My whole life
I’ve always been told that in order to be successful in life, you had to have a
college degree. It’s been estimated that “college graduates earn, on average,
about $20,000 a year more than those who just finish high
school.” After reading an article in texastribune.org
on the projections for Texas occupations in 2018, I started to question whether
this was true or not.
It’s true that
our economy hasn’t been in the best shape, but I’ve still managed to keep an
optimistic view for my life after graduation. I’m a first generation college student; so
going to a 4-year university has always been my goal. I knew that going to
college would allow me to have a better life than just settling for a high
school degree. Furthering my education was something that was always pushed on
to me. Also, the job that I’m currently employed with, strives in assisting
high school students with that next step after high school and helping them
with the whole college application process. We’re pretty much promoting a
“college-going” culture.
In
2008, Tom Pauken was appointed chairman of the Texas Workforce Commission and
said, “one thing particularly surprised him: “this notion that everybody needs
to go to a four-year university and blue-collar jobs are not as good as
‘knowledge industry’ jobs” (http://www.texastribune.org/library/data/texas-occupation-projections-2018/
).
There
was one statement I read in the article that shocked me the most and it was
that “According to the workforce commission, the occupation expected to add the
most jobs in Texas between 2008 and 2018 is fast-food services.” Does this mean
that I should just drop out of school now and go apply at McDonalds? It doesn’t
make sense. Or could it be that now a days, more and more people are deciding
to go for that college degree and by 2018, there wont be enough non-college
educated people to work in the fast food industry?
If
people aren’t choosing the 4-year degree path, they’re usually going to trade
schools or a 2-year community college. “Pauken is calling for a greater
emphasis on the skilled trades - many of which only require up to two years of
post-secondary work - throughout the education pipeline” ((http://www.texastribune.org/library/data/texas-occupation-projections-2018/).
However, Texas Higher Education Commissioner Raymund Paredes
disagreed with Pauken and “argued against the de-emphasis on four-year
programs.”
Many people might not think that a college degree is worth it
just because of the loan debt that they accumulate over their time at a
university. “The higher incomes that college education brings may not make up for the
savings it consumes or the debt it adds early in the life of a typical student”
(http://money.msn.com/college-savings/is-a-college-degree-worthless-smartmoney.aspx).
“College is still worth it,” Paredes said. As evidence, he
pointed out that people with advanced degrees have lower unemployment rates and
most jobs that pay well require some form of post-secondary credential” http://www.texastribune.org/library/data/texas-occupation-projections-2018/).
There was also question as to whether or not people
were getting educated in the right field. So again, is a college education
really worth it? For me, it is. I don’t care how much I’m making in 2018, as
long as I have my college education to back it up. Someone can take your job,
but no one will ever take away your education.
References:
I am happy you addressed this topic. In the summer I saw an opinion piece in the local newspaper stating that college was a waste of time because students were just pushing through without really learning anything. Also, that since so many people are going for degrees, what sets anyone apart? Nothing could make me more mad.
ReplyDeleteI believe different majors may be more useful in the "real world" than others, depending on where someone wants to go. Also, there is a big difference between someone who spends all of their time in college partying versus trying to volunteer or snag an internship.
Your education is what you make of it. You either do enough to just get by or prove every critic wrong by making something of yourself. If you are given the opportunity for a higher education, use your time and resources well.
Sara Corwin
www.scorwin42.com/jour4460/
I completely agree with you. College is what you choose to make it. There are so many people that think it's just a fun time to party and waste time, but those are the people that usually don't make it. Those that actually care about getting educating and earning their degree are the ones that are proving people wrong. Sure, college isn't for everyone, but I for one definitely think that an education is worth the time and money.
Delete