Wood1

RachaelWood
Mrs.SaraLayton
English1010
19February2015
ShouldStudentsAttendCollege?
Introduction
Ashighschoolstudentsstartintotheirsenioryear,itseemslikeallconversationcontains
thesamequestion:Whatwillyoudoafteryougraduate?.Whileitsasimple,genuine
question,itraisessomeconcernswiththeprospectivehighschoolgraduates.Somemightjoin
themilitary,othersmaystartworkingrightaway,andsomewilltakeayeartogotraveling.But
almostallstudentshavethesamedebate:willIgotocollege?Thedebateisnotanewonetothis
generation,andthereareseveraldifferentopinionsregardingcollegeattendance. However,
beforeoneentersthedebate,theymustfirstbecomefamiliarwithitsbackground.
Inrecentyears,collegeattendancehasreceivedthespotlight.Morestudentsarebeing
encouragedtoattendcollege,whichhascausedanincreaseinattendancerates.TheNational
CenterForEducationStatistics(NCES)reports:
Enrollmentindegreegrantinginstitutions
increasedby11percentbetween1991and2001.Between2001and2011,enrollmentincreased
32percent,from15.9millionto21.0million.Muchofthegrowthbetween2001and2011was
infulltimeenrollmentthenumberoffulltimestudentsrose38percent,whilethenumberof
parttimestudentsrose23percent.(FastFacts)Thismeansthatinonetenyearperiodalone,
therewasanincreaseof5.1millionstudentsattendingcollegesintheUnitedStates,althoughin
morerecentyears,therehasbeenasmalldeclineincollegeattendance.TheUnitedStates

Wood2

CensusBureaureport
s:Collegeenrollmentdeclinedbyclosetohalfamillion(463,000)
between2012and2013,markingthesecondyearinarowthatadropofthismagnitudehas
occurred.(Census.gov)Althoughsuchadropisnotable,itstillpalesincomparisontothe
increaseofcollegeattendancefromtheprecedingdecade.NCESprojectsthatthedropwontlast
longandcollegeattendancerateswillcontinuetoclimb.
Evenmorerecentlysincethosestatisticswerereleased,PresidentBarackObamabrought
moreattentiontocollegeattendanceinhis2015StateoftheUnionaddress.CNNreportedthat
InhisStateoftheUnionaddress,PresidentObamaproposedmakingcommunitycollegetuition
freefortwoyearstoboostcollegegraduationratesandliftmorepeopleintothemiddleclass.
(Horn)Hisproposedplanwouldmakeiteasierforstudentswhooriginallycouldntafforda
collegeeducationtobeabletoattend.Thisplansparkedevenmoredebateandcontroversy,
placingevenmoreattentiononstudentsandcollegeattendance.
Asidefromattendancerates,alargeamountoffocushasalsobeenonthefinancialcosts
ofattendingcollege.Manystudentscitecostasbeingalargefactorintheirdecisiontoattend
college.U.S.NewsreportsthatTheaverageundergraduateborrowerfromtheclassof2012
tookon$27,183
instudentloandebt,accordingtothe1,006schoolsthatsubmitteddatatoU.S.

Newsinanannualsurvey.
(Snider)Thismeansthatonaverage,collegestudentscanexpectto
havenearly$30,000instudentloandebtupongraduation.
However,althoughcostplaysabigfactor,financialaidhasalsoseenanincreasein
recentyears.TheCollegeBoardreportedarisingtrendinfinancialaid.TheystatedthatThe
totalvolumeofeducationloansdisburseddoubledfrom$55.7billion(in2011dollars)to$113.4

Wood3

billionbetween200102and201112.Thisdatashowsthatalthoughthecostofattending
collegeisincreasing,soisthefinancialaidavailableforstudentswhowishtoattendcollege.
Finally,questionsarefrequentlyraisedastothequalityofeducationstudentsare
receivingatcollege.Althoughthedebateitselfisheatedandcontroversial,collegesalloverthe
countryareworkingtomaketheeducationtheyofferstudentsnotonlymoreaffordable,but
higherquality.Collegesanddonorsalikearepouringmoneyintoteachertrainings,student
opportunities,andinnovativelearningmethods.In2013,PresidentObamaannouncedplansto
ratecollegesonqualityandcost.Severalcollegepresidentsfromacrossthecountrycommented
onthePresidentsplans.Theydebatedtheissues,buttheyallagreedthatqualityofeducation
todayisimportant.AsPresidentRibeauofHowardUniversitystated,ThePresidenthas
initiatedanecessarydiscussionaboutthisimportantissuethatwillgivestakeholdersan
opportunitytodebateitanddesignwaystomoreeffectivelyfinancestudentaccesstohigher
educationandenhanceeducationalattainment,qualityandaccountability.(Anderson)Itsa
necessarydebatethatisveryrelevanttostudentstoday.Schoolsacrossthecountryareworking
towardsprovidingahigherqualityofeducation.

