Cunningham

Kira Cunningham

Seminar in Composition

Amy Flick

October 28, 2019

Predetermined Paths

I am a freshman in college. Female. What does that mean for me? For my future? I see all

those around me on the same path as myself. Do they have the same future and end goal? The

question exists because an expectation for all of us exists. An expectation that determines how

my future is going to look, how the future of the person next to me is going to look, and the role

that we will play whenever we grow up to be an intricate part of the world in which we live.

Except, the whole issue is that we, currently, are an intricate part of the world. It took me some

time to realize but being in college now and then graduating from the University of Pittsburgh is

a process that leads to starting a life which is integrated into a social norm and expectation of

society. This entails getting a sufficient job, marrying to start a family, and having children to

carry on the traditional role. It is the same for all of us—freshman in college, male or female,

students in high school, adults in the work field, and children who haven’t even recognized the

world around them yet. It is the social norm to carry on traditionally and all have the same

outcome, but if you set yourself aside from the norm then you’ve failed to meet the expectation.

My senior year of high school, I chose to go to college in Pittsburgh. It’s not just that I

chose to go to college but rather that I chose the place in which I would get my degree. It was

just the right distance away from home where I was separated but also close enough to not feel

stuck. That was a big thing for me because I have always been a homebody and one who doesn’t

like change very much. For the past 18 years of my life, I had known what was to come the

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following year and there wasn’t much room for uncertainty because there weren’t really many

options other than school at that age. During my last year when I was choosing my college, not

my future, but rather my college, I realized that things were going to get more complicated

regarding the upcoming variety of choices ahead of me such as where to go, the kind of

education I would get, and even new living situations. I wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about

this idea of change, but I knew that college had to be the next step. At the time I didn’t really

question why I was going or what it would mean for me in terms of my future because everyone

was going, and I wasn’t going to be alone during the transition, so all was supposed to be okay. I

was to just accept that this was the path that we, newly graduated high school students, were to

be on and it was normal for some of us to be scared or lack enthusiasm. It meant growing up and

gaining independence in order to get ready for the upcoming competition and hard work.

It wasn’t until I got to college that I questioned why I was here. All around me, people

were doing the same things—moving into dorm rooms, maneuvering their schedules, and

studying for exams which was a big one for me that imposed the great question, why am I here? I

was always a good student, and everyone said that I was because I got straight A’s, a high GPA,

and never settled with anything below it. But whenever I got here and witnessed everyone

studying and talking about how they did on their exams or what they got, the more I questioned

my capability and compared it to everyone around me. This was because I found myself not

being consumed by school nor did I want to be, so I felt as if I were floating and just doing the

motions of everyone else without really grasping onto school in general. And whenever someone

would say that I can do it too and that I’m smart enough, the more I would deny it because who

was to determine the level one must be at in order to succeed? I knew that I was smart enough,

and I knew I was capable but the fact that this was true, placed me to be a part of a socialized

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group. A group in which is contributing to the structure of society where one must go to college

to get a job in order to succeed in life. This was privilege, and it made me angry because by

meeting the standards set by society meaning going to college and passing exams, we’re

contributing to society therefore making the norms stronger. As for those not doing these things

and aren’t on the same path of going to college or getting a job, they are excluded and are failing

to meet the expectation.

Introspectively, I could get a job without going to college. I could enjoy my life without

the money coming out of getting a degree to become a Speech Language Pathologist or without

having traditional family structure, maybe I would travel. But what would that say about me?

That I am not smart enough or capable of achieving anything such as education leading to a

high-level job or that I do not have the work ethic to belong among the middle class. Yeah,

society says this. It sets an expectation that you go to college and you get a job and you make

enough money to support the tradition. Why? Because collectively, we have learned that it is the

right thing to do. Our socioeconomic system makes it so we all must work in order to gain the

necessities that all those around us have which is more than just a single house and car or

washing machine. It’s doubling all the amenities that we should buy because it’s all about money

set in motion by work, and it never stops. Sure, I could go into the military or work right out of

high school and maybe I would if that was my desire, but for what I want, I am expected to go to

college. I have to go in order to get the education for my job that allows me to get the money I

need so that I can have all these amenities and necessities the people around me have. If not, I’m

poor or once again, incapable of achieving what I want. Even if I were to decide against any of

these things, society says that I will have them, like all others including an education. This is

what makes students obligated to go to college, hence why we’re here.

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Not only does just an education come out of the completion of college, but so does a

multitude of positives that can result from going through either those four years or two years.

