“Work hard and join a good college if you want a life full of bliss and glamour,” has been a song reiterated from generation to generation. This might have held water back in the ’80s and ’90s, but is it applicable in the millennial where volatility, uncertainty, and insecurities are the surest part of our days? Wait! Are we even asking the right question or our thinking has been corrupted by the great success of highly decorated entrepreneurs without a college diploma, making college seem irrelevant? What I know for a certainty is that in life, nothing is ever one size fits all. Why degree? Let’s look at the pros and cons of having one put this question to rest.
Pros.
Colleges and Universities have been the most active institutions in history when it comes to preparing millions of young people for the demanding workforce. It uplifts the young generation into financially secure futures contributing to the achievement of their dreams.
College graduates are also less likely to struggle with unemployment. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the jobless rate for those with a high school education is twice that of people who have at least a bachelor’s degree.
These are tough times, but upon graduation, a graduate employment rate is twice that of people without a degree; this is from labor statistics. This doesn’t mean that a degree certificate is a golden ticket for a successful career. Just like Winston Churchill said, “I have nothing to offer other than blood sweat and tears,” a successful career certainly requires hard work and commitment and ability to seize the right opportunities.
Cons.
College motivation is dwindling by the day as young people are faced with a lot of discouragements. If you look at it, half of our lives is spent studying. National Survey of Student Engagement put forward a report that confirmed this, and students spend 15hrs averagely in class,25 hours researching, and more than 25 hours preparing for class. More than 80% of students feel that they spend somewhat a lot of time on academic work.
After having their college graduation, students are hit with the harsh reality of how securing a job is difficult despite the constant assurances. College can be expensive, time-consuming, and delusional this are among the reasons millennials are having misgivings when it comes to deciding whether to get one or not. It has been said, “People who have a negative opinion of something tend to speak up more than those who don’t,” and I am certainly not privy to that. I am of the humble opinion that many are happy with their degree.
Well, success is not always directly attributed to whether one has a college degree or not. The value of the degree in determining one’s future prosperity has been overrated. We need to work on our mentality and accept that it’s not the degree that makes the difference but rather our ability to adapt to changes. “The purpose of education is to replace an empty mind with an open one,” a famous quote by Malcolm Forbes. Get that degree, I can’t promise you that it will get you that dream job but will certainly contribute to your success subtly.