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Increasing tuition costs
What are the advantages and disadvantages of higher education
Increasing tuition costs
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The choice of whether or not one should attend college has been a great topic of interest over the past few years with the increase of college tuition. This increase of college tuition questions whether attending college will pay off in the future since numerous amounts of students are left with an excessive amount of student loan debt. Stephanie Owen, a former research assistant at Brooking’s Center and current research associate at the Urban Institute, alongside Isabell Sawhill, co-director of the Center on Children and Families and a senior fellow in economic studies at Brookings, wrote Should Everyone Go to College? In an attempt to answer that question. In their report they breakdown the cost and benefits of going to college often relying …show more content…
on logos throughout the report to appeal to the minds of their audience which is future or current college students. In Should Everyone Go to College? Owen and Sawhill the rhetors do an excellent job supporting their claim with evidence throughout their report setting up for a strong logical appeal. Throughout their report they provide us with a claim and back it up with evidence some of these claims are stronger than others. Owen and Sawhill start by agreeing with the notion that college graduates on average do make more money than high school graduates, however, there is factors that go into your earning potential. This is the best appeal Owen and Sawhill give us they do a great job of giving information that is useful, not everyone needs to go to college. One must consider their choice of major, cost of school, where they are attending school, and a variety of other factors. Depending on the situation college may not be a smart investment (Owen and Sawhill 209). I agree with this notion that some people are not meant for college, but we as a society still push the idea of college which creates conflicting thoughts in the mind of a student. When discussing the benefits of attending college the biggest supporting reason revolves around further expanding one’s knowledge in order to earn a higher income. Supporters of college use ethos in their appeals but they fail to provide evidence of this. They may show numbers that are skewed showing the difference in salary of a high school graduate and a college graduate but they don’t show the majors that earning that high income. They don’t show the number of college graduates without a job and how much debt they are in. Owen and Sawhill do a tremendous job in their report of giving us those numbers and statistics to back up their claim. In their report Owen and Sawhill provide graphs that support what they are talking about, this is using logos a less subjective rhetorical device. The one downside to this is they may use too much logos only focusing on the earnings that are associated with a college degree. They don’t talk about the other benefits that come with having a college degree. One may point this out as a flaw in their work, but I believe it is a positive factor. They do acknowledge that they only focus on the earnings: “In this brief, we take a rather narrow view of the value of a college degree, focusing on the earning premium. However, there are many non-monetary benefits of schooling which are harder to measure but no less important” (Owen and Sawhill 210). By saying this Owen and Sawhill tell the audience that there are in-fact other factors you should consider before making the choice of whether to go to college and to inform the audience that their primary focus is on the earnings. By doing this Owen and Sawhill tell the audience what to expect allowing the reader to consider the factors, but allowing them to take what they have to say into consideration. When discussing the benefits of a college degree it is obvious on average that having a degree is better than not having one.
