Posted: Friday, April 5, 2013 8:33:06 PM
My first year of college was one filled with studying, more studying, friends, even more studying, and a rather large bill. Students who are about to exit high school and enter the hectic university life perhaps do not realize how expensive a post-secondary education can be. Any current college student, though, would probably not mind the chance to rant to anyone willing to listen about their never-ending pile of receipts and bills that their three part-time jobs just can’t pay for. The news networks and newspapers have focused on this fact for years: the cost of college is growing while the availability of jobs for recent grads is shrinking.
As a student about to finish my freshman year of college, I worry about this issue. I have close friends paying more than $50,000 a year to attend their elite private colleges. Even after paying more than $200,000 for four years, graduates are not ensured a well-paying job. As a result, they have to settle for jobs that perhaps have nothing to do with their major while attempting to pay their student loans.
The media focuses on this issue a great deal. Numerous headlines in TIMES, Forbes, and the Philadelphia Inquirer beg the question: “Is a college education really worth it?” It is important for teens and young adults to seriously consider this issue.
Students about to enter college should look at tuition before they sign with that small private school with an unknown name and a jaw-dropping bill. Now, news outlets are reporting the growth of community colleges and their benefits. I can attest firsthand to these claims. Instead of taking the path close friends did who are now more than $50,000 in debt before the age of twenty, I signed with my local community college. Though I pay a few hundred dollars for books, supplies, and gas, my college pays my entire tuition due to my academic performance. I am enrolled in stimulating honors classes, pay nothing, and have the opportunity to transfer to any school I choose with an even larger scholarship. I am receiving the same education as my friends at four year schools and paying even less.
It is also important for students to consider if college is right for them. America does not need everyone to be a lawyer, doctor, or professor. There still needs to be mechanics who fix cars, carpenters who build houses, and hairdressers who style hair. College is not for everyone. So many teens in today’s society feel like they have to go to college, even when they know themselves the environment is not right for them.
Teens about to enter college should give serious thought to the questions and facts raised by the media. Where, why, and whether or not to go to college are some of the biggest decisions they are ever going to possibly make and the last thing they want to do is regret it down the road.