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!".
Showing posts with label two year college programs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label two year college programs. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Two or Four Year College - "Pulling a Rudy"
In the last post I began a discussion of resources with which to help students find colleges to which to apply. I reviewed the site collegeboard.com which is invaluable in this effort. Unlike other college match sites, one of the first questions it asks the student is whether they're looking for a two or four year program. If the student responds, "No Preference", the college match results produced will not preclude two year programs. A lot of people may falsely stigmatize two year programs as being a last resort for students who "can't get in anywhere else". While sometimes true, that's an unfair generalization.
There are numerous reasons not to rule out a two year program. This post will concentrate on some major ones.
-Some students are interested in careers that require Associate's Degrees or even Certification rather than a four year Bachelor's Degree. Many of these jobs are in the technical or applied sciences. People interested in being a Veterinary Technician or Drafter often are employed with certification or a two year degree (Associate). For students who are unsure of their level of interest in a certain area, this can be a very good option rather than spending upwards of $30,000 a year to find out. Once employed in the field, they can decide if they are interested in advancing to a career that requires further study such as Veterinary Medicine or Architecture.
-Students who decide late that they even want to go to college may be able to "prove themselves" to a college with tougher academic and testing requirements than they acquired in high school. I call this "pulling a Rudy". That's a reference to the movie where the character, Rudy, used his good record in a two year program to transfer to Notre Dame. Many two year programs have bridge programs or articulation agreements with four year colleges where, upon completion. a two year graduate can enter into the four year college as a junior. The Baccalaureate Degree you get at graduation reads the name of the four year college or university, not the community college where you began.
-You've probably already figured out that the transfer option previously mentioned is a great way to save money as well. On the average, a community college costs less than half of what a four year state school charges. At a community college you can take core degree requirements at a much lower cost. Just be sure that the four year program you want to transfer to has an articulation agreement with the two year college or will accept the majority of your credits. Consider your college budget. I went to a very fine state university which was relatively inexpensive. Students who had to transfer there from pricier programs were seldom happy. You always want to trade up.
-If the above reasons aren't sufficient to at least pique your interest in alternatives to applying to a four year program immediately after high school, consider the USA Today article of January 18, 2011. The article by Mary Beth Macklein, which can be found at www.usatoday.com is entitled "Report: First Two Years of College Show Small Gains". In it she refers to a report based on a book, Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses.
One of the study's conclusions is that, "Nearly half of the nation's undergraduates show almost no gains in learning in their first two years of college." The authors also found that students spent 51% of their time socializing and recreating; 24% sleeping; 9% working, volunteering or in student club activities; 9% attending class and only 7% studying. Sounds like a sweet deal but, unless you have no need to take loans to subsidize this life style, is it really worth going into thousands of dollars in debt?
There are numerous reasons not to rule out a two year program. This post will concentrate on some major ones.
-Some students are interested in careers that require Associate's Degrees or even Certification rather than a four year Bachelor's Degree. Many of these jobs are in the technical or applied sciences. People interested in being a Veterinary Technician or Drafter often are employed with certification or a two year degree (Associate). For students who are unsure of their level of interest in a certain area, this can be a very good option rather than spending upwards of $30,000 a year to find out. Once employed in the field, they can decide if they are interested in advancing to a career that requires further study such as Veterinary Medicine or Architecture.
-Students who decide late that they even want to go to college may be able to "prove themselves" to a college with tougher academic and testing requirements than they acquired in high school. I call this "pulling a Rudy". That's a reference to the movie where the character, Rudy, used his good record in a two year program to transfer to Notre Dame. Many two year programs have bridge programs or articulation agreements with four year colleges where, upon completion. a two year graduate can enter into the four year college as a junior. The Baccalaureate Degree you get at graduation reads the name of the four year college or university, not the community college where you began.
-You've probably already figured out that the transfer option previously mentioned is a great way to save money as well. On the average, a community college costs less than half of what a four year state school charges. At a community college you can take core degree requirements at a much lower cost. Just be sure that the four year program you want to transfer to has an articulation agreement with the two year college or will accept the majority of your credits. Consider your college budget. I went to a very fine state university which was relatively inexpensive. Students who had to transfer there from pricier programs were seldom happy. You always want to trade up.
-If the above reasons aren't sufficient to at least pique your interest in alternatives to applying to a four year program immediately after high school, consider the USA Today article of January 18, 2011. The article by Mary Beth Macklein, which can be found at www.usatoday.com is entitled "Report: First Two Years of College Show Small Gains". In it she refers to a report based on a book, Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses.
One of the study's conclusions is that, "Nearly half of the nation's undergraduates show almost no gains in learning in their first two years of college." The authors also found that students spent 51% of their time socializing and recreating; 24% sleeping; 9% working, volunteering or in student club activities; 9% attending class and only 7% studying. Sounds like a sweet deal but, unless you have no need to take loans to subsidize this life style, is it really worth going into thousands of dollars in debt?
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