Recently there has been a lot of talk about the cost of higher education in the U.S. and whether it is still worth the money. Some young adults actually regret their degrees, and wish they hadn’t gone to college. They argue that although they might be broke and unemployed, they would most certainly not be trapped by student loan debt.
An interesting question therefore arises. Is a college education meant for people from well-to-do families who can afford to pay for it? From a historical perspective, I would like to support this view. Still, I will add what I think the rest of us (non-Rich folks) should do about it. This article is not about whether or not you should go to college, that decision will be based on various factors. However if you’re considering it, this is something you should know.
A Brief History
If you look at Historical Fiction such as Pride & Prejudice, Jane Eyre, and the works of Catherine Cookson, you’ll see that in the olden days most people did not go to college. These books illustrate the initial purposes of universities like Oxford, Cambridge, and Harvard: the pursuit of knowledge for its own sake. People attended college in those days to learn things that were not useful in the “real world”, such as Latin (the world language which nobody speaks) and Philosophy. For most people, going to work or serving in an apprenticeship to learn a trade was the norm.
Very few career paths back then benefited from the sort of abstract, theoretical knowledge taught in universities, and almost none of them required it. The few that did (e.g. Law) still required a few years of apprenticeship before a person could practice on his/her own.
Unlike students, apprentices received a wage. Only if your family had money did you forego that income and go off to a university. Remember that there were no student loans, and you couldn’t work while in school like we do now. Back then, people did not believe that everyone should go to college this allowed many people to make the best of life without it. Those who did not go to college began to work in the economy and the best of them were able to achieve great wealth as craftspeople.
On the other hand, it was always understood that those who went to college would not become wealthy (unless they inherited it). Rather, they would have a good living in a handful of professions such as teaching, or the clergy, and never be poor. Overall, nobody went to college as a way to increase his/her income potential; even successful musicians like Beethoven honed their craft as apprentices instead.
From The Recent Past To The Present
Somewhere along the way we decided that everyone should be able to go to college – I’m not sure why. The economy began to change, and the U.S. government had to create financial aid programs for students. Soon after when college exceeded the cost of financial aid, Federal Student Loans came in. After that, tuition exceeded the Federal Loans so Private Lenders came in to prey on the herd of students. Student debt has been a significant issue since the early 1990s, and has grown dramatically up to this point. We now have parents weighing their children’s education against their retirement because they cannot adequately afford both.
Although the average student loan debt for college graduates is about the price of a brand new car, students from low-income backgrounds borrow far more. Note that the low-income students are most desperate to use education as a means to increase their financial standing. Further, those who attend graduate and professional school like me (especially the best schools) will borrow enough to buy a decent house. The reality today is simply a repeat of the past; a college education is something that only wealthy people can truly pay for, and everyone else seeking one will have to endure intense hardships. Some of these hardships are created by debt, while other hardships will come from efforts to avoid debt.
Now you know. What do you do?
First, stop telling your children to just go to college; it is the wrong way to express your desire that they be successful and financially secure. I prefer to talk to young people in terms of talents, skills and propensities that they have which can be matched to needs that exist in the marketplace. Not all such talents require a formal university education. Today there are plenty of ways to become financially secure without going to college, yet people lean on college for that purpose more than any other.
Secondly, those that are college-bound, already there, or graduated must adopt a true market orientation to reap the best financial rewards. What are the skills that employers expect people with your degree to have? For example, if you are an English Major, Marketing Major, or Communications Major but don’t know how to use WordPress, you will not likely be marketable in the workplace. This is because people with those majors are the ones writing and maintaining corporate blogs and social media campaigns.
If your professors cannot tell you what employers are hiring people with your skill set and how much they are paying, please change your major immediately [unless you want to become a professor yourself]. For my part, a market orientation led me to start my tax practice, and then begin writing this website for my clients who are all young professionals and entrepreneurs. Too often, we are stuck on what we think we should be doing with our degrees, and therefore blind ourselves to the money we can make from doing things that the market place expects from us.
Do you agree or disagree? Have you experienced any effects of the devaluation of a college education?
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
I agree with you when you say that not everyone needs a college education. I don’t entirely agree with assertion that college is only for those who can afford it. You are right when you say that the world economy has changed since the days when Oxford etc were still starting out. Here in Africa the impression is that education is an enabler. Many low to middle income families adopt a borrow now and cross that bridge later approach to college debt. There is a need for skilled graduates in certain fields and employment is relatively easy to find in those fields so many families are willing to make that sacrifice because for them its worth taking the chance.
Great insights Berkia. Education is definitely perceived as an enabler everywhere (my opinion) – certainly, I too used to look at it that way.
Albert – interesting article but I disagree. If we start telling our children not to go to college I am scared to think of what the market might look like. I do however agree that students these days need to be aware of the job possibilities of their degree (especially those who major in librial arts, communication, marketing, etc.) Afterall if it was not for your degree, you would not have that beautiful CPA next to your name.
This is one of those challenging articles Charles, and I appreciate your comments. As for me being a CPA – let’s consider it a “sunk cost” for the sake of this discussion. It can no longer be changed.
As a former teacher and teach for America alumnus, I have no comment. That said, I see where you may have a point.
