Hunter M. Mason
In today’s society, it is highly uncommon for younger generations to not attend a form of college, whether that be a community college, technical college, or a University. This is due to the amount of high paying jobs and careers that require a bachelor, associates, or even a master’s degree. However, with the amount of high paying jobs that come from a college degree, it is important to consider the amount of money that must be spent on college tuition as it can reach an outlandish amount of money for the vast majority of people. Making wise financial decisions is especially crucial when considering which college would, in the long run, be most beneficial depending on the career path that is chosen.
The most important first step is finding a college that is comfortable, affordable, and most of all one that fits all the requirements for the education that will ensue for the next four years of your life. The best option for a Wisconsinite is staying within the home state. This serves as two purposes, not only for comfortability but also makes colleges much more affordable than if someone decided to go out of state. Staying and going to college in the state you grew up in allows you to stay relatively familiar with your surroundings and even gives you countless more opportunities to continually visit your family members. Thus, allowing you to feel more relaxed and at ease. As I stated previously, this isn’t the only thing that will make you feel more relaxed. The knowledge that the college tuition was spent at a lower cost, will significantly boost your morale when attending that desired college. Finally, making sure the college has all the desired requirements is an essential part when making the final decision on which college you should ultimately attend.
As of currently in the United States, the average cost for a public University is $20,000 per year for each student and the average cost for a technical/community college is around $5,000 per year. The amount of money it takes to get into a great University and to get a great education sadly isn’t available to everyone, but attending a technical/community college isn’t a bad idea at all. Right now, 70% of students end up with some amount of debt after they leave college, and on average it will take each student 21 years to pay that off. That’s why it’s extremely essential to find a college that is in your price range, so when you get out of college you don’t have to pay off as much debt and spend a heap loads amount of money.
Along with this, finding the perfect major in high school by doping extensive research before you go to college is a great way to get ahead of the game. On average, 80% of college students end up switching their college majors at least once at some point. Doing this isn’t a terrible idea, and will, in the long run, make you a happier and more engaged person during your work career. Although, by switching your major, you’ve essentially wasted time and money into something that you will never get back. By getting ahead of the curb, doing extensive research, and possibly even job shadowing before going into college, you have eliminated much of the possibility that you will switch majors and lose money.
Losing money is something that no one wants to do, and at this age, you only want to think about continually gaining, improving, and saving money in the future. Going to college is a huge investment, but it is highly important to get a great education to get a dream job and career. Nine out of ten jobs currently go to those with a college degree. That gives you only a 10% chance of not going to college and boosts it up to 90% from just attending and getting a degree from college. College is extremely important, and from this information, it should everyone who is thinking of going to college make the right financial decisions.
Works Cited
Goldstein, Steve. “Nine out of 10 New Jobs Are Going to Those with a College Degree.” MarketWatch, 5 June 2018, www.marketwatch.com/story/nine-out-of-10-new-jobs-are-going-to-those-with-a-college-degree-2018-06-04.Hayes, Abby. “14 Things Every High School Student Should Know About Money.” The Dough
Roller, The Dough Roller, 3 Dec. 2019, www.doughroller.net/personal-finance/13-things-every-high-school-student-should-know-about-money/.
Song, Justin. “Average Cost of College in America: 2019 Report.” ValuePenguin, ValuePenguin, 8 Dec. 2019, www.valuepenguin.com/student-loans/average-cost-of-college.
“Supply and Demand of College Degrees: 101.” ChicagoNow Is Full of Win,
www.chicagonow.com/college-scoop/2016/07/supply-and-demand-of-college-degrees-101/.
“Why Do so Many People in America Have Student Debt?” Marketplace, 2 Oct. 2019, www.marketplace.org/2019/09/30/70-of-college-students-graduate-with-debt-how-did-we-get-here/.
