Background information on the motion college education is worth it in the United States of America by Chairperson: Tjelcey Urbanek

The American debate over whether a college education is worth it began when the colonists arrived from Europe and founded “New College” (later renamed Harvard University) in 1636. With 20.2 million US college students in 2015 and average student debt at over $28,950 according to a report published by the Institute for College Access and Success., the debate continues today.

According to surveys conducted by PEW RESEARCH CENTER, A majority of Americans (57%) say the higher education system in the United States fails to provide students with good value for the money they and their families spend. An even larger majority—75%—says college is too expensive for most Americans to afford. At the same time, however, an overwhelming majority of college graduates—86%—say that college has been a good investment for them personally.

According to a report published by procon People who argue that college is worth it contend that college graduates have higher employment rates, bigger salaries, and more work benefits than high school graduates. They say college graduates also have better interpersonal skills, live longer, have healthier children, and have proven their ability to achieve a major milestone.

People who argue that college is not worth it contend that the debt from college loans is too high and delays graduates from saving for retirement, buying a house, or getting married. They say many successful people never graduated from college and that many jobs, especially trades jobs, do not require college degrees.

According to a new report by the Brookings Institution, 1 in 10 jobs in the United States is a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) job that doesn’t require a bachelor’s degree. Those jobs, on average, pay about $53,000 per year. They can be held with a community college degree or a certificate from any number of specialty schools that teach computer skills.

Recent poll results obtained by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) shed some light on what Americans think about the value of a college education. The data shows the public is split on the question, with college graduates more than twice as likely to say, “Yes, it’s worth it,” than non-college graduates (62 to 30 percent, respectively).

Bibliography

Pew Social & Demographic Trends. (2013, May 16). Is College Worth It? Retrieved from http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/files/2011/05/Is-College-Worth-It.pdf

ProCon. (2016, November 8). College education. Retrieved from http://college-education.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=006578

Rothwell, J. (2013, June 13). The Sub-Bachelor STEM Economy. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/the-sub-bachelor-stem-economy/

Glum, J. (2015, October 27). Student Loan Crisis Update: College Graduates’ Debt ‘Highest Yet’ With $28,950 Average In 2014. Retrieved from http://www.ibtimes.com/student-loan-crisis-update-college-graduates-debt-highest-yet-28950-average-2014-2158344

The Huffington Post. (2014, September 1). The Great Debate: Is College Still Worth It? Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-ricardo-azziz/debate-college-worth_b_4561068.html

Argument by the 1st speaker for the motion college education is worth it: Manouk Bosschieter

During high school, students may begin to question the importance of a college education. They might find themselves asking, “Why is it important to go to college?” The answer is that more than ever, attending college provides opportunities for graduates which are not as widespread to those who have only received a higher education.

Higher Salaries

A college education may be one of the best investments of time and money for a person’s career. A report produced by the American Community Survey stated that those who held a bachelor’s degree were expected to earn a 40-year lifetime salary of about $2.4 million dollars on average. On average, those who held master’s degrees earned $2.8 million dollars. That’s $1 million less in retirement and $17,500 less in income every year. Before you don’t go to college, consider what you would do if you had an additional $1 million available when you retire. Would you buy a home? Create a fund for your children? Travel the world?

Better Life Skills

During classes, college students often develop the skills needed to make life decisions, ranging from buying a home to helping their children choose their own college. Other advantages of educational degrees may include improved self-discipline, study habits and cooperative behaviors that can be applied to career projects and tasks.

According to a survey from Arthur Chickerings who is an educational researcher in the field of student affairs, students ranked interpersonal skills as the most important skill used in their daily lives where Checkerings research shows that developing mature interpersonal relationships is one of the seven stages a student’s progress through in college. According to Vivek Wadhwa, who is a technology entrepreneur and scholar states that American children learn these social skills by going to college, they develop skills which make them innovative, and Americans are the most innovative people in the world because of the education system.

