Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT

Is College Worth it: A Review of the Literature

Mihael !egishi
The "niversit# of Te$as at El %aso
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
A'strat
Aording to (an# A(erians) ollege is the 'asi re*uire(ent to having a 'righter future+ Studies
show a orrelation 'etween reeiving an eduation and earning a higher ino(e+ This literature review
will infor( the reader with reasons for going to ollege 'ased on sholarl# artiles and data'assses+
Sholarl# artiles and data'asses full of large sale infor(ation fro( the ,ast to the ,resent an hel,
,eo,le deide on whether the# should go to ollege or not+ Most of the data goes as far as two deades
'a-) whih at this ,oint is an aurate esti(ate of the ti(e when (ost of the urrent ollege students
were 'orn+
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
Is College Worth It: A Review of the Literature
College e$,eriene and graduation is what a lot of o(,anies loo- at these da#s+ It re,resents
the dediation of the one 'eing interviewed and ,roves their worth in one wa# or another+ After all)
#ou/re either so(eone who has gone to ollege or so(eone who has no e$,eriene in higher eduation
in the e#es of the 0o' (ar-et+ The 0o' (ar-et or e(,lo#ers are inreasingl# re*uiring e$,eriene with
higher eduation) thus stressing the i(,ortane of attending ollege+ High shools and even (iddle
shools tend to as- students whih ollege the# want to attend) and have all -inds of (eetings and
events to hel, students ,i- a ollege to go to+
While it is o((on -nowledge that going to ollege is a deision that re*uires *uite a lot of
thin-ing a'out the future and investing in #ourself) there is a lot of roo( for dou't+ It is e$,ensive) and
an dig #ou dee, into de't if #ou annot finish for so(e reason or (a# even earn a degree that has ver#
few 0o' o,,ortunities+ It re*uires thin-ing a'out #our future and future trends in the (ar-et+ So one
an as- the(selves the following *uestions 'efore deiiding to attend ollege+
&+ How (an# students ,ursue higher eduation nationall# ever# #ear1 How has this
nu('er hanged in the last .2 #ears1
.+ What is the i(,at of o'taining a higher eduation degree1
3+ What is the dro,out rate fro( ollege1 What is the i(,at of this1
4+ What do ollege students thin- a'out ollege1
The following literature review will: ,rovide infor(ation regarding students attending or have
o(,leted ollege and how the# feel a'out it) disuss the i(,ortane of attending) and infor( the
reader a'out how suess after ollege an also de,end on a student/s (a0or+
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
How many students pursue higher education nationally every year? How has this number
changed in the few decades?
Aording to the !ational Center for Eduation Statistis 5.2&&6) during the fall of .2&3) a
reord of .&+7 (illion students were e$,eted to attend A(erian olleges or universities) whih is
a'out a 8+9 (illion inrease o(,ared to the fall of .222+ Most of the attendane was in the for( of
,u'li .:#ear institutions) as well as ,u'li and ,rivate 4:#ear institutions+ The traditional ollege:age
,o,ulation has 'een a ontri'ution to the inreasing nu('er of students in ollege enroll(ent+
;etween the #ear .222 and .2&&) the nu('er of students 'etween ages &7 and .4 inreased .<+3
(illion to a,,ro$i(atel# 3&+& (illion+ The a(ount of older students attending ollege also inreased
in this ti(es,an+ The nu('er of students attending ollege an ver# slightl# derease or inrease ,er
#ear) 'ut in the end it is an overall inreasing nu('er of students attending ollege over ti(e+
In addition) the re,orts also show show that there has 'een an inreasing nu('er of ;la- and
