Is College The Right Choice For Everyone?

This is an interesting question that can be answered in many ways.

 I look at college as if it were an investment taken to try to build a foundation of learning that will be used in the “world of work”. When you look at it this way, you may tend to think twice and ask yourself “why is this the right choice for me?” There are people out there with all types of degrees and prefixes to their names and still find it hard to find a job. Whilst you have others that go straight from high school and find a well-paying job because of someone they know. Is this fair?

Louis Menand stated that,  "College is, essentially, a four-year intelligence test. Students have to demonstrate intellectual ability over time and across a range of subjects. If they’re sloppy or inflexible or obnoxious—no matter how smart they might be in the I.Q. sense—those negatives will get picked up in their grades.”

So from that I think we can come to an agreement that college is here to help build the skills and aptitudes of students that would be hard to obtain without it. While in college you are not just developing your academics, but you are learning how to socialize with others, which is a big part of being a citizen anywhere.

I personally think that being able to communicate efficiently and clearly is definitely needed in our time. With so many expansions in technology, if you lack these skills you may find it very difficult to interact with others and express what you want.

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What is college good for then?

When we look into this, you will find there are many good reasons to attend a college or university. In these years, students will meet many people and develop not only as a person, but as a citizen. Bobby Fong stated in one of his articles that, 

"The goal of a classical liberal arts education was to prepare students to live in a community as a suitably prepared responsible citizen. In our time, you will need to be citizens not only of a local community, state, or nation, but also citizens of the world.”

If you agree with this statement then we can conclude that college does not only focus on academic success. It also focuses on the overall success of being a good citizen.

There are many other reasons why college can be a good investment. An advantage one could have over another is the fact that you will be offered more opportunities in college if you look for them. No matter the size of the campus there are many faculty and staff that can help students along the way. If a student was seeking leads for a job they could utilize a faculty member for the information, and even get recommendations from them.  There are also career colleges that one can attend to further these opportunities by placing themselves in a school already focusing on their career track.   

Now all of this may sound good, but there are some bad things when it comes to looking into a college degree. It is really expensive to pay for college, and many think it is just a complete waste to attend it.

Debt is a big problem in our country and a big portion of it is caused by loans to attend these institutions. 

The NPR Staff’s article “College Student Debt Grows. Is It Worth It?” really gives vivid detail about how bad debt can get for graduates.

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An example Kantrowitz says is that if you're going to borrow $10,000 a year for four years, you should hope that the field you've chosen has a starting salary of at least $40,000. If you are going to be borrowing more than that, he suggests looking for a less expensive school.

That might make some people wince — especially those who focused on liberal arts in college. Kantrowitz says it's not that those majors are worthless, but that students have to face the reality of how they're going to pay back the money they've borrowed for their

 Even though there may be negatives to going to college I still think it is a good choice. It is here to help develop skills that might not have been obtained through going straight into the work force. Students have a chance to become more sociable and interact with people of different backgrounds, culture, ethnic, etc. that can mold them into responsible citizens. College is more than just academics; it is what makes the next generation better than the last. If one works hard and utilizes all the resources in front of them, they can achieve many things.

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Why College

The question I was presented with was "Why college?" but when I hear that I think "Why not college?"

Let's be honest, throughout high school we were told more about college than we heard our names. My teachers would compare and contrast high school to college, going on and on about how college professors would be, etc. 

I guess what I'm trying to say is that today  it's almost expected to go to college. 

So why did I choose college? Well for one, my sister told me to look at college as if it was an investment. This isn't something I had to do. She explained that I would be investing MY time and money to study so that finding a job could (hopefully) come easier.

I would think about all the things she shared with me during my last year of high school and I've always wanted to have a college experience. To live on campus and meet people from different places was always on the brain. 

So I think it boils down to the point that I want to have this experience and share it with fellow peers. And also because this band is just soooo AMAZING.

And now I have to state the obvious/generic answer: 

I WANT A DEGREE AND A GOOD JOB TOO ONE DAY. 

And in today's time you have to have some form of higher education to receive a decent (overworked/underpaying)job.

P.S. I made that Meme here :D 

About Nori

Hello readers!

My name is Noryetta Hall and I am from Tuscaloosa, AL. I attend Jacksonville State University and my planned major is music education. When I was two-years old my family and I moved to California where we live for only a couple of years before returning to Alabama. I have three siblings (all older) that were all grown as I grew up with my parents.


One thing that I miss from home are the two greatest dogs in the world! :)

This is Sara. My first dog and my "sister". Shes  ten-years old and kept me company most of my childhood since my siblings moved out of my parents house. She's a Shepard mix.

And this is Sam my two-year old dachshund. He is EXTREMELY spoiled and always wants to be cradled like a baby (and he loves his sweaters).

 My love and passion, since middle school, has always been music. I participate with the Marching Southerners on campus and I play the baritone. The music program is a huge reason why I came to JSU. Even though I had the University of Alabama down the street from where I lived, I've wanted to come to this school since I was in the 10th grade (and it's also a bit cheaper)




I'm really excited about my years at JSU. I've loved everything about it so far and I can't wait to find out what's in store for me.