As Owen and Sawhill point out the key phrase is average in some situations it may be better to go into a job straight out of high school. This entirely depends on the situation one finds themselves in. This could depend on a variety of factors on important one being the return on investment (ROI). Owen and Sawhill discuss how the ROI widely varies using data from Pay Scale they take away that the ROI can depend on the type of school and how competitive it is. This shows that not every bachelor's degree is a smart investment (Owen and Sawhill 214). In my experience the cost of attendance does vary on a variety of factors, for myself and my sister we both pay similar amounts for our college education. When comparing that to other people it is entirely different some pay more some pay less. This is where the term ROI comes into play is it worth paying a high premium to attend college. If the ROI is higher it may definitely be worth it, but when that number goes down that’s when one has to being considering the cost and benefits of college. This is a key point made my Owen and Sawhill and they do a great job of providing hard data for the reader to believe what they are saying. Using logos in this situation is an excellent example of a strong rhetorical appeal because it shows that what they are saying is based on facts. That they aren’t making these …show more content…
claims without the evidence to back it up. Owen and Sawhill set themselves up for their entire report and at the end they make strong case on whether one should attend college. In their weakest appeal Owen and Sawhill go on to talk about the variances in salary depending on the major one chooses to pursue. This appeal is weak because they state what information most people that are considering college should already know. If one is considering college one would assume they know that their future salary is dependent on their major, however, by making this comparison Owen and Sawhill are able to show that in some cases getting a college degree is not a smart choice. Owen and Sawhill refer to the work of Anthony Carnevale and his colleagues at the Georgetown Center on Education. Their data shows that percent of people with a high school degree make at least as much as those with a bachelor degree. They even go one step forward and compare people with bachelor’s degree to those with a professional degree showing that in some cases further schooling doesn’t necessarily net a higher income (Owen and Sawhill 217). This information is key to determine if one should go to college, if money plays an important role in one’s decision they must take into account the field they are pursing and whether it is the right fit for them. Owen and Sawhill are able to point this out in their report: “But, for example, someone working in a STEM job with only a high school diploma can expect to make more over a lifetime than someone with a bachelor’s degree working in education, community service and arts, sales and office work, health support, blue collar jobs, or personal services” (Owen and Sawhill 217). What this means is college doesn’t always guarantee what one I told, that by going to college you will make more money. This is far from the truth as shown by Owen and Sawhill. When considering the wages that these high paying degree holders make it seems obvious that choosing a major in those fields is the right choice to make.
Yes, being an Architecture will yield a work-life earning, but how many people with a degree in Architecture are making that much? How many people with a degree in Architecture even have a job? As Owen and Sawhill Architecture has a high unemployment rate, factor that in with the higher tuition associated with those field, is it worth the amount of time and money to pursue a degree in that field. Some may argue that it is, others may be against the notion of going after the high paying degrees. I agree with the later, not everyone can become and engineer, doctor, or business major, it is up to person making the decision to determine if they are cut out for those fields. As Owen and Sawhill point out there is one solution that can be used: “One solution is simply to make the type of information discussed above more readily available” (Owen and Sawhill 229). By having this information a person can make that decision on whether to go to college or not by themselves. Instead of having everyone tell them they should go to college based on reasons that may not apply to their situation. This simple yet effective use of logos throughout Owen and Sawhill’s report serves a nice base of factual information one can use to help them make that
decision. So how does one go about making their decision to go to college, well they must decide their purpose for going to college. Owen and Sawhill do an outstanding job of providing us with the cost and benefits in terms of money. If this is important for an individual then their report serves as a great basis of information that may influence their decision. Throughout their paper Owen and Sawhill effectively use logos as their main rhetorical appeal. It is effective because they are able to provide evidence that what they are saying is true. I believe this is a great way to persuade an audience, appealing to one’s logical senses leads to a less subjective appeal. The one downside to Owen and Sawhill’s report is they use too much logos. In a way it may overwhelm the reader, by adding in some other rhetorical appeal it could strengthen their arguments. Though in the end they do a tremendous job of presenting their ideas and backing up their claims.
In the article “America’s Most Overrated Product: The Bachelor’s Degree” by Marty Nemko, the author argues several different views on why higher education may be very overestimated. For starters, the author shares his opinion more than anything else due to him being a career counselor. The purpose of this essay is to explain to the readers that most people start off with the idea of living the American Dream. Which is practically going to college to have a better life and career. But over the time the idea of working very hard for a Bachelor’s degree has become very dimmed. Furthermore, for some people, when they think of the American Dream they think of hope for bettering themselves and also helping their families. Unlike the author, Nemko feels that even the thought of trying to pursue to get a bachelor’s degree is overrated. The audience of this passage would most likely be teenagers going into college and parents. Nemko states that “Colleges are quick to argue that a college education is more
Everyone knows that person from high school that just wasn’t cut out for college. It’s not a bad thing by any means, but if you’re thinking about heading off to college like many American teenagers often do, think about this: going to college can be a waste of both your time and your money. I’m not the first to say it, and I sure as hell won’t be the last. In Stephanie Owen and Isabel Sawhill’s essay, Should Everyone Go to College?, the two authors take a strong economic approach to justify going to college. Owen, an ex- senior research assistant at Brookings’ Center on Children and Families and current research associate at the Urban Institute, a nonpartisan center for research on the problems of urban communities, and Sawhill, the co-director
To go to college or not to go? This is the question many ask themselves before making a life changing decision. Anthony P. Carnevale, in “College Is Still Worth It,” argues that people should go to college and not rely on faulty data on the worth of postsecondary education. Carnevale is a well-known authority on education and was appointed by President Clinton as Chairman of the National Commission on Employment Policy. However Richard Vedder responded to Carnevale with “For Many, College Isn’t worth it” and claims that college is worth it for some people, but it’s not suited for all. Vedder is an economist, author, columnist, and now a distinguished professor of economics emeritus at Ohio University and senior fellow at The Independent Institute. Vedder is able to convince his audience on why college is not always worth it, unlike Carnevale, who was unable to convince his audience.