His,ani students attending ollege+ ;la- students who attend ollege 'etween the #ears .222 and
.2&& rose fro( &&+< to &9+& ,erent+ The nu('er of His,ani students inreased '# al(ost the sa(e
,erentage in the sa(e ti(es,an) fro( =+= to &4+3 ,erent+ The His,ani and ;la- students at the
traditional ollege age attending ollege also inreased during those #ears) fro( .&+< to 34+7 ,erent for
His,anis and 32+9 to 3<+& ,erent for ;la-s+ The rate of ollege attendane has atuall# 'een
inreasing for His,anis) Asian>%aifi Islanders) and ;la- students sine &=<8+ Students have even
'een inreasingl# attending ollege sine as far 'a- as &=9= as shown in figure &+ A hart that gra,hs
the stats out of ?College enroll(ent rate of reent high shool graduates age &8 to .4) Oto'er &=9=:
.22=+@ The hart ta-en fro( the "+S+ ;ureau of La'or Statistis de(onstrates an all:ti(e high reord
in enroll(ent of all ollege students) regardless of rae) in .22=+
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
Even though this hart onl# does re,resent the nu('er of students ages &8 to .4 attending ollege) that is still the (ost ,o,ular age of
students that do attend ollege+
In the reent #ears however) the ,erentage of students ages .9 and u, have inreased (ore than
the nu('er of #ounger students) and this see(s to ontinue to toda#+ ;etween the #ears .222 and
.2&2) the nu('er of students ages 'elow .9 inreased '# 34 ,erent while those .9 and u, rose '# over
4. ,erent aording to the !ational Center for Eduation Statistis 5.2&36+ That is ,roof of the
inreasing awareness of attending ollege as well as how influential it is to soiet#+ One ould assu(e
that so(e ,eo,le who did not dee( it as i(,ortant enough a few #ears 'a- now thin- it is after seeing
the inreasing need for ollege+
What is the impact of obtaining a higher education degree?
The (ain ,oints that (an# artiles lai( a higher eduation degree does for an individual is
higher earning ,otential) (ore 0o' o,,ortunities) greater 'enefits) 0o' satisfation and sta'ilit#) and the
a'ilit# to (a-e 'etter deisions+ The 'iggest *uestion ,eo,le (ust as- the(selves 'efore attending
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
ollege is ?A( I willing to ,a# now) in ti(e and (one#) for long:ter( rewards1@ A ollege degree
does ost a lot of ti(e) effort) and (one# to earn+ However) it offers (uh (ore than 0ust the
,reviousl# (entioned things) 'ut also i(,roves s-ills suh as ritial thin-ing for deision (a-ing and
invest(ents+ It also has an i(,at on one/s individual writing and ver'al o((uniation s-ills) whih
ould 'e one of the (ost valua'le s-ills needed in a areer+
The higher earning ,otential is ,ro'a'l# the 'iggest drive for attending ollege) right ahead are
those that are going to fulfill a drea(+ The fat is that if #ou have a degree) #ou will earn (ore
throughout #our areer than if #ou onl# have a high shool eduation+ A re,resentation of wee-l#
salaries are shown in figure .) a visual re,resentation of ?Eduation %a#s@ in the #ear .2&.+
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
While this gra,h fro( the Eduators for Aair Consideration 5.2&.6 does illustrate the (edian of the
wor-er/s ino(e) it should also 'e noted that there are so(e e$e,tions to this general -nowledge+
There aren/t that (an# 'ut the (ain to have a high ino(e des,ite a la- of ollege e$,eriene ould 'e
earned '# wor-ing #our wa# u, a hiearhial o(,an# or trades #ou an learn through a,,rentieshi,+
The (ost o((on one,tion a'out ollege is that going to one (a-es #ou s(arter+ That is not
neessaril# true sine one ould easil# forget ever#thing the# learned fro( all the lasses the#/ve