MajorDebatesAndCommentary
Thisdebatebringsusbacktoouroriginalquestions.AmIgoingtocollege?ShouldIgo
tocollege?Willitbeworthit?Asgraduationgetscloser,itbecomesincreasinglyimportantfor
eachstudenttodecide:collegeornot?Theymustweightheiroptions,lookintothepossibilities,
andessentiallydecidewhattheywanttodowiththerestoftheirlife.
Theyaren'ttheonlyonestodebatethesequestions.Evenscholarswellpasttheirown
highschoolandcollegeyearslookbackanddebatethesequestionsastheyrelatetothemodern

Wood4

highschoolstudent.Theyhaveresearched,debated,andwrittenextensivelyaboutthetopic.
Unfortunately,theydon'thaveaneasyanswerforstudentsstrugglingtoanswerthosequestions
forthemselves.Someagreethatcollegeiswellworththeeffortnomattertheendgoalofthe
student,othersagreethatcollegeattendancedependsonthestudent,othersagreethatcollegeis
overrated,andstillothersagreethatcollegesaretoolowqualitytomakethemworthattending.
However,nomattertheopinion,itallboilsdowntoonemorespecificquestion:isthe
qualityandtypeofeducationreceivedatcollegeworththetime,money,andeffortputinbythe
student?Manyscholarsagreethattheirowneducationwasworththeeffort,andeveryscholar
agreesthateducationisimportant,butmostdebatecentersaroundthequalityofeducationtoday.
Althoughtheirowneducationwasworthittothem,somescholarsbelievethatthequalityof
collegeeducationtodayistoofardeclinedtobeworththecost.
Specifically,accordingto
AndrewHackerandClaudiaDreifus,twohighlyeducated
scholars,collegesaretryingtotodotoomuchandareaccomplishingtoolittle.Eventhoughthe
costsofattendingcollegearegoingup,thequalityofeducationisnot.Manycollegesare
marketingtostudentsbasedontheirsportsteams,theirnewlab,theirfancylawschool,ortheir
highqualitymedicalschool.Theybelievethatcollegeshouldbeaculturaljourney,an
intellectualexpedition,avoyageconfrontingnewideasandinformation,(188)insteadofjusta
sportsprogram,amedicalschool,oraresearchfacility.Theystronglyimplythatintheir
opinions,thequalityofeducationreceivedatcollegeisntworththecost.Collegesarefocusing
onhowtomarkettostudentsandbeingcompetitivewithotherschoolsinsteadoffocusingonthe
student.

Wood5

Insomecases,collegesaregoingsofarastoevensimplytrytoturnaprofitforalow
qualityeducationinreturn.Forexample,collegessuchas
theUniversityofPhoenixorDeVry
University.AsJohnsHopkinsprofessorKevinCareystates:Withoutoversight,thecombination
ofgovernmentsubsidiesandfinanciallyunsophisticatedconsumersguaranteesoutrightfraudor
programsthat,whiletechnicallylegitimate,aresosubstandardthatthedistinctionoflegitimacy
hasnomeaning.(217)Eventhoughtheeducationreceivedatsuchcollegesistechnically
accredited,theeducationgainedthereisnotnecessarilyvaluableorcredible.Becausetheyare
tryingtoaccomplishtoomuch,theeducationreceivedthereistoolowquality.Highereducation
isimportant,butoftenyouwillhearpeoplescrutinizedegreesfromsuchcolleges.Theyllsay
Well,sureyouhaveadegree.ButitsfromPhoenix.Technicallyitsavaliddegree,butthat
doesntmeanitscredible.
AsRichFarrellsimplystates:Collegeeducationhasbeenway
oversold,andoftenitisawasteoftime.(11a)Ithasbeentoocommercializedfortoolittlein
return.
Incontrast,somebelievethattherewardsofattendingcollegearewellworththetime,
effort,andmoneyputin.Evenifstudentswouldperformbetterandenjoyatechnicalcareer
more,SanfordJ.Ungarsuggestsinhispaper,TheNewLiberalArts,thatliberalartsoffera
morewellroundededucation.Insteadoftakingshortcutstoahighpayingjob,liberalartsteach
studentscriticalthinkingskills,howtospeakandwriteeffectively,andhowtounderstandthe
nuancesofliterarytextsandscientificconcepts(191)insteadofbeingspecializedinone
discipline.Ratherthanrenderingstudentswithauselessdegree,aliberalartseducationgives
studentsextremelymarketableskillshighlysoughtafterinthejobmarket.Asaresult,theliberal
artsareoneofthemostvaluableinvestmentsastudentcouldmake.Evenifstudentsultimately

