Can you think of any single purchase more expensive than four years at a college or university?
And with so many world economies struggling the way that they have over the past couple of decades, the question as to whether or not college is worth the price of tuition must be answered.
Some people believe that you do not have to have a college degree in order to be successful. Though that is true, there are three major lessons that you learn in college that make it worth the cost.
Learn Social Skills
One of the major lessons that a college student learns is how to interact with other people. From the first experience with a roommate and those who live nearby, to the time that they turn in their graduation application, college students learn to get along with various types of people.
Learning to work with professors (who act like managers in the post-college world), and teachers’ assistants (who act like supervisors in the post-college world) translates directly into students understanding how to work in a professional environment after graduation.
Students learn to find social groups where they fit in, and even to form romantic relationships.
Business Insider says that 28% of people meet their spouses in college.
Students also learn to work with others in volunteer and club capacities, and with students who share their major and those who do not. Learning to work with people who think like you as well as those who do not means learning to do something that can be tough after graduation.
Learn Leadership
In college, students learn to manage the hardest person to manage – them self.
Learning when to say ‘yes,’ and when to say ‘no,’ to opportunities to hang out with friends, to get together with someone for a study session, or to spend time alone reading through the notes from last class can be difficult, but college requires that students master this skill in order to be successful.
Over the years, students learn to control their schedule by prioritizing projects, tests, and subjects to study for.
In the end, students are able to easily handle a schedule that involves work, social time, and personal time.
Learn How to Think
Possibly the most important thing that students learn in college is how to think.
In college students are exposed to students from all kinds of different background, as well as to various subjects, ways of thinking and belief systems.
This helps students to better interact with anyone they meet after college.
By interacting with so many different types of students and subjects, students learn how to communicate logically.
Students also learn to form arguments and persuasive pieces of writing logically. These skills directly translate in an ability to function better in a professional environment, where the ability to interact with various people and to get them to be on their side is absolutely essential.
So even though the price tag on a college education is large, students learning the lessons of communication, leadership, and thinking make it well worth the cost.
Do you think college is worth the price of tuition?
Wow.. Great post
Reading these points, it definitely makes me feel that college is worth the price of tuition. Even though College Tuition Fees in on the higher side, still it contributes to a student’s personal and professional development. Keep posting.. 🙂
Regards;
Keith K. Moffitt
The value of a college education is not entirely in the learning material, but also largely in the people on campus. Whether it’s your professors or your peers, college provides you with time to get to know new people with new ideas, who might inspire, encourage, challenge or work alongside you.
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I would never consider not going to college. Personally, I agree with you, college is well worth the price. It’s funny that you mention that students learn how to think, it’s so true! College teaching so many things that High School just can’t.
Hmmm, I like these arguments. I just hope that more kids find grants and scholarships so they can avoid the really bad student loan debt that so many bloggers write about. I really like the advantages you point out for going to college though. I do wish I hadn’t been so rebellious and skipped it.
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Indeed. Nothing is better than education, which I consider very essential in this generation. It can get us anywhere and give anything we want to obtain.
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Hey Joshua.
All good points. My main concern would be the prospect of a job or industry that needs the type of adults that our high learning organizations are producing. The qualities and social skills you have listed are valuable but are they worth 60k+. I think that University / College degrees are essential to developing our future workforce. But at the same time I feel that there are some core financial issues that need to be fleshed out in order to make this learning experience yield its full potential. Do I think the price of tuition is fair and allows equal footing for all of our young adults? The short answer being No! I was lucky enough to have financial assistance from my parents, which allowed me to indulge in the positives that are provided from academia, but I had many friends who had to take loan after loan, stressing them out during their time in college, and now most of those people are still swimming in debt which will be with them for at least the next 5 to 10 years.
In the end, it’s what we take away from our stay in University or College that’s important and sadly for a growing majority what they are left with are few job prospects and an almost unmanageable debt load.
Nevertheless, Great article.
Rick Laming @Getrichbrothers.com
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ha I have an upcoming post on something very similar. Yes, I think it’s worth it, because like you said there is so much more to it than just a degree. There is so much life experience to be had.
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While I can appreciate the ideas you’ve shared here, you seem to operating under the premise that such skills and experiences cannot be obtained outside a formal college environment. I teach at a university and can tell you from firsthand experience that many students do not feel that the benefits you list are worth the cost of getting them through an institution of higher learning and are seeking other avenues of acquiring them.
One could also say the same about the military and the workplace, could they not?
Also, if people have not learned to think prior to college, why should they believe that more education will somehow magically teach them how to do so?
The bottom line is that if people want these experiences, they don’t need to borrow tens of thousands of dollars to finance them.
Not any more. Those 3 things can be done outside of college without having to go into tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. Heck, join the Army and they will pay you to learn those 3 things.
College tuition is out of control – they keep raising prices to build new cutting edge buildings, pay crazy administrative salaries, and offer the best “perks” to perspective students. Oh wow, a rock wall in the dining facility generally equates to you are getting taken for a ride.
Here is a nice tidbit from the college board:
“Over the 30 years from 1984-85 to 2014-15, average published tuition and fees at private four-year institutions rose by 146%, from $12,716 (in 2014 dollars) to $31,231. The average published price at public two-year colleges rose by 150%, from $1,337 to $3,347, and the increase for in-state students at public four-year institutions was 225%, from $2,810 to $9,139.” Those insane numbers are just public schools – take a look at private and prepare for sticker shock.
I graduated in 2008 and even then, I saw that school was more of a business than an institution of higher learning. Colleges are hiring more administrators, bringing on part-time teachers, cutting costs, and raising tuition like it is going out of style. Students are also going into tons of debt for degrees that aren’t worth the price tag…like humanities and they expect high paying jobs right out of school. That is just not the case any more. Going to college does not guarantee a high paying job. Many of my peers decided to go back to school once we graduated undergrad because the job market sucked.
Tuition at my alma mater this year was $43,812. The cost of room and board was $12,921. A reasonable budget for books, supplies, transportation and personal expenses was estimated to be $4,905. $61,638 per year or $246,552 (assuming no increases) is NOT WORTH IT, especially if you major in Philosophy, Theology, Political Science, Music, etc. The ROI is not there and “learning social skills, leadership, and how to think” doesn’t provide that. Period.
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Yes, I believe so! Aside from all the things you have mentioned, college memories are priceless fun times of your youth!
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I think college, when appropriately catered to the student, is definitely worth it! Monetarily, on average, college graduates have lower unemployment and much higher pay than non graduates. The ability to socialize with so many others in the same age bracket (assuming you’re going right after high school) can be a dream and very good for developing future contacts. And, like you said, college challenges you and your ability to think by exposing you to new ideas and new ways to approach problems.
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