Is College for Everyone?
Over the last fifty years, college has become a necessary element to success. Instead of only a few people of our society being allowed to get a college degree, it now seems that everyone can get one with relative ease. Parents of today often force their children into college. They want their kids to have the chance to make it in life, to be successful and wealthy. But with this growth in college attendance, comes a decline in the difficulty of college courses. Fifty years ago, according to author William A. Henry III, a college grad with an English degree was expected to be "versed in Latin, Anglo-Saxon, and medieval French." (138) But today's college graduate is expected to have only a strong grasp of the American language. The growth in college attendance has lead to the decline of college curriculum. College should be more selective and not a commodity that one can buy and cheat their way through. Prior to the second half of this century, a high school diploma was considered to be a significant accomplishment. It held the same power that a college degree holds today. But a high school is basically automatic
In countries, such as England, France, and Japan, university attendance is limited to a small portion of high school graduates. In such countries, only about 10% to 15% of teenagers are allowed to attend college (Henry, 135). Yet according to the Department of Commerce's Statistical Abstract of the United States, some 63% of all American high school graduates go on to attend college. Many of these young people earn their associate degree while nearly 30% go on to graduate from a four-year program (Henry, 135). How is it that we have such a significant difference from other First World countries? Americans view college as a sort of second chance to make something with their lives. It is a way for teens to delay their entrance into the real world for a few more years. But the biggest reason for college attendance is the chance to make more money. The media is constantly telling Americans that a college degree will increase their income. Without question a college graduate does economically better on average than a person who did not attend. According to William A. Henry III, "At the extremes, those with five or more years of college earn about
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Approximate Word count = 781
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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