attended+ The (ost i(,ortant 'enefit that o(es fro( learning in ollege is greater anal#tial thin-ing
as well as the disi,line to start a tas- fro( the 'eginning and ending it+ That is the a'ilit# that (an#
0o's see- in a ,erson) thus inreasing a ollege graduate/s (ar-eta'ilit#+ A high shool degree onl# an
onl# reall# offer ,eo,le non:s-illed ,ositions for the (ost ,art) while a 'ahelor/s degree o,ens a whole
setion of o,enings to one on the 0o' searh+ A (aster/s degree or a %hB will drastiall# inrease
o,,ortunities) as the# have a ver# low ,erentage of une(,lo#(ent+
One nota'le 'enefit for having a degree is health insurane for the e(,lo#ers+ It is a lot (ore
li-el# to have health insurane at a 0o' re*uiring a ollege degree than one with a high shool degree+
Another i(,ortant 'enefit is retire(ent ino(e) whih is drastiall# inreased with a degree of a higher
eduation+ Aigure 3 will show a gra,h of the ?Annual E$,eted !on:Soial Seurit# Ino(e of
Retirees '# Eduation Attain(ent+@
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
Aording to the hart used on the !ational Center for %oli# Anal#sis 5.2&36) there are vast
differenes in soial seurit# 'enefits with the different degrees+
The inreased satisfation with life and well:'eing within oneself ould argua'l# 'e one of the
healthiest things in the long ter( of life+ Higher ,a#) o,,ortunities) 'etter 'enefits) and wor-ing in a
field of interest ould reall# ontri'ute to one/s ha,,iness with the(selves+ There is also 'etter 0o'
sta'ilit#) whih has those without higher eduation degrees to 'e (ore li-el# ut for ,ositions re*uiring
uns-illed la'or+ Buring an eono(i risis or a reession) the une(,lo#(ent rate for ollege graduates
is (uh lower than those with onl# a high shool di,lo(a+
What is the dropout rate from college? What is the impact of this?
The dro,out rate of students has drastiall# dereased sine two deades ago+ In &==2) the
dro,out rate was &. for ollege students as well as high shool students) whih dereased to < ,erent
in the #ear .2&. aording to the !ational Center for Eduation Statistis 5.2&36+ There is also a trend
of slightl# inreasing (ale dro,out rates in o(,arison to the fe(ales with a < ,erent dro,out rate for
(ales and a 8 ,erent dro,out rate for fe(ales+ ;la-s and His,anis also had a drasti derease in
dro,outs during this ti(e fra(e+ This overall derease in dro,outs re,resents the students and their
gradual realiCation of how neessar# ollege is going to 'e in their lives+ It is also less trou'leso(e to
not attend than to attend and dro,out+
Bro,outs have a sur,risingl# large i(,at on the eono(#) health) and even ri(es u,on the
nation+ In .223) onl# 42D of adults who dro,,ed out of high shool are e(,lo#ed) o(,ared to 82D
of adults who o(,leted high shool and 72D for those with a 'ahelor/s degree 5!ational Bro,out
%revention Center > !etwor-) .2236+ The ost of eah #ear/s lass dro,outs osts the ountr# over
E.22 'illion during the lifeti(e of lost earnings and unrealiCed ta$ revenue+ There is a lot (ore to
dro,,ing out of shool than #ou ould thin-+ Aording to Harlow 5.2236) <9 ,erent of A(eria/s
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
state ,rison in(ates are high shool dro,outs+ Aift#:nine ,erent of the federal ,rison in(ates did not
even o(,lete high shool+ It ould even 'e said that a one:#ear inrease in average eduation levels
would redue the arrest rates '# roughl# && ,erent+ Researh done '# the Alliane of E$ellent
Eduation 5.2236 shows that teen girls who la- in 'asi reading and (ath s-ills are a lot (ore li-el# to
'eo(e (others than those that don/t la- those s-ills+
What do college students think about college?