Stephanie Owen and Isabel Sawhill in the book They Say/ I Say “Should everyone Go to College” have an informative tone throughout their passage. The authors apply their findings and reasoning to real situations and probability’s. Looking at how the author applied pathos, ethos, and logos, you’ll find that the authors did an exceptional job of applying pathos and logos to enhance their arguments to be more persuasive and accurate. They provided logos in their augments by providing statistical rates and data charts to back up their statements. They apply pathos buy examining real scenarios and showing that sometimes it’s a personal determination that will make you successful in college
To go to college or not to go? Is the question many ask themselves before making a life changing decision. Anthony P. Carnevale “College Is Still Worth It” argues that people should go to college and not rely on faulty data on the worth of postsecondary education. Carnevale is a well-known authority on education and was appointed by President Clinton as Chairman of the National Commission on Employment Policy. While Richard Vedder respond to Carnevale with “For Many, College Isn’t worth it” and claims that college is worth for some people, but it’s not suited for all. Vedder is an economist, author, columnist, and now a distinguished professor of economics emeritus at Ohio University and senior fellow at The Independent Institute. Vedder is able to convince his audience on why college is not always worth it, unlike Carnevale, who was unable to convince his audience.
First, attending college effects financial awareness. College needs to reduce the cost of their tuition to help students that are struggling financially. The benefit of lowering college tuition fees including the fact that higher education is often a standard job requirement in many fields, but also that lower tuition costs increases the accessibility of education, which in turn creates social mobility that is often beneficial to the economy. Freeman Hrabowski, President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County read an article by New York Times called “College is for Suckers.” He mentions that the article “echoes an increasingly common refrain that college is too expensive, that students are taking unmanageable debt.” (Hrabowski 259). even though Freeman states that there are college prep
In the article “Are too many People Going to College” by Charles Murray a W. H. Brady Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, argues that our educational system needs improvement and that too many people are attending college. Some of Charles arguments on why too many people are attending college are obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree gives you a high paying job, college requires classes that are unnecessary, skill/talent may not need a degree and because they do not want to be labeled as dumb or lazy. Charles Murray makes a lot of good arguments on why too many people are going to college and I concur with his arguments.
The second chapter of this book advocates students to attend college, even if they must take on a moderate amount of student loan debt. They give statistics showing the tremendous gap in wages between a college graduate and a non-college graduate. The third chapter of this book argues the opposite viewpoint of the second chapter. The author states that the cost of college today is too high and that there are too many college graduates flooding the job market causing many of them to go unemployed or seek low level jobs that do not pay enough to pay off their student loans. Both of these chapters will help me to show the two main ...
