Time Out

Initially I had planned to devote this post to a discussion of scholarship availability as the third installment of "Show Me the Money". However, I want to back up a bit and will table that topic until my next post on February 16. It may seem a little late in the game for high school seniors to re-assess their post graduation plans, but before you make a commitment that will affect your life (and credit score!) for years, I think it's worth examining your decision.

It gets real from here - acceptance letters will be received and final choices will need to be made. In Daniel Akst's review of Andrew Ferguson's Crazy U,
he writes that, "Most students (and their parents) have no clear idea why a university is the reflexive next step after high school, and yet roughly 70% of American high school graduates go on to college.". (WSJ Weekend March 5-6, 2011) Indeed, I contend that's a major reason why - "Everybody else is doing it.". Every parent of an adolescent has heard that "reasoning" from their child. In the April 2011 edition of The Costco Connection (Yes, Costco! Don't be a snob. You can find useful information in many places.), Richard Vedder who is a professor of economics at Ohio University says, "Too many persons go to college today, not too few.". Vedder is also the author of Going Broke by Degree: Why College Costs Too Much,
and director of the Center for College Affordability and Productivity - www.centerforcollegeaffordability.org. He says that by his estimates, "60% of the increase in the proportion of Americans with college degrees since 1992 has ended up doing jobs that the Bureau of Labor Statistics says do not require a college diploma". Vedder's research shows that we have about 300,000 waiters and waitresses who have college degrees as do 15 % of taxi drivers. He also states that many students should consider community college and transfer to a four year program if successful. I blogged about this in detail on January, 26, 2011 - "Two or Four Year College? - 'Pulling a Rudy'".

While we're on the topic of "why college?", there's another article worth reading. Michael Graham wrote, "College's Harsh Lesson", which was an op-ed for The Boston Herald and can be found at www.bostonherald.com (March 24, 2011). Graham contends that for many, the motivation to attend college, especially prestigious ones, is actually bragging rights. I discussed this in my post way back on September 8, 2010 - "The Scarecrow Syndrome".

High school graduation and commitment to a costly college education becomes real as you're asked to submit your deposit to the school of your choice shortly after acceptance. It's not something you should take lightly and definitely not because, "Everybody else is doing it!".