Aording to a surve# filled out '# .9 students at the "niversit# of Te$as at El %aso) .2 of the(
agree or strongl# agree that ollege is worth it+ The# also 'elieve that ollege offers great 'enefits) and
that ever#one should attend it rather than those that an afford it+ Mone# doesn/t see( to 'e a ,ro'le(
to the( either) sine the# 'elieve that the# will (a-e it u, with the degree the# earn+ A lot of the( also
fear the onse*uenes of not attending ollege or even dro,,ing out+ Those few students that did not
'elieve ollege is worth it were greatl# influened '# (one#+ The# (ostl# thought ollege was not
worth all the de't and loans+
Generall#) the onse*uene of not attending ollege is a la- of res,et fro( others as well as
fro( #ourself+ That 'eo(es (ore notia'le as #ou age) after o(ing to a realiCation a'out how (an#
o,,ortunities have 'een losed and that ,rofessional 0o's si(,l# ,a# 'etter and have (ore 'enefits+
!othing is wrong with ta-ing #our ti(e in deiding what #ou would li-e to do with #our life 'efore
entering ollege though+ So(e ,eo,le (a# rush their deision 'eause of ,arental influene or don/t
-now how the 0o' (ar-et loo-s for their desired areer or even not feeling (otivated enough to finish
ollege+ Attending ollege is argua'l# one of the 'iggest deision one ould (a-e with their lives+
Bro,,ing out onl# leads to greater onse*uenes) so #ou should reall# thin- long and hard 'efore
entering for a areer+
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
Conclusion
One wa# of desri'ing the deision of whether #ou should go to ollege or not is #ou/re
ga('ling with #our future+ Those that do not go to ollege at all have a higher hane of 'eing
une(,lo#ed) o((itting ri(es) having eono(i ,ro'le(s) or even having a (ore trou'led life as an
elderl# with the lowered soial seurit# ino(e+ It does not (ean that will ha,,en no (atter what
though) 'eause one get so(ewhere even without a ollege degree and live a 'alaned life with enough
effort and (a#'e lu-+ Going to ollege on the other hand should re*uire ,lanning or a good a(ount of
ti(e thin-ing a'out #our future+ It does not guarantee suess in #our life) it onl# o,ens doors for #ou+
!ot all degrees are that eas# either) so(e reall# re*uire ver# high talent or ould even 'e over,o,ulated
whih inreases diffiult# in landing a 0o'+ College is the -e# to o,ening (an# doors) rather than a
straight ,ath for an easier life+
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
References
;a- to shool studies+ National Center for Education Statistics+ Retrieved fro(
htt,:>>nes+ed+gov>fastfats>dis,la#+as,1idF3<.
Enroll(ent+ National Center for Education Statistics+ Retrieved fro(
htt,:>>nes+ed+gov>fastfats>dis,la#+as,1idF=7
College Enroll(ent u, A(ong .22= High Shool Grades 5.2&26+ Bureau of Labor Statistics: U.S.
Department of Labor+ Retrieved fro(
htt,:>>www+'ls+gov>o,u'>ted>.2&2>tedG.2&224.7+ht(
Euse'io) C+) H MendoCa) A+ 5.2&46+ Education Pays IGra,hJ+ Retrieved fro(
htt,:>>e4f+org>i(ages>E4ACGTheCase+,df
College Atlas En#lo,edia of Higher Eduation 5n+ d+6 Retrieved fro(
htt,:>>www+ollegeatlas+org>earn:a:ollege:degree+ht(l
Warne) L+ 5.2&3) Kul# 326+ More Eduation) ;etter Retire(ent+ Retrieved fro(
htt,:>>www+n,a+org>,u'>i'&.9
Status Bro,out Rates+ National Center for Education Statistics+ Retrieved fro(
htt,:>>nes+ed+gov>,rogra(s>oe>indiatorGo0+as,
National Dropout Prevention Center/Netor! 5n+ d+6 Retrieved fro(
htt,:>>www+dro,out,revention+org>statistis>*ui-:fats>eono(i:i(,ats:dro,outs
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Running Head: IS COLLEGE WORTH IT
A,,endi$
College is worth attending
Strongl# Agree Agree Bon/t Lnow Bisagree Strongl# Bisagree
College is onl# for ,eo,le that an afford it
Strongl# Agree Agree Bon/t Lnow Bisagree Strongl# Bisagree
Mou will 'enefit a lot fro( attending ollege
Strongl# Agree Agree Bon/t Lnow Bisagree Strongl# Bisagree
The loss of (one# for a degree is worth it in the long run
Strongl# Agree Agree Bon/t Lnow Bisagree Strongl# Bisagree
;ad things will ha,,en in #our future if #ou do not go to ollege or dro,out
Strongl# Agree Agree Bon/t Lnow Bisagree Strongl# Bisagree
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