It’s graduation season. What better (or worse) time to examine the value of time spent in higher ed. I recently read this op-ed by Marty Nemko, a career counselor on this issue that was so on point. In fact, I think every college aspirant and their parents should read it. Here’s how it starts:
Among my saddest moments as a career counselor is when I hear a story like this: “I wasn’t a good student in high school, but I wanted to prove that I can get a college diploma. I’d be the first one in my family to do it. But it’s been five years and $80,000, and I still have 45 credits to go.”
I have a hard time telling such people a killer statistic: Among high school students who graduated in the bottom 40 percent of their classes, and whose first institutions were four-year colleges, two-thirds had not earned diplomas 8 1/2 years later. [Source: AJC]
At first, when I read this I thought, “So this guy just wants us to send the ‘best and the brightest’ to college and say screw the rest? That’s elitist as hell.” But as I continued to read, he made more and more sense. One his main points is that universities many times overstate or misrepresent themselves as institutes that offer individuals advantages in the work world. This is only true for some and for many others it can prove to be a loss in the long run (as in the example above). According to him, high school grads and their parents should do a serious costs-benefits analysis before deciding to attend college and universities should provide them with the information to do so.
On the university’s part, Nemko says they should regularly provide the public with: (1) the results of a value-added analysis of attending that school, (2) the average financial aid students receive broken down by demographics, (3) retention data by race and gender, (4) employment data, and (5) results from student satisfaction surveys. The idea is that this will not only inform prospective students but also make universities better. No school likes to be embarrassed so providing this info will force them to do a better job at what they are supposed to be in the business of doing–producing highly employable, knowledgeable, and critically thinking citizens.
On the parents’ side, Nemko says to not rule out other less expensive training options that could prepare students just as well, if not better, for a career. This is especially true for students who are not motivated by academics or the idea of college. He suggest that for those solely seeking employment, a four-year college is not likely the most beneficial route. Technical training or an apprenticeship might be the better move as they can provide better job preparation.
I’ve always been a believer that college is not for everyone. Rather, everyone should be given a fair shot to have the opportunity of attending college. In some sense, I agree with Nemko that a college degree is overrated if we’re talking about it as a necessity for success.
On the other hand, college has tons of value beyond employment opportunities. If a student is prepared and open to it, college can provide amazing intangible benefits in the sense of broadening one’s perspective of the world and one’s place in it. But the key phrase is, “if they are prepared and open to it.” If not, college can be a costly and regrettable experience. But we rarely hear this side of the story to balance all the upside stories. Nemko gets points in my book for being real about this.
What’s your perspective?
2 responses so far ↓
1
SL
// May 28, 2008 at 10:34 am
When I’m broke and overworked, I truly question the value of my entire education. Most of the time, however, I appreciate what I learned both inside and outside the classroom.
I also believe that college isn’t for everyone but everyone should access to a college education, if they desire one.
I think that high school counselors and college admission officers should do a better job at explaining to students the multiple choices they have once they graduate from high school. College should be a choice among others, not the only choice.
2
Mike
// May 28, 2008 at 3:22 pm
True, school counselors could do a better job, but I can imagine how difficult it is for them to do so. In some schools there is a strong expectation for their students to go to college and these schools many times judge their success by this. Sometimes parents also judge the academic success of their children by whether they get into college or the prestige of the college to which they gain admission. Those are some tough cultural elements for a school counselor to go up against. It would help if parents were flexible in their expectations for their children and became as informed as possible about the pros and cons of alternatives to college. I think the counselor would play a more influential role among students with parents who have never attended college and who are less informed about postsecondary options.
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