Shortage of jobs

The world right now has a shortage of engineers. Around the world, schools are ramping up to educate engineers as the demand for this type of skill set is especially high. Also, colleges offer career services, internships, job shadowing, job fairs, and volunteer opportunities to a wide variety of courses that may provide a career direction. According to Indiana University at Bloomington, over 80% of college student’s complete internships before graduation, giving them valuable employment experience before entering the job market. According to the US department of education, in Apr. 2013 the unemployment rate for college graduates over 25 years old was 3.6% compared to 7.5% for high school graduates.

(http://www.census.gov)

Bibliography

Arthur Chickering, “The Seven Vectors: An Overview,” cabrini.edu (accessed Sep. 5, 2013)

Cooperative Institutional Research Program, “1994 Nine-Year Follow-Up Survey (of 1985 Freshmen),” Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA, 1995

Indiana University at Bloomington, “Internship Experiences of IUB Psychology Majors – 50+ Examples,” indiana.edu (accessed Sep. 26, 2013)

US Census Bureau, “Educational Attainment in the United States, 2016,” census.gov, Mar. 2017

US Department of Education, “Database of Accredited Programs and Institutions,” ed.gov, Aug. 16, 2013

Sandy Baum, Jennifer Ma, and Kathleen Pays, “Education Pays 2010: The Benefits of Higher Education for Individuals and Society,” collegeboard.com, 2010

60 Minutes, “Partying and Its Benefits,” cbsnews.com, May 20, 2012

Argument by the 2nd speaker against the motion college education is worth it in the United States of America: Anis laazari

Thank you Tjelcey for the introduction, I am Anis Laazari and I debate against the motion: ‘College education is needed for success in life”. “You’ve read the success stories. Steve Jobs dropped out of college after six months. Mark Zuckerberg did the same his sophomore year. Richard Branson? He never even graduated high school” (Bariso, 2015).

Argument 1: The financial problems are not worth it

–          According to New York Times, 36 percent of Americans 18 to 31 years old were still living with their parents. That was the highest level that had ever been recorded (Rampell, 2013).  Overall, approximately 25 million U.S. adults are currently living at home with their parents according to Time Magazine (Corbett, 2012). According to Micheal Snyder one of the biggest reasons of these Americans’ independence on their parents is their high student loan debts (Snyder, 2014). Unfortunately, it is becoming more difficult for young people to become financially independent.  While students are in high school, they are told they need to go to college.  Then they are urged to take out whatever loans that they will need to pay for it, ensuring them that they will be able to get “good jobs” which will enable them to pay off those loans when they graduate (Snyder, 2014).

–          Student debt factor into whether or not millennials purchase a home in their mid-20s to mid-30s (Rent.com, 2014).

–          According to a Wells Fargo study, about one-third of millennials say they would have been better off working, instead of going to college and paying tuition (Touryalai, 2013). That’s no surprise because student loan debt now exceeds credit card debt in the U.S. which is $798 billion, according to Forbes (Touryalai, 2013).

–          According to CNN, a college degree doesn’t pay off for years. In 2010, the typical college student had to work 8 years to break even on their bachelor’s degree investment, Goldman found. As the price of college education increases, it’s taking longer for the investment to pay off (Long, 2015).

Argument 2: College degrees are not always good for the economy

–          According to See Thru Education, the rise in the amount of Americans with a college education has been accompanied by a sharp reduction in the rate of economic growth (Vedder, 2015). This shows that the more people with a college education, the lower the rate of economic growth.

Arguments 3: Alternatives to College

–          A recent interview with Google’s senior vice president for People Operations discovered that 14% of people at Google have never gone to college. “Yet Google is one of the most successful, innovative and challenging companies in the whole world. With years of practice, they’ve developed enough skills that they don’t need a piece of paper to show that they can do the job. They’ve already proved it in the programs and applications they can create” (Wilezol, 2013).

–          Apprenticeship method in which trainees learn a craft or trade by hands-on experience while working with a skilled worker, usually under a written agreement (BusinessDictionary, 2016).

According to bubble jobs:

– Learning on the job – During an apprenticeship, you have got the opportunity to learn as you work. Rather than being in a classroom all week, you can get hands-on experience.

– You get paid to learn.

– You might get a job at the end of it – If you have impressed your employer, you might get yourself a permanent job at the company. Imagine finishing with a qualification and a job straight away (Scarlett, 2016).