This is such a huge topic in society right now I feel. Years ago college was "needed" to get a good job and be successful. Before that barely anyone went to college and now, yes its important and a great opportunity to get you a great job but since everyone is attending college now you need something more to make you stand out. College is the norm and now everyone is getting degrees. I do agree with it being a great opportunity and while taking advantage of that opportunity you need to financially be smart. One thing that you said was that community and technical college was good but didn't give you as good of a education and I disagree because some people may learn better in a smaller and more hands on environment. There are many different subtopics that go within the idea of college and there could be a never ending discussion on it due to everyone opinions. Overall nice job with the article.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I agree with you on majority of what you discussed. You Mentioned dream jobs and how it is important to follow your dreams. I'm not disagreeing with you. But what do you do when that dream job is taken by someone else or you are just working under people slaving for them. Now when I slaving I don't mean literally. I mean you work under someone you don't make your hours. You don't have a say in the company. You are essentially a Bot for this higher figure at that point?
ReplyDeleteI agree that money is a huge factor with what college and what major you want to get a degree in. But, I also think that where you want to go to college and what you want to go there for shouldn’t be determined by how much money it costs. If you are truly passionate about something and you want to get a good job in that career you should not worry so much about student loans and debt because you should be confident that the reason you are going to college is to be able to get a job and work for a company that you want to work for that will help you make the money you need to make in order to pay off your debt.
ReplyDeleteI agree that there needs to be more thought into which schools certain students attend, or even if they should attend at all. The common thought of society, is that students should really go to college, and a lot of them end up going to a school in which isn't the right fit for them. This is why it is so important to choose your school, not based on what others think, but what you think would be the best fit, educationally and financially. I think it is also hard to accept the fact that going to an expensive school or university isn't always the best option. The fact that there are a lot of quality schools for a substantially lower price point should be more enticing to the teenage mind. Great job in explaining all aspects of college expenses and decisions.
ReplyDeleteI agree that college is essential in today's society. If you don't have a college degree it considerably harder to find a well-paying job. However, I have a different opinion on attending in-state schools for Wisconsin students. Yes, it may be the most affordable option at first glance, but I applied to all out of state schools and some ended up being less expensive than in-state schools I applied to. If you do the correct research and apply to scholarships at out-of-state schools, it can end up being affordable. So I think that it's important for students to do research on both in-state and out-of-state colleges before they make their decisions. It can especially be more beneficial to go to an out-of-state college depending on the degree you are pursuing.
ReplyDeleteThis was a very well written and organized post, and it conveyed relevant information in an engaging manner. As a senior with plans to attend college, I found this to be especially important information, as the costs associated with pursuing a higher education are steep. Beyond myself, I do feel like a fair amount of high school students sense a pressure to attend college, without specific plans in mind, and a loss of time and money happen to be the consequence. So, I definitely agree with your suggestion to investigate potential professions while in high school, as understanding your strengths as a human and as a student are very important to consider. Job shadows, research and meeting with a mentor have really helped me to get a better look at what I want to do before I choose to invest my time and money into such a pursuit, and would definitely suggest that, as well.
ReplyDeleteI agree that college is a really important step in pretty much everyones career. However, what should people who don't have the ability to pay for college do. I think it would've been helpful if you looked into different ways of getting a college degree without having any financial aid from your parents/ family members, as some people will have to go through that. And what are some of the ways you can pay off your college debt faster? (Ex. side jobs, businesses, etc.)
ReplyDeleteIt's a good idea to stay within your home state (to get in-state tuition and the benefits mentioned in your article), but should students with a specific, infrequently-offered major in mind apply to a college outside of their state and their price range (which offers their rare major)? Or would they be better off with a similar major that may not be exactly what they're looking for, but close enough that the difference shouldn't matter to potential employers? For example, UW-Madison doesn't offer an apparel design major, but UMN-Twin Cities does. If the costs varied greatly between attending these two colleges (with UW-Madison being the cheaper option), should the student go to the college that offers their ideal degree or one with a similar degree, or perhaps a less developed program?
ReplyDeleteThis topic is relevant for many of us in this class, as we are planning to go to college. Almost all jobs in the world tend to only give jobs to those with a college degree and maybe even more. College is becoming the new norm in today's society, yet many don't have the resources to do so. College is shown to us as if you don't go, you won't be successful in life. I agree that college is a great opportunity, however you have to be financially smart on choosing a college. Along with that, I agree that you want to make sure you fully examine your options in what you want to do in the future, as it cost more money to change majors. However, I disagree on the when you talk about how technical colleges and or communities college may not give you the best education, however for some, that not only is the best option, but many jobs only need 2 years of education to gain that major, then you can start right into your job. Not all jobs need 4+ years of college. It is what best fits what you want to do in the future and your financial status.