Wood6

decidetogoamoretechnicalrouteafterreceivingtheirdegree,theywillhavereceivedan
educationthatwillallowthemtoperformbetterandbemorevaluableemployees.
AllieBidwellagreeswithUngarinherarticle,TheBenefitofaDegree.Shearguesthat
adegreedefinitelyhasfinancialrewards.Herresearchprovedthatstudentswhoreceived
associatedegreesorlongtermcertificates...hadabetterchanceofseeingincreasedwages,of
beingemployed,andofworkingmorehours.(Birdwell)Althoughcollegecanbeexpensive,the
financialreturnsalonewouldmakeitworthit.SheagreeswithUngarsargumentthatevenif
studentsdecidetohaveamoretechnicalcareer,justhavingthedegreeincreasesyourwagesand
yourchancesforemployment.Shestatesthatstudentswillbefarfrombeinginstudentdebtfor
therestoftheircareer
s.Studiesshowthatthemoneyspentiswellworthit.Collegestudents
makeonaverage,about$20,000ayearmorethanthosewhofinishedtheireducationsathigh
school.Addthatupovera40yearworkinglifeandthetotaldifferentialisabout$800,000....
(Clark)AccordingtotheCollegeBoard,fouryearsatanaveragestateuniversitycosts$36,556
total.Overall,thefinancialcostsareworthitinUngarandBidwellsopinions.
Ultimately,thechoiceisleftuptothestudents.Whethertheypersonallyfinditworthit
toattendcollegeornotisuptothem.Nonetheless,itisimportantthattheybeinformedonall
theiroptionsandtheargumentsonallthesidesoftheargument.Itisuptothestudenttoresearch
anddecideforthemselves.
AreasofFurtherInquiry
Clearly,thediscussiononcollegeattendanceisapopulardebate.Althoughmany
scholarshavedebatedthefinancialcostsandtimeputinbythestudentsversusthequalityofthe
educationreceivedincollege,theyoftenforgetthemostimportantpartofthedebate.

Wood7

Throughouttheentiredebate,oneaspectthatissorelyoverlookediswhetherornotstudentsfind
theireducationintrinsicallyrewarding.Althoughcollegemayresultinhigherpayingjob
opportunities,abetterunderstandingofbasiceducationalconcepts,andmaybeevenmore
employmentopportunities,whatabouttheintrinsicrewardsthestudentsfindthroughtheir
involvementinandoutofcollegeeducation?Intrinsicrewardsincludethingssuchas:personal
achievement,professionalgrowth,senseofpleasureandaccomplishment(Hartzell).Its
importanttofindajobwheretheemployeecangrowandfeelaccomplished.Thatmaynotbean
optionforsomestudentswhohaveabiggerinterestintechnicalcareers.Whataboutwhetheror
notthestudentswillfinditworthittogotocollegeandfindahigherpayingjob?
Althoughnotyetlargelystudied,ithasbeenshownthatintrinsicrewardsincollege
attendanceareundoubtedlyanimportantfactor.PsychologistsCostasKarageorghisandPeter
Terrydescribeintrinsicrewardsasbeingcloselyalliedtothefundamentalmotivationtolearn
andacquirenewskills.Thebuildingblocks,orpsychologicalneeds,thatunderlieintrinsic
motivationaretheneedtodetermineonesbehavior(whatpsychologiststerm
selfdetermination),theneedtofeelcompetent,andtheneedforrelatedness,ortohave
meaningfulrelationshipswithotherpeople.Whenthesebasicneedsaresatisfied,highintrinsic
motivationresults...theystrivetolearnnewskillsandimprovetheirperformance
(Karageorghis).Intrinsicrewardsfactorintothesuccessofthestudent.Incollege,studentswill
bemorelikelytolearnandfeelasiftheirworkisworthsomething.Ifastudentoremployeeis
findingthattheirworkisintrinsicallyrewarding,psychologyhasshownthattheyaremorelikely
tobuildworkplacerelationships,learnnewskills,andbemoreproductive.

