A blog post was recently published that discussed recent trends in college majors. It cited a study of Yale University that showed a drastically declining number of English majors, contrasted by a large increase in the number of economic majors. This may be due to the increasingly common view that college is largely a monetary investment.
Why is college being viewed as a monetary investment? Well, largely because the students themselves have a larger stake in it than ever before. As of 2014 the debt of American students from their student loans has totaled well over 1 trillion dollars (Frizell). This increase in student loans has corresponded to the increase in the cost of college itself; which, was largely due to the increase of total students applying to college.
But, not only is college viewed as a monetary investment by students, it's also viewed as a monetary investment by parents. This pressure from parents to "succeed" (an American saying that often translates to: go to a competitive college and earn a lot of money) is largely in effect at my school, New Trier High School. I was discussing this subject with a classmate of mine who said that she received a low ACT score the first time she took the test. In response, her parents got her a tutor and her score increased significantly allowing her to get into a better school. This story is so common at New Trier (my own parents payed for both a class and a tutor) because the school is located in a high-income neighborhood. But, the reason why people want to be able to afford a tutor in the first place is because it essentially buys you a competitive ACT score. A competitive ACT score gets you into a competitive college. And (if you take the right major, like say, economics) the prestige of going to a competitive college will merit a high-income job (or at least that is the theory held by many parents in my neighborhood). My dad offered me similar advice saying that I should consider going to a larger school with more "name recognition" instead of the smaller liberal arts schools I have been looking at. Clearly, parents want their children to be "successful," will steer their education from the sidelines in that direction.
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| Roughly 20 students of my schools graduating class received a perfect score on their ACT |
Although I will not feel the financial pressure of the many students taking on college debt because my parents can afford (and are thankfully willing) to put me through college, I do feel the pressure to succeed. It's the reason why I took solely business electives until my Junior year, and the reason why I will in all likelihood take yet another math course my senior year that I couldn't care less about. After all, with so many Americans (many far less advantaged than I) striving for "success," I feel a twisted sense of guilt whenever I consider striving for something else.
1 comment:
Erik, sweet blog bro! Your page as a ton of hits, I'm jealous man. Anyways, what is up with higher education? It has become so expensive that for most people it is un-affordable. College used to be an affordable luxury, now it's an un-affordable necessity. Why is this? Because when there is an opportunity to make money, people will capitalize on that. The college-industrial complex is a very real thing. From the ridiculous amount tuition is, to food, to dorms, to textbooks, and to personal fees, college is absurdly expensive. And the push for higher ACT scores is not only so you can get into a better college, it can also be just to get INTO college. The higher your ACT score, the more scholarship money you receive. Does this seem right? Should someone who received a 32 get more money than someone who got a 29. Both are good scores, however one receives more financial aid than the other. It's just a number, yet that number can mean the difference between going to college or not, for some people.
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