Bibliography

BusinessDictionary. (2016).

Corbett, M. (2012, February 2012). Romance & Real Estate: How Your Housing Situation Affects Your Love Life. Time Magazine. Opgehaald van http://business.time.com/2012/02/14/romance-real-estate-how-your-housing-situation-affects-your-love-life/#ixzz1n85dX0xm

Long, H. (2015, December 9). Is college worth it? Goldman Sachs says maybe not. CNN. Opgehaald van http://money.cnn.com/2015/12/09/news/economy/college-not-worth-it-goldman/index.html

Rampell, C. (2013, August 1). Millennials, in Their Parents’ Basements. New York Times. Opgehaald van https://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/01/millennials-in-their-parents-basements/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=1

Rent.com. (2014, September 2014). How Student Loan Debt is Affecting Home Ownership. Forbes. Opgehaald van https://www.forbes.com/sites/rent/2014/09/06/how-student-loan-debt-is-affecting-home-ownership/#2aba427041a3

Scarlett. (2016). Apprenticeship vs College? Bubble jobs. Opgehaald van http://www.bubble-jobs.co.uk/blog/graduate-advice/apprenticeship-vs-college/

Snyder, M. (2014, February 20). 29 Percent Of All U.S. Adults Under The Age Of 35 Are Living With Their Parents. DC Clothes Line. Opgehaald van http://www.dcclothesline.com/2014/02/20/29-percent-u-s-adults-age-35-living-parents/

Touryalai, H. (2013, May 22). Student Loan Problems: One-Third Of Millennials Regret Going To College. Forbes. Opgehaald van https://www.forbes.com/sites/halahtouryalai/2013/05/22/student-loan-problems-one-third-of-millennials-regret-going-to-college/#569675207797

Vedder, R. (2015, September 1). THE OPPORTUNITY COSTS OF HIGHER EDUCATION. Seethruedu. Opgehaald van http://www.seethruedu.com/the-opportunity-costs-of-higher-education/

Wilezol, D. (2013). Is a College Degree Necessary for a Good Job? Not Always. Values and Capitalism. Opgehaald van http://www.valuesandcapitalism.com/is-a-college-degree-necessary-for-a-good-job-not-always/

 

Argument by the 2nd speaker For the motion college education is worth it  in the United States of America: Yoran de Vries

Greater benefits

Part of the reason employment benefits is so important is because they offer stability for your family, especially in the case of health care. They are called benefits, but in reality, they are a vital part of anyone’s salary.

Studies have shown that college graduates are more likely to receive greater employer-provided benefits than employees without a college degree. A 2008 report produced by College Board showed that roughly 70 percent of individuals with a college degree received health insurance from their employer, while less than 50 percent of employees with only a high school degree received the same benefit.

Across the board, college graduates are able to find jobs with better benefits.

Job stability

During an economic downturn, it’s not uncommon for employers to cut jobs. What positions do you think are first to get cut? Probably those at the bottom, positions requiring unskilled labor. During a recession, the unemployment rate among college graduates is substantially lower than the unemployment rate among employees with only a high school degree. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, having an associate degree suggests that you will be 30% less likely to be unemployed. By earning a bachelor’s or master’s, this same data suggests that you will be 56% less likely to be unemployed.

Paying alternatives

While it is true that a higher education may be one of the largest expenses you will ever face, the importance of a college education has become quite evident in terms of earning potential within today’s economy. While the importance of a college education is quite evident for many high school students, what is often not as clear is how they will pay for that education. Therefore there are all sorts of alternatives that can help or pay for your college. Local options, Federal options, Merit-based options and Corporate options are the four most common.
This all states that a college education is beneficial from many different viewpoints.

