Long-Term Benefits Of A College Education

Most people may not even start thinking about a college education until high school. Most do not realize the commitments they have to make to earn a college degree. “Student loans only go so far in covering the financial commitment of college and the commitment of time spent on attending classes and studying cannot be minimized” (Belleni). Although the costs involved in earning a college degree are many, the rewards gained later in life are immeasurable. College is costly both financially and personally due to the amount of time and dedication it takes to complete, but the long-term benefits of having a higher education, employment opportunities, and personal growth outweigh the costs in the end.

Investing in college may create more happiness

People who do not go to college may struggle more with paying for bills and other payments. “Education helps people do higher-skilled work, get jobs with better-paying companies or open their own businesses” (Leonhardt). People who start their own businesses are usually very successful. They are the people who go to college and use that environment to grow and learn and to gain skills. “Only about thirty-three percent of young adults get a four-year degree today, while another ten percent receive a two-year degree” (Leonhardt). The thirty-three percent who obtain a four-year degree can achieve better jobs for that extra work they put in. The group with a two-year degree, while they will have better job opportunities than those with only a high school diploma, will mostly lose a job to a four year-degree graduate. “Not sending them to college would be a disaster” (Leonhardt). It is as if going to college is the next logical step in life after high school in order to help in so many aspects later in life. The “college experience” people talk about is great and fun but also useful for gaining friends and forming valuable connections. Going to college and making connections can be very beneficial later in life and it can also help a person

You might think that going straight to a job and not attending college is a good idea because you can learn from the real world and mature better than in the bubble of college. In fact, “sixty-one percent of Americans surveyed believe a work ethic is extremely important to be successful compared to forty-two percent who think a college degree is what it takes” (Pew Social). However, among a survey of respondents who graduated from a four-year college, “sixty-nine percent say it was useful in helping them grow and mature as a person and fifty-five percent say it was very useful in helping them prepare for a job or career” (Pew Social). During the two or four years they are in college, students begin to become more mature and more self-reliant than when they were in high school. As the student becomes more mature and self-reliant, this can mean that the student could settle down and find a career for life. This also means that the student can find meaningful, lifelong relationships that form a network of other college graduates that can be useful when looking for job opportunities. It is said that “education seems to make people happier and healthier” (Leonhardt). Overall, the college atmosphere can help students become happier as they discover who they are and what they want to do as a career. Even though some gain the “freshman