College Education

This week for PLN I read "Is College Worth It? Clearly, New Data Say" by David Leonhardt is about how college is worth it even with its cost. In the article, it describes how important a degree is. It said in the article that 98% of people with a degree made more money than people without a degree. There is nothing inevitable about this trend. If there were more college graduates the pay gap would shrink. The true cost of a degree is negative $500,000. The unemployment rate for 25 and 34 years old is 3%. That is from having a degree. The average hourly wage for a college graduates has risen 1% to 32.60.

While it may be true that it is expensive, it is worth it. According to College Power Bulletin, people with a Bachelor’s degree make, on average, almost twice as much as a highschool graduate. The average high school graduate makes about $1,531,400 in their life, while someone with a Bachelor’s degree would make approximately $2,742,160. If one has a college degree, they can pay off the fee later in their life. A person could also help their family with the extra money made from getting a degree. Another thing Journal News has said is that while jobs that do not require degrees may be more common, the fact that someone did not have a college degree will be reflected in their annual wage. This shows that one who does not have a college degree will not have as much of an annual wage as those who went to college. It is worth paying a little extra money to get a college degree.

Throughout the USA college tuition has increased drastically; in the last five years Georgia colleges have had 75% increase along with other states such as Arizona whose tuition has increased by 77% (NPR). Since 2006 the tuition in Utah has increased by 62.8% and is rising throughout the U.S. (Desert News). Between 1885-2016 the price of college has increased between 2.1% to 4.3% per year beyond inflation (CollegeBoard). Through calculations, that equates to about a hundred precent increase since 1885. It’s no secret that college tuition has skyrocketed, increasing student debt and leaving prospective students to ask “Is College Worth It?” college education is beneficial in that it teaches students valuable life lessons in responsibility, prepares students to enter the workforce and can be relatively inexpensive. The eduction is “college education” is worth every penny but America has created clichés to define the college experience which are expensive and unnecessary. In a radical new world a college education is required in many high paying jobs, which leads to the question “Is the experience of college all it is built up to be?” Through recent research, many articles and news mention about the value of higher education seem to only take account of is the financial aspect. A college education is worth what one makes it and is an investment in a future and in one’s self. The purpose of college the education is to be prepared to go into a the workforce having gained the

Many students today look towards the future scared and frightened debating their future, all of them asking the same question. Is a college education truly worth the cost and the amount of debt that a student acquires over a four-year period? Many ask what are they doing this for, a piece of paper called a degree. That’s what the articles “Five Reasons Why College is Worth the Cost,” written by Reyna Gobel and “Is College worth the cost? Many recent graduates don’t think so,” written by Jeffrey J. Selingo both address. The articles take different standpoints and views on the topic. Gobel’s article siding with the view that college is worth the cost. While Selingo’s article argues that college is not worth the cost.

It has been a heavily debated topic over whether college is worth it or not. In “College’s Value,” college professor Eric Hoover explains his studies of college degrees and concludes that attending college has greater benefits than we expect. Nowadays, when families think of college, they think about the amount of financial burden instead of what they will gain from attending. In this article, Hoover states, “Yet the perceived benefits of attending college go well beyond the dollars” (Hoover 1). He writes how diplomas help receive better and higher paying jobs. Hoover is persuasive by using statistics, interviews with undergraduates and graduates, and acknowledging the opposing views as well as refuting them.

“In fall 2016, some 20.5 million students are expected to attend American colleges and universities, constituting an increase of about 5.2 million since fall 2000” (National Center for Education Statistics). That number seems to be rising each and ever year, and it almost seems as students feel like they have to go to college directly after high school. Maybe it is because they feel that they have to fit in, even if college is not for them. Although some students attend college for academics, sports, and other reasons, some students attend college for no apparent reason; with that in mind, students should take into consideration the time and money that is put into going to college.