ReplyDeleteThis is a really important topic for high schoolers right now, especially for those who don't have as much money or who have to pay for college themselves. I definitely think that technical colleges can give just as good an education as a university as it works better for some students and is smart in the realm of money management. However, scholarships could have been mentioned as well because the more scholarships you apply for the more likely you are to get at least some of your tuition paid for which could also be a smart financial move.
ReplyDeleteAs time progresses college has become more "essential" for people to get a good job. I think going to college is really beneficial for students because of the further education. I also think it is beneficial because it teaches you how to start managing your money at a younger age. I agree that college is extremely important and also that it is a big investment. However, the investment is good for college students to learn how to pay for things responsibly so that they do a good job managing their money in their adulthood. You did a really good job with this article!
ReplyDeleteEspecially for high school students, college is a huge decision in life, especially as it controls what our next big step in life is. I agree with job shadowing to get experience for later on in life, as that saves a lot of money down the road. Job shadows are experiences that I feel everyone should have so they can have a hands on experience with the career they want to pursue in.
ReplyDeleteAlthough going to a college in-state saves money, I do feel sometimes it is necessary to have a new enviroment, and maybe experiance life on your own. Once you get a job in a state, it is hard to move away from that state. For example, if someone goes to college in Wisconsin, it is hard for someone to transfer states if they want to work in Florida. I think it differs from person-to-person on their own personal opinions and necessities in life on where they choose to go to college. I know this was not mentioned in your article, however not only job shadows will help, but applying to scholarships can make a significant dent in decreasing potential debt from college fees!
Yes, college can be a good option for those that can handle it. For the most part, those places have a lot of resources to bounce back on. But the amount of debt you rack up can be almost insane. That’s why I can see why people have to be smart about what they choose and how much it will cost. Most of my family never went to college and did perfectly fine, I plan on going straight to work like they did because of the financial risks with going to an expensive college. It seems like a norm because of the amount of people going but that all depends on how much they have to spend.
ReplyDeleteParallel to the statement you made about most jobs going to those with college degrees, it is practically essential to receive some form of secondary education after high school and the advice you provided about researching majors to pursue before going to high school is highly beneficial. Many people may not realize the financial strain that can come with switching your major, especially if it is further down the road in your college career. The additional classes, courses, or programs can rack up added costs on top of what you already paid in college tuition, causing a person to go further into debt. Therefore, by researching and getting a better idea of what career or career field you are interested in ahead time can truly save you from a financial crisis.
ReplyDeleteCollege is on everyone’s mind at the moment, especially for juniors and seniors. This post is a good, concise read that briefly explains what needs to be done before college and prompts further investigation into topics you brought up first like knowing your major beforehand and a comparison of tuitions at technical and public universities. I like how you brought up that technical colleges are better for students wanting to save money, but there are more factors that people consider when choosing a college than just tuition and the probability of future student debt. Then again, your article was not meant to be a persuasive one, so overall, a very nice job.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the students need to spend more time and really think about what college they want to attend to. A very high percent of students end up going to college after high school and that is where they will spend the text 2-4 years. So choosing the school wisely is very important otherwise it could be too expensive or just the wrong school for what you want to do with your life. Some students just want to attend a college because its their dream school or they just want to live in the area but others are very smart about it. They attend the school that is financial right for them, the education is perfect for what they are looking to do with their life, etc. Great job describing all the aspects of the colleges and the expenses and decisions the students make.
ReplyDeleteIn this day and age, college is not very affordable for most people, which you stated. I think that in writing this you gave more people hope that they can go to college. Sometimes money is the only thing holding people back from going to a college. Loans can be intimidating, and paying off dept for 21 years on averages is a big downer. In this post you give helpful advice for saving money by staying in state. Your advice motivates people to be more optimistic about college and not worry so much about dept.
