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Tina Rodriguez

Professor V

English 101

02 October 2019

Should we or should we not go to college?

The quote I chose is something that influenced my decision to attend UNCG. I

chose the quote by Bill Gates, “I would counsel people to go to college, because it's one

of the best times in your life in terms of who you meet and develop a broad set of

intellectual skills.”

There is an article published on the Forbes website written by Adam Ozimek

called “Should Everyone Go To College?”. The opening sentences say, “The case for

going to college remains strong. On average, it remains a good investment. On the

margin there are some who choose not to go who should go. Now, with that basic

understanding out of the way, there is a huge amount of overreach going on lately in the

"case for college", as you might call it.”(Ozimek) I agree with this very strongly because

some people say very closed-ended phrases and leave no room for choice. Yes, they

make good points, but how can anyone trust an article that simply puts your choice and

decisions out of the way to say essentially a biased societally accepted opinion. Some

people have even gone as far as to say that everyone should have a master’s degree and

even attain at least 8 years of higher education whilst in their career to “be successful”.
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No one is ever done learning but sitting in a classroom is not how some things are

learned. They are learned through experience, opportunities, stepping out of your comfort

zone, travelling to a new place, and following your interests and dreams wherever they

may lead you. Most of that WILL not be done sitting in a classroom listening to lectures

after lectures.

Ozimek concludes his article saying, “Look, I want to emphasize that it really is

true that college educated workers have higher wages on average, and I don't want to

downplay the fact that on average people gain from going to college. Even many on the

margin would benefit from going to college, and increasing college attendance is

probably good public policy right now. But decent jobs that don't require college degrees

exist, and so do college degrees that are really bad investments...We need more realism in

this debate, and sending everyone to college now is a utopian fantasy that does not

represent a true path to a better life for many. Pretending otherwise means understating

the necessity of figuring out ways to help those for whom college is not the best

choice.”(Ozimek) I think this is a great conclusion to come to. There are pros and cons of

going to college, but making a concrete decision on this topic just cannot be attained.

More importantly, it shouldn’t be, because everyone is different. Equal but different. We

all have different paths and we need to stop forcing societal traditions on people. Ozimek

stated something I find to be very poignant, especially to someone who is currently

attending college. He said that pretending that college is the only path to a better life for
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everyone is a false reality in today’s society. He also went on to say that if society

continues to think this way then we lose the ability to necessitate the importance of

helping those who find that college is not the path for them a chance to have a better life

through opportunities and resources. I have known and know many people who have

chosen a different path than college and are better for it. College is a choice, so we need

to stop acting like it isn’t.

I have known many people that are in high paying jobs and never went to college.

Going to college can mean something different for everyone and not everyone stays in

college because they find their path elsewhere. Yes, college does give an advantage in the

job market, but does not not guarantee you over anyone else. This quote exemplifies my

statement, “Doing a degree never has – and never will – guarantee you a job in your

chosen field. Although, yes, it gives you a competitive edge over non-degree holders, that

doesn’t mean you’ll be able to secure employment once you graduate from university.

It’s important to remember that you’ll be competing with other recent grads (and

everyone else in between) for the exact same jobs. A 2015 study found that 6 in 10

graduates were working in low-skilled jobs, including call centres, bars and coffee shops,

due to a shortage of high-skilled vacancies.”(Leitch) Another thing is that the value of a

degree in the job market is decreasing due to more and more people getting the same

degree. Also jobs that require certain degrees are being taken and there is not enough

positions available for those who graduate college with a degree in a large field.
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Therefore, the quote by Bill Gates stating, “I would counsel people to go to

college, because it's one of the best times in your life in terms of who you meet and

develop a broad set of intellectual skills.” is something that I personally don’t agree with.

And as you can see from the sources I chose, there has been an ongoing debate about

whether or not you should go to college. I think college is a choice and Bill Gates is in

the wrong to say that college is the only place where you can meet people and develop a

broad set of intellectual skills. Everyone’s path is different and college isn’t for everyone.

Works Cited

Berkman, Justin. “Should You Go to College? 4 Pros and 3 Cons.” Should You Go to

College? 4 Pros and 3 Cons, Prep Scholar, 9 June 2019, 9:00 am,

blog.prepscholar.com/why-should-i-go-to-college.

Leitch, Chris. “Should I Go to University? The Pros and Cons of Going to Uni.”

CareerAddict, DQ Media, 25 Aug. 2017, www.careeraddict.com/should-i-go-to-

university.

Ozimek, Adam. “Should Everyone Go To College?” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 13 Sept.

2015,www.forbes.com/sites/modeledbehavior/2014/05/29/should-everyone-go-to-

college/#4be8658b2723.
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“Why College Matters.” Common App, 2019,

www.commonapp.org/plan/why-college-matters.