Within a couple years experiencing new opportunities mostly within the field of academics, but

also with new social opportunities too, a person can grow and develop themselves further. This is

because of the interactions they may encounter whether it’s learning something new during

college or just understanding something about another person’s life as they are surrounded by

many other unique students and people. Elaborating upon this idea more, an article from

Psychology Today, titled “Why Go to College”, talked about the relevant reasons of investing

time and money into the college route. It gave the positive side towards attending college and

why spending the money is worth it compared to those supporting the argument of not getting an

education. Points that were made mostly include how college presents “the ability to work in

collaboration with large groups of others” (Wilson, 2007), making lifelong friends though

experiences, diversifying the world in which someone lives, and learning skills such as time

management or following rules. Along with others, these aspects of the article really generate

some main ideas in college that put you one step further to be a well-rounded person with

meaningful backgrounds. They also are the building blocks of succeeding in college from the

perspectives of social positive factors but there still exists the financial issues that college brings.

Although following the track towards getting a degree has many benefits and is very

favored in the world we live in today, the controversy to the affordability of it grows stronger.

An article from Business Insider, “College is more expensive than it's ever been, and the 5

reasons why suggest it's only going to get worse”, recently written by Hillary Hoffower suggests

that college expenses are continually going to get steeper. It represents this by showing graphs of

increasing average college tuitions over the past 30 years with private nonprofit and public 4-

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year institutes. She says that costs are rising as demands to go to college are increasing. It has

been a topple down effect from the availability of student loans when “congress passed a bill

known as the Middle-Income Student Assistance Act” in 1978. The steady rise in tuition can be

seen in one of the graphs from the article (The College Board: Trends in College Pricing 2017)

while the student debt increases can be seen in the other graph (The Student Loan Report). Both

effects trace back to why the demand for college is so high which is explained by Hoffower

saying, “the increase in the student population indicated that the advantages college offers

outweigh its overwhelming costs.” Richard Vedder, a professor of economics at Ohio University,

mentioned in the article that many fear of not succeeding without a postsecondary education but

the degrees are worth less than before due to the rising costs put into them. This is where the

article has informational gaps because it says education is necessary to succeed but the cost is

excessive and potentially not worth it, so the question stands to be, what is the best option?

Mark A. Heckler goes into talking about the financial aspects of college and why it’s a

crucial part of our world in “The importance of a college education”, posted on the Post-Tribune-

Chicago Tribune. He elaborates on the earlier implied question and rephrases it in the article—

“is the college education worth the investment?” To answer this, Heckler says that education is

more important now than before because it’s the most stable path to increase wage potential and

the reliable education can prepare in the best way for an unknown future. Because of this, the

wages are worth it to our society because “college is incredibly influential in terms of a person’s

long-term financial stability and that its value is higher today than it ever has been,” according to

the author. It is the best path to a successful future with the status of our society with currency

being money and profit as degrees lead to accumulating money in order to prosper.

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As far as college setting us up for a steady future, there are endless other opportunities

that one may choose to do rather than attend a university or college. In Anthony Moore’s article

on the Medium, “You Don’t Have to Live the Life Everyone Else is Living”, a new perspective

is brought up that each person’s future doesn’t have to look the same as the next one. He brings

up the points that most people either aren’t living the life that they want to be when he says that

“their relationships, income, health, activities, and behaviors are pretty mediocre” and avoiding

this plateau is “by ignoring the advice of anyone who doesn’t know how to get where you want

to go.” This idea comes from a different point of view but is important to grasp as it can be

directly applied to the making of the decision to attend college or to take another path. The

article, “Alternatives to College That Will Change Your Life”, by Thomas Laurinavicius

provides options that’re available other than getting an education in college. He talks of travel,

volunteer, an internship, reading books, business, etc as alternatives that “will teach you great

things in life and will help you find your inner voice and life calling.” There are various benefits

to these potentially risky alternatives but show that there’re other paths than just college.

We have been socialized to think we must go to college because of tradition and social

structures that have been normalized in our society. The known reasons for this are that going to

college means getting a degree to help us succeed in our future by setting us for jobs and

allowing us to gain experience and knowledge from the world around us. With this being said,

going to college is a tendency most people lean to after college, but there are other options and

positives that could come by taking another path. The sources that have been talked about

provide great insight towards the plus and negatives of going to college but there aren’t many

perspectives on the outcomes of those who do not attend college. Some are very successful and

find their own ways without a degree which breaks down the traditional idea of only succeeding

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from going to college. This came to be because society today has created an expectation through

the repetition of younger people following this path and of adults succeeding from this path to

attend college. With that being said, going to college is the most chosen option for students out

of high school and is thought to be the most stable decision, but aside from society’s expectation,

there are many other options outside of going to college. The paths are endless and maybe the

success from one decision isn’t necessarily identical for that of the next, but not every life has to

look the same. There are many benefits and opportunities aside from the collective manner of

going to college that one could pursue, it’s just a matter of finding the right path and finding the

potential, whatever that means to the individual.