ReplyDeleteWithin your post, you talk about many things that can help students be prepared to go to college. One thing that you mentioned was that students should research different majors that way they are ahead of the game. I agree with your facts about this and how switching majors can affect a student’s financial situation, but are there other ways that finance can be affected by not researching ahead of time? I also agree with your last paragraph as it talks about how deciding to go to college can affect your future financially because of job opportunities that come with going to college. Lastly, although it is a good idea to stay in your state for college, it also depends on what student’s want out of their lives.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your stance on the college education system. Thinking in the future as of now is vital to support our futures. Job shadowing and having a mentor is an extremely beneficial way of developing a consensus between certain jobs. This being said, I completely agree with your stance as to eliminating or lessening the chance of changing majors and saving your self quite a bit of money. However, as you stated before, many people end up with student loans after attending a 4 year college, wether that be in state or out of state. Although, depending on what you want to do when you're older, you can achieve the same education as a 2 year technical college. I know that you stated that a technical college was good, but didn't give you as good of an education compared to a 4 year college. I do disagree with this because many people can achieve the same job and outcome by going to a 2 year college. I really enjoyed reading this and taking a stance with this argument! Overall great job.
ReplyDelete-Ellie Adams
DeleteWith college coming into focus over the next year for many of us, I also think it's very beneficial to take a lot of time ponder what college will be the best fit for you. Whether it meets your financial, academic, or athletic needs, there will always be a college out there for you. I also agree that it's a great idea for students to find a major they're interested in pursuing while still being in High School. Except at times this system fails because guidance pushes students to pick a major too quickly and one they're not really interested in. Thus, they end up going to college and switching their major after a year which wastes even more money for them. Which nobody can afford to do in this day and age where college prices continue climb. Therefore, I believe that it's right for some students to pick out a major while still in high school but most students will be negatively affected by choosing their future at such a young stage in their lives.
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ReplyDeleteIn today's society, I definitely do believe that money is such a large deciding factor that it can effect people's choices on what college they attend, if they even decide to go at all not knowing if they will be able to financially support it. In the society we live in, it is almost necessary to go to college for jobs and it is a like societal norm to go to college, but sometimes that isn't the right fit for people wether it be due to financial reasons or personal reasons, but this shouldn't drive people away from choosing the college that they want to go. It is important for people to take in all the factors and consider what certain universities will cost, but as you stated, it was also important to go to school for what you want to go for, and follow your dream career.
I like you talk about the money and how it will affect going to college because that is very important to think about when you are picking colleges, making sure that you have enough money. It is also important to think about the decision making of staying in the home state or going outside for a much more better opportunity and also thinking of how much that college cost.
ReplyDeleteAlthough a lot of schools might jump directly into taking classes related to your major, others sometimes have it set up where the majority of your first two years worth of credits are gen-eds, and you take maybe a couple classes that get you experience in what you might be taking junior and senior year. This is true for me at platteville, I'll mostly be taking more english/math classes my first two years, and only ONE semester worth of an engineering class each year that is basically a quick run through of a lot of classes I'll be taking my junior and senior year. This helps me get a basis on what I want to do, while also not wasting any credits, other than the semester worth of that one engineering class.
ReplyDeleteAs a high school senior, I feel that this topic is extremely relative to me. When searching for colleges, tuition was a big factor for my family and I. Although I will be attending UW-Madison, an in-state school, I was able to still look at many schools in surrounding states due to the fact that some states have tuition reciprocity. In addition, there are many options for financial aid and scholarships. So yes, I agree that you should weigh tuition costs into your decision, but I don't think one should limit themselves just to in-state schools as there are many options to make out of state schools affordable.
ReplyDeleteBeing a senior in high school my fall was consumed with research on colleges and where to apply. I related to a lot of these points as I needed to focus not only on the cost of the school and my comfort there, but my major as well. I applied to one school without even looking at their majors and realized after that they didn't have the specific major I wanted along with research opportunities which is huge in the field I want to go into. This article was really informative and touched on all aspects of making a college decision which will be very beneficial to those still in the decision making process.
ReplyDeleteI agree that college is very expensive and doing research on your future career is important so that you don't have to waste time and money however, a lot of the times, research is not the reason that helps people chose the career they desire but simply finding out new jobs or getting a great opportunity at a random moment. My mom changed her majors 3 times before she decided she wanted to be a teacher and she loves it. Choosing a major is one of the hardest decisions to make especially if you want to start college immediately after high school. I think the best way to be able to figure out what majors might intrigue you is looking up some colleges near you and see what majors they offer. This is the best way to see what's out there and find out some things that might catch your eye that you didn't even know about. A job is something that you will have for many years to come so it's important to look at your options.
