College Education Essay Example for Free

College Education Essay What makes college education so important? College is not just a choice, its the beginning of a lifelong journey, one that will shape and determine future choices, decisions and purposes. College is going to help you determine a career that you want to pursue. It will help and guide you in the right direction but you have to be the one to put in the effort. But some may say college is a waste, and will not make their life any better. Some will ask what makes a good college, what do you look for and at. College is one of the most important aspects of succeeding in today’s world. College is much more than just a degree in college you also learn how to learn, perhaps one of the most important things you can get out of college. Once you understand how to gather information by reading books about a subject, determine what information is important and what is not, and how to put it all together, you can master any subject, often without even going to college. By the way, doing a few Google searches and gathering information off the web that may or may not be accurate is not doing research, though it is a useful way to get a quick explanation on what a subject is and is good to find out what material is good to read. According to Bridget who was the first of her sisters and brothers to graduate from The University of Toledo with a Masters in Accounting said college wasn’t a choice her parents said she had to go to college. Even though at the time she was attending college she didn’t think it was important and necessary, because back then it was easier to get a job without a college degree. But now she’s happy she went because now she has her dream job, and is making a lot of money. Now she has a life that she never knew would happen to her. She also has the skills she needs to help someone else reach their goals in life. When she first started college she didn’t know what she wanted to do and she didn’t take it seriously. She partied all the time, was late to all her classes and didn’t do most of her assignments, she barely managed to get all C’s in her classes. She didn’t really start to take college seriously until her third year in college. But once she started to pay attention more and was more focused, she knew she had to get her act together if she wanted to be something in life. And she also knew she went to the right college. What makes a great college and what are you looking for the college to have? Linda said she looked at their approach to teaching and their overall education experience. She also looked for the student-faculty ratio and average class size. (Is she going to get individualized attention in her classes or just be one in a crowd? Or do she want my professors to know her name? Are they accessible outside of class if she needed extra help on homework or projects. She also looked at their medical program. (What are their general ed requirements? Would she have to take classes in several disciplines? Is there a senior project requirement? Is there a first year seminar, academic boot camp class required for all freshmen? ). she also looked at how many credits needed and gpa she needed for her major, and also how many credits she needed to graduate. And how classes are structured (lecture, discussion-based, large lecture with small discussion groups, very hands-on, lots of group projects or papers.. etc). Do they have activities she like (including athletics that she might want to do)? Is the school diverse/ homogenous? How good is their financial aid and can she afford attending there? Are the dorms nice or shabby? Are you required to live in the dorms for 1-2 years or do most students commute from home? Do students get jobs right away after graduation? Does the school have a high dropout rate? Linda said those are some of the things she looked at when she made her choice to attend the University of Cincinnati. She glad she made her choice and would do it all over again. But some would think college is a waste of time. According to Mark he said the older I get, the less sure I am about this notion that a college education is essential for a good life. As far as important important for what? Making more money? Then I guess you could make the argument it is more important, however, some of the worlds richest and most successful men (Bill Gates, Larry Ellison, etc) drop out. Happiness? Actually the research shows that those who perform physical jobs, that typically dont require a college education, tend to be happier. Also, college will be no help for someone that is not prepared for it. Should a woefully underprepared student get accepted to a school. Take out several thousands in loans and somehow manage to just barely graduate, she/he would be much worse of than if she/he had never gone to college as they are not going to get a job ahead of the sea of infinitely more qualified applicants and have to resort to unskilled labor. Had said person gone to a trade school, would have been much better off. Despite these views on college education you are the one who has a choice to make. Do you want to go to college or do you think college is just not for you. That’s on you, you are the one who has to live with it no one else