Wood8

Buteventhoughthereisevidencetoshowthatstudentswillperformbetterifthereare
intrinsicrewards,manywritersstillfocusonextrinsicrewards.Collegeisntnecessarilyabad
decision,butwhereisthediscussionaboutwhetherornotthestudentsshouldbetherefortheir
owninterests?CharlesMurraytouchesonthesubjectinhispaperAreTooManyPeopleGoing
ToCollege?.Murrayobservesthatinsteadofbeingonthelowerendofahighlyprofessional
vocationsuchasbusiness,studentswhoareallowedtofocusonsomethingtheyaregoodatand
areinterestedincanbeatthehighprofessionalendofamorehandsontechnicalvocationsuch
asmechanics.Hepointsout,somewhatobviously,thatbeinginacareerthestudentfinds
enjoyableismoreintrinsicallyrewarding.Studentsaremorelikelytoendupinanenvironment
thattheyenjoyandthatfitsthembest.
Hopefullyasmoreresearchbeginstoemerge,morewritersandstudentsalikewillfactor
intrinsicrewardsintothedebate,bringingthedebateclosertoananswerformanystudents,
ensuringthatmorestudentsendupinacareertheywillenjoyforalifetime.

Wood9

SourcesCited
Anderson,Nick."CollegePresidentsonObama'sRatingPlan."
WashingtonPost
.The
WashingtonPost,30Aug.2013.Web.20Feb.2015.
"AveragePublishedUndergraduateChargesbySector,201415."
TrendsinHigherEducation
.
CollegeBoard,n.d.Web.08Feb.2015.
Bidwell,Allie."TheBenefitofaDegree."
U.S.NewsDigitalWeekly
.U.S.NewsDigitalWeekly,
7Nov.2014.Web.12Jan.2015.
Carey,Kevin."WhyDoYouThinkThey'reCalledForProfitColleges?"
TheySay/ISay:The
MovesThatMatterinAcademicWriting
.ByGeraldGraffandCathyBirkenstein.New
York:W.W.Norton,2010.21521.Print.
Clark,Kim."HowMuchIsThatCollegeDegreeReallyWorth?"
USNews
.U.S.News&World
Report,30Oct.2008.Web.09Feb.2015.
CollegeEnrollmentDeclinesforSecondYearinaRow."
Census.gov
.UnitedStatesCensus
Bureau,n.d.Web.19Feb.2015.
Farrell,Rich."IsHigherEducationworthRackingupStudentDebt?"
USAToday
n.d.,JUL05,
2013ed.,Newssec.:11a.Print.
FastFacts."
NationalCenterforEducationStatistics
.U.S.DepartmentofEducation,n.d.Web.
20Feb.2015.
Hacker,Andrew,andDreifus,Claudia."AreCollegesWorththePriceofAdmission?"
They
Say/ISay:TheMovesThatMatterinAcademicWriting
.NewYork:W.W.Norton,2010.
17989.Print.

Wood10

Hartzell,Sherri."RewardSystems&EmployeeBehavior:Intrinsic&ExtrinsicRewards."
EducationPortal
.N.p.,n.d.Web.17Feb.2015.
Horn,MichaelB."Obama,FreeCommunityCollegeMayNotWorkCNN.com."
CNN
.Cable
NewsNetwork,21Jan.2015.Web.18Feb.2015.
Karageorghis,CostasI.,andPeterC.Terry."BalanceIntrinsicandExtrinsicMotivationFor
Success."
Humankinetics
.N.p.,n.d.Web.17Feb.2015.
Murray,Charles."AreTooManyPeopleAttendingCollege?"
TheySay/ISay:TheMovesThat
MatterinAcademicWriting
.ByGeraldGraffandCathyBirkenstein.NewYork:W.W.
Norton,2010.22242.Print.
Snider,Susannah."AvoidTurningIntoaScaryStudentLoanStat."
USNews
.U.S.News&
WorldReport,23July2014.Web.18Feb.2015.
Ungar,SanfordJ."TheNewLiberalArts."
TheySay/ISay:TheMovesThatMatterin
AcademicWriting
.Comp.GeraldGraffandCathyBirkenstein.NewYork:W.W.Norton,
2010.19097.Print.