ReplyDeleteThere were many valid points brought up about today's society and the positive and negative influences that college can do for a young person. It is no secret that college is expensive and causes a burden on many people for years after they graduate, as stated, so I agree with you that exploring different careers and ideas in high school can be very beneficial for the students in many ways. Getting out into the world and have places to use and job shadow for may be more difficult for some students who don't have as many contacts as others might have. I think it would be beneficial to expand upon the ways that students can get experiences in high school to make someone more ready for college.
ReplyDeleteI think it was really interesting mentioning the cost difference between going to a technical college versus a university. That $15,000 difference per year is remarkable considering that student debt is at an all time high. I think that in today's time we don't look at the most cost efficient ways when deciding on an institution. Obviously out of state fees are looked at which is why many choose to stay in state. But the technical vs university and private vs public is also something to look at. Although the education gained from a technical college may not be adequate for what one may desire, it is a good starting point for the first two years. Many students do not consider going to a technical college for two years to get their general education classes done, saving $30,000, then transferring to another school to get their high education. Although this may look like a lot of extra work and planning, it is actually really financially smart when trying to decrease the amount of future student debt.
ReplyDeleteThis was a great topic to write about as many students that will be reading this are going to college in the next year. For me, when you talked about the benefits of going to school in a home state was what really impacted me and I'm sure many of my peers. Looking at both schools out of state and in state the aspects of financial and personal comfort definitely come into play and we should keep that in mind when choosing what is right for us. I also think that when you talked about how many students change their major, it made me think about how here at Pewaukee they really do a lot to expose us to different careers and help us grow in the direction we want to go, before we even go to college.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your blog because it really gives me and the rest of us background on what could happen throughout our college career like changing majors and losing money. Just because you go to a college that has a department that you enjoy, I believe that it is unlikely for you to find a "dream job" right after college. This is because of the fact that you change majors so many times and may not like what jobs are offered to you that are in your field of study. Obviously, this could be different based off of the person and if they are so set on a certain major and their future is laid out, but when deciding a major, it is nice to know that it is a high risk high reward process that could determine the rest of your life.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very important topic that many can relate to. Figuring out which college you're going to attend, how you're going to pay for it, and what you should major in is a lot of stress. Like you mentioned, 80% of people will change there major at least once, making college even more expensive. It's important to explore other subjects and careers before going into college so that you have a better understanding of what you want to peruse. While it is important to major in something that best fits you, it's also important to research colleges to ensure that you're happy with attending there. While it is important to ensure that you won't be in an overflowing amount of debt once graduating, what's more important is putting your education and passion above the cost.
ReplyDeleteWhile public colleges in-state are less expensive, this does not rule out any private universities that people would like to attend. How would tuition reciprocity affect your article? The Midwest Student Exchange Program (MSEP) under the Midwestern Higher Education Compact (MHEC) allows for students in Wisconsin to pay for no more that 150% of public university tuition of in-state students in states including: Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, and North Dakota.
ReplyDeleteIt's incredible how we think we have our entire lives planned out and that each thing will go exactly as planned. The fact that 80% of students (EIGHTY!!!!) switch their major at least once is such a wild concept. That means our"dream jobs" aren't even our dream jobs 80% of the time! I do appreciate the schools that take this statistic into account and make switching majors easy. I know that was a factor I looked into when I was looking into schools. This is probably why there are so many colleges/houses are within a University (College of Letters and Sciences at Madison for example). Great post and thank you for allowing me to take a breath of relief that life will somehow work out the way it's supposed to!
ReplyDeleteGreat choice of topic! Many of us reading your post are likely thinking about college which makes your article relevant to us. You covered a lot about how certain decisions affect the cost of schooling and how that itself will affect the rest of our life. I also like how you mentioned the positive side of colleges which is getting a well-paying career which makes college worth it to most people. The multiple perspectives will definitely help me understand how to make my decision. The statistics you included were effective, relevant, and very interesting. It's crazy that 80% of students switch their major and it takes 21 years on average to pay back student debt.
ReplyDeleteI think it can be argued that some of the more expensive colleges are worth going to if A. the student could get in for less money through scholarships or other financial programs, and/or B. The student would get more and better career opportunities for going to a more well-renown college.