“… A college degree is the surest ticket to the middle class,” says President Barack Obama (10, “College Education”). However, many disagree. Only 44% of people say that college is worth it from a previous 75%. This is understandable because tuition is the highest it has ever been and is still rising; meanwhile, student debt has surpassed $1.2 trillion (4, “Is College Worth”). Is college really worth the money? It depends on many factors such as the student, major, college, and time taken to graduate. But for the average student, it is definitely worth it; in fact, a college degree has never been more valuable because it increases the chances of having better wages and benefits, more job opportunities, and marketable knowledge. Anthony Carnevale from Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce says that ““the only thing worse than going to college is not going to college,” meaning students must decide between risking lower wages and higher chance of unemployment or paying for college (4).

“College graduates aged 25 to 32 who are working full time earn about $17,500 more annually than their peers who have only a high school diploma, according to the Pew Research Centre, a think-tank.”(Web) Most students that graduate college agree that college is a good investment despite the cost of university increasing and job salaries staying the same.

Getting a successful career after graduating from college has an outcome of “earning $20,000 more a year as a result of having gotten that degree” (Source F). Because all of the money spent for college would be paid off after a few years, college is worth its cost. Also, “86% [of college graduates] say that college has been a good investment for them” (Source F). Students who invest earlier for college are benefitted because they get a portion of their money back that they utilized for their education. Earning a bachelor’s degree after graduating makes college more worth it, because “workers with a bachelor’s degree [make 83 percent] more than those with only a high-school diploma” (Source D). Making 83 percent more than the young adults that did not go to college proves that

Having a college degree is not only a something anyone can frame, it can have value, along with other benefits as well. According to the Get Rich Slowly website, it states that “on average, those who have a college degree earn almost twice as much as those who do not” (Roth, 2008). Employees with have a higher lifetime earnings with a degree, making roughly a million dollars in their lifetime (Roth, 2008).

A college education isn’t meant to make people become rich, but to help them fulfill their interests within a career with the long term benefits of receiving a degree. “People who argue that college is worth it contend that college graduates have higher employment rates, bigger salaries, and more work benefits than high school graduates (ProCon.org).” So, it seems that college is worth more than just graduating from high school with a diploma and entering the work force.

Individuals who say it is not worth going to college would argue that college is a waste of time but can agree that college graduates make more money than non-college graduates. College graduates with a four year degree make more money than a high school graduate. For example, these statistics from an online source explains that “On average, a college graduate with a bachelor’s degree earned $30,000 more per year than a high school graduate, or about $500,000 more over a lifetime, as of Apr. 2013. The bachelor’s degree makes a huge difference than a high school diploma. The majority of high school graduates want to work when they graduate high

The public is in debate whether or not college is worth its’ lofty price. College graduates will earn 73 percent more than high school graduates. Someone with a graduate degree will earn an average of $49,900. Compared to that, someone with just a college or Bachelor degree will earn $35,700, and someone who will only graduate with a high school degree will earn $30,800 (Kelley). Strictly looking at those statistics the price of college seems like a fair trade. “The advantage for

As for the moneymaking, the first 5 years aren’t looking so great, but after that, on average, a college graduate with a bachelor’s degree earns $30,000 more per year than a high school graduate, or about $500,000 more over a lifetime. Actually, any type of education past high school will have you earning more, whether it’s some college, an associate’s or anything higher.

Twenty-one million students are anticipated to attend some sort of higher education (Barrow et al.). And tuition costs are reaching all-time highs; about high as the salary an average American makes in a year (Kay 36). This is a drastic change in the higher education system in America. Colleges used to be mainly religious institutions hundreds of years ago and were based on moral training and proper conduct. Overall, making better people for society. In the present day, American colleges are helping aid students in getting jobs while building up the student’s values. Many have pondered over if the value of higher education that is taught is worth the price being paid. Some have said that the costs are too high for anyone besides the upper class, but people are still enrolling with increased rates each year. Higher education is worth the price because it provides lifelong benefits to the people who graduate with a degree. People who obtain a degree attain life skills that everyone should learn, get paid more money in their lifetime, and gain a quality education.