As an Economics major, my goal is somewhat simple. I would like to learn as much as possible about the history of world economics and social relations in order to develop a society that makes “peace” profitable and allows everyone in the world to equally benefit from the treasures of this world. I firmly believe that there are enough resources to go around. Especially, when an American can go to a buffet and eat until they POP, while a impoverished African can barely gain access to water. This is a problem that we so often ignore. Through my studies at the university level I hope to learn the language of the Oppressor (Capitalist) and bring truth, freedom, and prosperity to the Oppressed (Us). I continue to take out loans and etc. because I am determined to make these changes in this world before the private lenders even get a chance to come after me….lol! Hah! #MUDDY
Hmm….Capitalist as Oppressor? uh-oh…. Always a pleasure to read your comments Olajuwon! #muddy
Lol! U know me. I am going to write a book that tells it all. “A Muddy Manifesto”
I will shoot you a copy once it is complete. Thanks for the great article! You know how to get me going.
A lot of good points here Albert. I agree that people in general do need to consider the long perspective of exactly what they are going to do with their degree post graduation before they dive into a college program and major. It’s frustrating to hear college graduates say they can’t get a job because of some externality, and when you ask them their major and skills, their reply usually triggers a “that’s why” answer in your own mind. As far as certain majors though that train people for specialized work, those degrees are worth the cost even today in terms of lifetime earnings.
I agree Jeff, it IS frustrating to hear people say they can’t get a job with a degree that has few jobs available. Hopefully we can keep talking about this and get everyone to do better. As for majors that train people for specialized work, that house of cards might be falling soon. I have read at least one argument that even medical degrees are no longer worth it (financially). Still studying that though.
Albert, I have mixed feelings about this article. On the one hand, I agree with your argument that education is getting more and more expensive, and will probably gradually trend to the realm of the wealthy. I agree that individuals from “not so wealthy” settings will have to deal with quite a lot of distress in the quest of a good tertiary education. I disagree with the suggestion that we should move back to times past……times when tertiary education was only applicable to a small minority of people. Remember that in those days, society operated on a very simple level. Consider a hypothetical guy who lived in England during Shakespeare’s time – he may have trained as a carpenter, had a means of livelihood by 22yr, married and raised a family. He may not have had to deal with the complexities of life we have to deal with – complex financial issues, credit cards, internet services, car loans, etc. His career and status in life kept him quite spatially displaced from the educated people and he never had to deal with “feeling stupid” around a fraction of society. He married within his circle and raised children largely within that same circle. While I’m not trying to imply that features of our complex society necessarily need advanced education to comprehend and utilize, I firmly believe that education is, and will remain the great equalizer. I feel uncomfortable having young people ascribe to your notion of feeling cut out from a good education just because they weren’t so lucky to be born with the proverbial “silver spoon in their mouths”. For our generation too, university education is now more simple and relevant to everyday and life, and isn’t about studying a “dead language” for example. I think the main issue is that young people should understand the importance of choosing wisely in deciding what areas to major in. If you’re from a poor home and have to borrow to study, it’ll be wiser to choose career A which you love 80% but is in higher demand and better paying, than career B which you may love 100% but is flooded with poor job prospects and not very well paying. I’ll end by suggesting that your article would have been best if entitled, “Studying for a career in my #1 field of interest is for rich people”, and written as such.
I really appreciate this comment, so thank you. This article was meant to be engaged, and I appreciate that you have done so thoroughly. Thanks again for reading!
Very interesting article… here’s what I liked the most about it – the section where you described the history of the cost of college tuition and how that led to student loans. I think everyone should re-read that section and then think about it.
The leaders of the USA continue to claim that education helps the society overall… but it looks like the vast majority of the cost of education is on the individual and not the society. So when education became too expensive to be free, schemes were developed so students could take on mortgage-sized debts to get educated. Great! The Germans and many other European countries put their money where their mouths are: they claim that education helps the society overall (as the USA says) and make college education free for all (unlike the USA). Go figure.
Very interesting…deep comment. Maybe there is an opportunity here for those interested in politics? When we’re all 50 and up, will the best political candidate be the one that addresses our student loan debts?
Thanks for reading and commenting.
You do not address how scholarships and grants affect someone’s ability to attend college, which enable the poorest people to obtain a college education without financial hardship or accumulating debt. Although you and many other people graduated with a large amount of debt, there are many who got a free ride. Some of them aren’t even poor, but belong to middle or upper class families who are getting money based on merit and academic achievements alone. One just has to seek out all the opportunities available to them. College education is not just for the rich, and you do not need to take out loans or suffer financial hardship to do so.
Unfortunately you got the historical perspective wrong: A few hundred years back only a minority could do an apprenticeship: the carpenters (for example) were organized in union-like groups – membership came at a high cost or as inheritance. You could not just “choose” to be a carpenter, if you did not have the money or the family connection your lot was that of an unskilled laborer teetering at the edge of poverty for all your life. The majority of people were part of the unskilled laborer group. As paper became cheaper and printing more commonplace the idea emerged that knowledge is good – and should be available to many people rather than only the few. This is how the modern university was born, and because more and more highly skilled and educated engineers, doctors, lawyers and scientist were needed to run our increasingly complex technology.
Petra, thanks for your comment. Although I used a few hundred years as an example, my goal was not to say that whatever was true then is always true. Commerce and education existed long before unions were invented. In fact, the union membership you describe sounds just like college; it is something only the wealthy can access without going into large amounts of debt.
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