Ahhh...the American Dream. You know, the two-story House with the Picket Fence...the Golden Retriever...the 2.71 Kids...THAT American Dream.Now, in our generation, a College Degree has become a part of that rosy image of success in our society. But what does that REALLY mean for the value of higher education? Alot of things, really.
The importance of a college education has risen, and fallen at the same time. If you're thinking to yourself, "that makes no sense", consider this.
For most of our parents, and our grandparents, college was more than just higher education. It was an ideal, a status symbol, a representation of personal accomplishment. Alot of people in this generation (myself included) are the first in the family to go to college.
But a college degree is quickly becoming the equivalent of what a high school diploma used to be. And is that a bad thing? Yes and no.
Consider the present state of education in this country...consider the immigration rate...consider the amount of job outsourcing that exists. Now factor in a highly increased level of college-educated people. If you're thinking that will create some kind of United States Utopia, you'd be wrong.
There's always a direct correlation between poverty and education. But more "smart" people doesn't mean more rich people. It means more poor people, as well as more middle-class people struggling to remain middle-class people. It means more graduates dealing with more debt as a result of student loans. It means tighter job markets, and lower-paying entry level jobs because of expanded applicant pools. Most importantly, it means that having a college degree loses some of its individual meaning and personal importance because EVERYONE will be a college graduate.
Don't get me wrong, I'm an advocate of everyone obtaining as much education as their hearts desire. By all means, go get your B.A., B.S., J.D., Ph.D, M.B.A., etc. I just hope that as a nation, we all can anticipate the future implications of what a more educated U.S. means, and that we do not create more societal problems to deal with, in terms of gaps in income, education, and opportunity. I also hope that the social and economic costs of a nation full of college graduates, will not devalue the intangible value of higher education on a personal and sentimental level.
Real Talk,
OSharif
