College: Key to Success?
As my siblings both went off to college this past week, it was all that my parents were talking about. Comparing tuitions, apartment or greek life, majors-it just didn't stop. It has always seemed to be that college was something to strive for. Something that successful people did, before they became successful. As times and tuition have changed, the question that comes into play is whether college is really worth it. When thinking about this, everything has to be taken into consideration. "It's whether you finish, where you go, what you major in it, and what you do" said Isabel Sawhill from the Chicago Tribune article, Is College Worth It?. To me this can is sums up to the effort that one puts in. College gives off a new essence then it used to. College is freedom, drinking, and parties to many people now. With the Top Party School articles so up to date, some kids have decided to take the fun route instead of focusing on their futures. I think that this is where the statistics presented in the article show up. The "60 percent of students who do not finish their
degrees within six years", might be the kids who were too distracted by everything around them to focus. To be successful one must be driven. 14% of kids that graduated from high school end up making as much as those who went on to get bachelor degrees. That 14% would have to be either very lucky, or very driven.
In addition to whether one is driven or just at college to party, whether you are successful or not highly depends on the major you choose. This is all based on what the country needs and when it needs it. Right now, the arts are struggling. With little attendance to shows and concerts, the performer's salaries have gone done immensely. In a NY times headline I saw that the New York Lyric Opera may even have to shut down for the 2014/2015 season. In tight fields such as the arts, it is so difficult to make a living. And if you want to make a living with it, you have to be the absolute best. The absolute best most of the time are the most driven people. In the end, the people that are most successful are the people that work the hardest. This means that if one used college as much to their advantage as possible, then it would be worth it. But this doesn't mean that college is the key to success. Truly, the key to success is being driven.
What leads to a successful life? Is college a necessity?
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-05-08/news/sns-rt-us-usa-education-college-worthbre94711p-20130508_1_college-degree-harvey-mudd-college-30-year-net-return
2 comments:
I recall talking to a family friend and graduate of New Trier about her college experience where she exclaimed "It's way easier than New Trier. My parents are basically paying for me to party every night." I often get this same message when chatting with other New Trier graduates. Apparently, college is academically easier than New Trier. However, I believe that college is about much more than the courses you take. It's about being truly independent for the first time, and learning how to do things on your own. It's about meeting new people, sharing new ideas and experiencing new things in a controlled setting. It's about preparing for the "real world". So, while college may not be necessary academically to succeed I believe that it is an essential part of preparing for the real world. It's a place where you can practice, make mistakes, and learn about yourself, before you enter the game known as the "real world".
I agree with Callie and Isabel. College is about the amount of work you put into it. You could go to the top ranked party school but that doesnt mean your bound to party too much. The amount of drive that you have, and the goals you set for yourself really are what make college college. As Callie was saying, there is more to college than your classes. The whole idea of being independent, socially and academiclly really is what makes college hard. The amount of effort you put in in college is no longer regulated by what your parents tell you to do. I was talking to a neighbor the other day before she went back out east to school, and she mentioned that her first semester freshman year in college was really bad for her. She didn't get the grades she assumed she would, because everything was so different. She went on to tell me that in high school her parents were very adament about her grades, not letting her go out unless she did well that week, and punishing her even more when she did bad. Without her parents there she automatically did very poorly. She said in second semester she realized that from then on she would have to self advocate, and be strict on herself to acheive the grades she hoped for. This worked well for her and she planned on doing the same starting next week in her first semester of sophomore year. Because like Callie said, the "real world" is a game much different than high school, and dicipline skills you learn in college will help you succced.
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