College is one of the most overpriced institutions in America. However, in my opinion, the price one must pay for college is more than worth the money one must spend. There may be some exceptions of people who are very rich and did not go to college, like Steve Jobs or other business leaders, but these stories are few and far between. I would be interested to look at the wage gaps in jobs that are had by those who have college degrees and those who do not. In truth, the gap is wide, as most jobs that one can get directly out of high school are entry level jobs with little room to move up in the chain. Those who do not go to college or have a higher education often find themselves in a cycle of poverty, and struggle to find work that has a wage that one can live on, and limits their economic freedom.
I believe that college is an important step in finding a good source of income in this country. However, I believe that the idea of pursuing a master's or doctoral degree seems besides the point, as many jobs require only a bachelor's degree, and that continuing education for another 2-4 years is unnecessary and only creates more student debt. If anything, the amount of income earned after education should be worth it, as college students need to pay of their debts. The irony of taking higher education for better jobs is that you get more student debt, usually for the same job as a bachelor's degree.
ReplyDeleteI think it is important for people to look into how going to college will benefit them. There are a very high amount of people who cannot afford to go to college. For those people it might not benefit them to go into large amounts of debt for a college degree for a job that might not pay very well. For these people their only choice is to enter the labor force right away. Although I believe, if the government helps people pay for college then there would be a large amount of people getting educated in college. It would increase gdp by increasing government spending. Then the large amount of educated people would help increase the quality of life in the US and then there is a chance that unemployment would largely decrease too because there would be many qualified workers
ReplyDelete-Kaustav saha
I think that there is definitely a major issue of college students going through the motions of pursuing a degree, but afterwards failing to make good use of it. It seems that there is a widespread assumption that a degree will automatically grant one access to a job of their choice. However, it is clear that this is not the case. Instead, far too many students bear the workload and financial burdens of a college education without even considering its overall opportunity cost. In many cases, people are better off pursuing other paths, like a job in a skilled trade or as an entrepreneur. I think that it's key to spread awareness of and consideration of these types of opportunities. The topic of your article is definitely a relevant one. However, it would be interesting if you were to take it a bit further, perhaps by examining the historical reasons for the rise in college degrees and student debt.
ReplyDeleteSince the most recent admissions scandal, I think a lot students have been really reevaluating whether or not they should pursue a higher education. Personally, for me, it is a no brainier. I need to have a higher education in order to do what I want to do. But I also know that there is no need for me to obtain my undergraduate degree at a university that will leave me buried in debt. While I am giving up the 'college experience' in terms of opportunity costs, at the end of the day all that I am earning is a piece of paper that states I have made it another four years. While I am still able to think logically about how to make my college decision, I still have a little FOMO for not attending a university. But it will all work out in the end, so I shouldn't be worried.
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