Is Higher Education Worth the Price?

 

In today’s society everyone is often encouraged to go into college after high school and receive a degree in a field they would like to pursue. While many colleges are aimed at helping students reach this goal alone, others are there to provide students with a much deeper understanding of the world. But, of course that can come at a very expensive price for individuals and that can even turn people away from signing up. So the real question is, is higher education worth the price?

I believe that higher education is absolutely worth the price tag. For starters, I think that it is important to clear up the misconception that it is impossible to afford a college education. While it is absolutely difficult and can be very taxing on a family, money for a college education is more accessible than ever. In Sanford J. Ungar’s article, “The New Liberal Arts,” he states this about the government and how they help students gain money for education, “But because of their commitment to expanding need-based financial aid, the net cost of attending a small-liberal arts college can be lower than that of a public university.” This one sentence alone proves that it is possible to attend college if you look in the right place. Each year alone over forty-six billion dollars alone is awarded to individuals in financial aid and scholarship money. It is never impossible. Secondly, a college education gives you an opportunity to learn about the real world. It’s not just note-taking or taking tests, it’s about learning to think again, and in a better way. In his speech, he says, “But if you really learn how to pay attention, then you will know there are other options. It will actually be within your power to experience a crowded, hot, slow, consumer-hell type situation as not only meaningful, but sacred, on fire with the same force that made the stars: love, fellowship, the mystical one-ness of all things deep down.” Wallace is trying to show us the true freedom you can gain from a college education. When you find the right colleges, everything is different and you can gain that experience that Wallace is talking about at a lower price. I think that the best example of one of these schools would be the Raritan Valley Community College. Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus describe the school as, “The signal fact about Raritan and colleges like it is that you can get a start with the liberal arts at a tenth of the cost of many private tuitions and a third of what flagship colleges charge.” This school is a great example of a completely accessible liberal arts education. This again reiterates the point that the schools are out there, they just need to be found. 

      

Clearly, a liberal arts education is just as valuable as any other degree you can earn out there. While it may be hard and shocking at first to see the cost of a college education, it is important to remember that there are schools out there looking to help people earn their degree. It may not seem so at a first glance, but higher education is absolutely worth the price tag.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5cUBS0yKTA

This video explains the importance of experiencing higher education and what that exactly looks like.