Analysis Of Charles Murray's Essay Are Too Many People Going To College

Recently, many have begun to attack and degrade higher education in the United States. In the book How College Works, authors Daniel Chambliss and Christopher Takacs claim, “As state support has eroded, and as more students attend college in an increasingly desperate attempt to find viable jobs, the price to students of attending an institution of higher education has gone up, especially at more selective institutions” (172). So is college even worth it? Caroline Bird’s excerpt from her book Case Against College “Where College Fails Us” is an adequately written article that agrees with those who question whether college is a good investment. Bird argues that although some students would benefit from college and succeed, many fall short, wasting

In Should The Obama Generation Drop Out Charles Murray talks about the flaws found in the Obama education plan . He brings to the attention of the public the fact that many student in America graduate lacking the skills necessary for the proper college education. Murray goes on to argue that in today 's society students who graduate from High-school go on to technical college to pursue a vocational education in their field of study; whereas, older generations have pursued an all around education, enrolling in classes that were irrelevant to the career they were pursuing. Murray claims that if you test the vast majority of Americans (including himself) in the more rigorous subjects, they would most likely fail. Murray mentions that he does

In recent years, the economy and job outlook has become super competitive throughout the States. With so many people seeking and applying for the same job, employers can only afford to hire a very small amount of people. As a result, they choose the best qualified applicant, which most likely means the applicant with the highest education. With competition increasing exponentially, it is becoming more and more difficult to find, let alone keep a job. That is why college is a necessity in today’s society.

In Charles Murray’s essay “Are Too Many People Going to College,” he believes that the concept of college has changed over the years. According to him, a four-year college is no longer as necessary as it was when it was first created because most jobs requires more on job training. He also adds to his reasoning by mentioning that because of the advancement of internet, physical libraries and the physical proximity of student and teachers is less important. Because of the changes he noticed he believes that people should go to college but not for liberal education. He makes the claim that the basic core knowledge of liberal education should be learned in elementary and middle school and that only people with high academic abilities should be encouraged to go to college.

In my opinion, I agree with Murray’s claim that four year college is not worth, job satisfaction for intrinsic reward, and the dark side of the Bachelor's degree. In my view, Murray’s is right, because college requires student to take 32 courses in four years or longer and not all courses are relate to the field they study with. More specifically, I believe that four years college will take more time to achieve our goal and knowledges doesn’t teach us how to make a living in our society. Murray described in his article, “More people should be getting the basic of a liberal education. But for most students, the places to provide those basics are elementary and middle school” (235).

“On average, college graduates make significantly more money over their lifetime than those without a degree… What gets less attention is the fact that not all college degrees or college graduates are equal. ”(pg.208 para. 1) Stephanie Owen and Isabel Sawhill are senior researchers at Brookings’ Center on Children and Families, Sawhill is also a senior fellow in economics study at Brookings’. Owen and Sawhill authored the essay, “Should everyone go to College?” The authors use a wide variety of rhetorical devices in the essay, including ethos, pathos, and logos to persuade their audience to take another look at whether college is the right choice for them.

High school seniors are faced with a wide variety of decisions as they approach graduation. They must decide whether or not they are going to attend college, begin working, or do something else. If they do decide to attend college, they also must decide whether to pursue a liberal arts education or a vocational one. A liberal arts education primarily includes a collection of different classes and topics students can choose to take and study. A vocational route will mainly educate students on their specific intended career.

In his Essay “Are too many people going to college,” first published in a 2008 issue of AEI, Charles Murray explores many insights onto the topic of furthering education as well as exploring various other options to pursue after high school. Who exactly would think that too many people are going to college? Well with more and more students flooding campuses at the end of every school year and less and less going into trade schools, a shift in the job market is just beginning to be seen on the horizon. Charles Murray’s essay “Are too many people going to college” shows that not only are there other avenues to pursue a potential life long career, but that much of the time pursuing these avenues may offer better results for some wanting to go to college.

In “Are Too Many People Going to College?” Charles Murray offers his opinion on the number of students that pursue a B.A. He believes that two year or four year colleges are not needed for a majority of students who could instead pursue other life paths. He discusses the ability for the general knowledge needed to be learned in primary and secondary school, and for a lessened need for a “brick-and-mortar” institution the problems with the current secondary and higher educational issues including the lessened need to acquire a B.A. All members of society need certain skills in order to be productive members of society. They need to know general facts about the country they live in, general history, and general geography.

The Case Against College by Linda Lee The Case Against College has a unique and interesting premise, exploring the idea that college is not necessary to be successful. In a country “obsessed with college”, American high schoolers often feel as if the next step in their lives has to be either college or failure. Lee, however, disagrees. In her essay, she explores the idea that college is expensive, unnecessary, and can lead to the same results as a path taken without college.

In the world we live in today. Going to college is no longer a choice, or privilege, but rather a need for a brighter future . So the big question that happens to be going around is, “Is College really worth it?”According to Andrew J. Rotherham’s article “Actually, college is very much worth it.”, “5 Ways Ed Pays”produced by (The College board), and “Why College Isn't (And Shouldn’t have to be) For Everyone” written by Robert Reich. The answer to that question is yes.

, “Experts that have researched the performance and job success of college graduates have concluded that, nationwide, college graduates with a bachelor's degree earn 74 percent more per year than those who only complete high school.” This seems very logical when you look at the big picture, having furthered your education will open you up to more jobs that that require more education that will most likely pay more. The University of North Texas in their article “Why Go to College?” shows a graph from The U.S. Census Bureau that shows a professional degree could earn you around 4.4 million dollars compared to less than a high school diploma could earn you around 1 million dollars for a whole worklife. Seeing

There is an ample amount of information that leads people to believe that college is a great choice. In Source F, it is shown that, “Adults who graduated from a four-year college believe that, on average, they are earning $20,000 more a year as a result of having gotten that degree. Adults who did not attend college believe that, on average they are earning $20,000 a year less as a result.” Also, provided in Source F, “...55% say it [college] was very useful in helping them prepare for a job or career.” While these statistics are true, the negatives still outweigh the positives.

College Isn 't The Only Answer If anyone has ever went to high school, then they have heard about college. Everyone has a different point of view on the idea of college. Part of it depends on how someone was raised.

A college education has higher benefits in the long run for better higher paying jobs. Some people think no matter what it gives them it just is not worth the cost. Although, a lot of graduates of college stated that it treated them well, taught them more and college was worth their time (Pew Social and Demographic Trends). Getting an education can be challenging but it is it is worth the hard work because of the money in the future. People that did not get a college degree did not get as much money