Here is my open question to the populace:
What makes a college education on value? Be specific! Answers like, it will get you a better job are non-answers unless you can explain why. I want cause and effect stuff here, not artificial value stuff that basically says that since everyone else believes that it's true it must be. Save that argument for your next Flat Earth Society meeting.
And, yes, I have my own answer, but I want yours first.
I had no regrets about paying out of pocket for going to a Cal State campus. I got exactly what I wanted in an undergraduate education. But I am far more practical and was very interested in what I studied, many students don't have those qualities so early in life.
ReplyDeleteMy father decided to go to the same school and start a whole new life as a teacher and that's coming from working in a warehouse after 20+ years! He got exactly what he wanted and payed out of his own pocket for it. No regrets.
Though the campus was very cheap, it gave us exactly what we wanted and we both feel our opportunities are far greater. We also got to learn about things we took a strong interest in from people who studied it the most, a chance we don't get at our jobs later. College can be fun by itself, without worrying about job prospects, if it's cheap enough.
Money starts to get in the way when it hampers life after college. Paying $500 a month in loans and working at the local drug store can definitely make people bitter. I know a guy in this situation. Students may feel a bit cheated paying for loans that may not help them much.
Most students don't know what they want even after college, so they feel that they did not get much anyway, besides keeping up with their friends educationally or fulfilling society's perceived demand for a degree. They tell me they could have done that for cheaper.
The college education I got was worth every dollar because I really felt I got things I wanted.
ReplyDeleteThe first was a chance to learn science very in depth, even to research in it. I had lots of contact with faculty. I obtained all of this and felt very good about what I had learned. I kept up with grad students coming from bigger institutions during grad school, sometimes performing better.
Next was whether my time invested would yield opportunity later. No need to make lots of money. I just wanted a more secure future and my college helped me see the many other opportunities I could have with my degree (teaching, research, business, etc.), so I feel very secure.
Outside of my field of study, college challenged my point of view and gave me a new take on society (race, art, history, language, etc.) I have found this very valuable, especially after college. I feel my views are less superficial and there is much more to know and enjoy.
I got all of this at a very cheap price. I would pay more but I definitely have my limits. A university can match its value and price, but students must be more specific about what they want and stop going to college just to go.
Short answer - the value of education comes from the change that it demands of the student - change leading to the ability to be an independent thinker.
ReplyDeleteCheck out the site Colleges that Change Lives -
http://www.ctcl.org/
then, some rambling thoughts...
What college can be about is changing lives - but it must come from within. So there has to be a convergence of student/teacher/class/college and maybe even community. All teachers need to strive for this goal - if you aren't you need to be brought before a firing squad.
What is this worth to individuals/society? Teachers will never be the titans of the economy, but they need to have a full belly and a roof that doesn't leak (please someone tell that to my dean about my lab...)
Unfortunately, at state universities across the country the state can no longer afford to support universities - and tuition increases.
It is a sad society that requires its youth to bargain away the future for an education.
To Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteI could not agree with you more. I was inspired to a life as an educator and mentor by a faculty member who changed my life. My life's goal is to do the same for others.
Thank you for the web site. I know and respect many of the colleges on the list.