Bibliografie

Benefits of Earning a College Degree. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 June 2017. http://www.educationcorner.com/benefit-of-earning-a-college-degree.html

Allen, Dr. Heather. “Why is Higher Education Important?” Crosswalk.com. Salem Web Network, 21 Dec. 2007. Web. 06 June 2017. http://www.crosswalk.com/family/homeschool/why-is-higher-education-important-1367463.html

Beckstead, Rachel. “Benefits of College and a College Degree.” Online Colleges, Universities, and Degrees | College Atlas. N.p., 27 Apr. 2017. Web. 06 June 2017. https://www.collegeatlas.org/earn-a-college-degree.html

“Importance of College Education.” Articles Advice. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 June 2017. http://www.collegeview.com/articles/article/importance-of-college-education

Osborn, Peter. “Do College Grads Really Earn More Than High School Grads?” Cornerstone University. N.p., 29 Nov. 2016. Web. 06 June 2017. https://www.cornerstone.edu/blogs/lifelong-learning-matters/post/do-college-grads-really-earn-more-than-high-school-grads

Sadler, Alex Thomas. “9 ways to pay for college without student loans.” Clark Howard. N.p., 17 May 2017. Web. 06 June 2017. http://clark.com/education/9-ways-to-pay-for-college-without-student-loans/

Titus, Kelvin. “Reasons Why College Education Is Important.” Lifehack. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 June 2017. http://www.lifehack.org/530639/reasons-why-college-education-important

 

Argument by the 2nd speaker against the motion college education is worth it in the United States of America: Genieva Mangoentaroeno

Argument 1: Unemployment

People think that finishing college will guarantee a job where you can make a lot of money, have a nice car and a nice home. This American dream is not realistic anymore. Those who graduate may find that their expected job is difficult to get. The unemployment rate for 20- to 24-year-olds with a bachelor’s degree or higher was 11% in 2015, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. In addition, 44% of recent graduates were underemployed in 2012 according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. They are working jobs that do not require a degree, driven by their need to start repaying college loans.

 

Argument 2: There are hundreds of careers which don’t require a degree

According to a study from the Brookings Institution, about half of all U.S. jobs that require science, technology, engineering, and math training are available to workers without a four-year college degree. Online courses, community school or computer schools can provide training at a much cheaper rate than college courses and you will still get your certificates.

 

Argument 3: Skills and experience is more important

A study from Robin Hubbard from University of Missouri-Columbia stated that employers value college reputation(5%) the least and value internships (23%), college work experience (21%), and volunteering (12%) the most

It’s all about proving to the hiring manager that you have the talent to solve their problems whether or not you have a college degree.

Research by Innovate+Educate shows that skills-based hiring is five times more predictive of success on the job than hiring by degree alone.

 

Bibliography

Kroeger, T., Cooke, T., & Gould, E. (2016, April 21). Economic Policy Institute. Retrieved June 2017, from The Class of 2016: http://www.epi.org/publication/class-of-2016/

Lewis, M. (2017, May 18). Is Going to College and Getting a Degree Worth It? Retrieved 2017, from Money Crashers: http://www.moneycrashers.com/college-degree-worth-it/

National Center for Education Statistics. (2015). Employment rates of college graduates. Retrieved 2017, from National Center for Education Statistics: https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=561

Quora. (2016, April 30). Do employers care about college grades? Retrieved June 2017, from Quora: https://www.quora.com/Do-employers-care-about-college-grades

Weissmann, J. (2013). 44% of Young College Grads Are Underemployed (and That’s Good News). (F. R. York, Producer) Retrieved from The Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/06/44-of-young-college-grads-are-underemployed-and-thats-good-news/277325/

Asoni, A., & Sanandaji, T. (2016). Identifying the effect of college education on business and employment survival. Small Business Economics, 46(2), 311-324. doi:http://dx.doi.org.rps.hva.nl:2048/10.1007/s11187-015-9686-5

Dennis, M. (2016, November 10). Is An Expensive College Worth It? Retrieved June 2017, from Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/financialfinesse/2016/11/10/is-an-expensive-college-worth-it/

Kaufman, M. (2015, March 20). Forbes . Retrieved June 2017, from Is College Still Worth It?: https://www.forbes.com/sites/michakaufman/2015/03/20/is-college-still-worth-it/

Cobb, A. (2013, August 2). Solving the Hiring Disconnect: Focus on Skills. Retrieved June 2017, from Impatient Optimists: http://www.impatientopt