They go on to say, "While the average return to obtaining a college degree is clearly positive, we emphasize that it is not universally so. For certain schools, majors, occupations, and individuals, college may not be a smart investment." (page. 209 Para. 1). This applies more to older students rather than students who are fresh out of high school. One of the main reasons the return rate is greater is because most of these students who are already working need more education in order to further themselves in their workplace. The authors also add that "The main problem is one of selection: if the smartest, most motivated people are both more likely to go to college and more likely to be financially successful, then the observed difference in earning 's by years of education doesn 't measure the true effect of college." (Page 209, Para #2). This means students who do not take advantage of all that college has to offer are not really getting the full experience. Why not invest in four years and come out with the opportunity to make more money? Some students want to go ahead and get school out of the way. Furthering education accumulates lots of debt. Some student 's choose not to overwhelm themselves with those costly decisions; they want to get right to work. Owens and Sawhill provided enough information on how logical it is to attend
While college may be initially uneconomical, evidence from a 1959 census shows a “three-fourths of earning difference” between those who graduated from college and those who merely received a high school diploma (Weisbrod et al 495). Weisbrod and Karpoff acknowledge the high cost of college in America, but assert the benefits of a college degree will more than reimburse a person in the long run, therefore the initial cost of attending a college is worthwhile. (Weisbrod et. al). Furthermore, this indicates only “one-fourth of the earnings differences are attributed...to non-schooling factors”, which proves the significant role college plays in determining the future earnings of an individual (Weisbrod et. al 497). College appears to be the most influential factor in regards to a person's earnings, therefore according to Weisbrod and Karpoff, college is necessary for a person who wishes to obtain a higher expected income. Even students who attend mediocre to below-average colleges will receive “a lifetime income that is [around] 10 percent lower ...than that which someone at one of the best schools can expect” (Weisbrod et. al 497). Weisbrod and Karpoff contend even low-tier colleges result in higher earnings, therefore a student should strive to attend any college regardless of the
Everyone knows that going to college and getting a degree is the most effective and guaranteed route to ensure a prosperous financial future, right? College is considered by most to be the best investment you can make in life, but what happens when that investment leaves you drowning in thousands of dollars in debt right after graduation day. This is the situation that millions of college graduates are faced with in 2016. Rising college tuition perpetuates student debt and is on a sharp incline and it seems to have no ambition of ever slowing down. The effect of this catastrophe is felt by millions of families across the country who now question, “is college really worth it?”
The article I chose to analyze is “Is College for Everyone?” In today’s society, everyone would say that education is the key to success. People would say that a person would not get far without having some form of a degree. In reality, college is just not for everyone. Some people would rather just get a job when they graduate high school. People say that a person might not be able to find a good paying job if a person does not go to college, but in reality there are a lot of jobs out here in the world that make plenty of money. There are a lot of people in college that cannot read. They get to college, and flunk out because it gets too difficult for them to continue. Pharinet, a college professor, explains why college is not for everyone. The purpose of this essay is to convince people that
But what’s more important? Saving money orapplying to college? So here we ask ourselves on more time, is college worth it? Of course, it is.The more colleges you apply for, the better. Expanding your college options are better thanlimiting yourself with a budget.The cost of tests and applications may be high, but that is nothing compared to how muchcollege really costs. In college, you’re not just paying for the opportunity to learn. You arepaying for books, to rooming, to the grass you step on, and to the air you breathe. A student withno subsidizing means to pay for college can find themselves amidst a nightmare when findingout how much college costs. The cost is so high that an “average of $29,400” (Webber 2) isexpected for a single student’s loans. College tuition, is not lenient, and you know it’s bad whenalmost former president Barack Obama mentioned and “criticized the rising rate of collegetuition” (Gutmann 136). The average cost of college can “range from $3,000 to more than$32,000” (How Much Will College Cost Me? 1). And for low-income students? The statisticssay that “only 52 percent of low-income students enrolled in a…college immediately upongraduating” (Elliot 26). The game is not in the favor of low-income students. In fact, collegecosts plus lack of monetary. See, they need jobs to pay for college, but without college, thechances at a good paying job are slim. And so, some never see the end of
Although a college education grows more and more expensive every year. People begin to question whether college is a good idea to invest in or not. “As college costs continue to rise, students and their families are looking more carefully at what they are getting for their money. Increasingly, they are finding that the college experience falls short of their expectations”(Cooper. H Mary). Many people believe that the cost of a college degree has outstripped the value of a degree.Studies show that a college degree will increase your earning power. A lot of people say that a college degree now is worth what a high school diploma was wor...
In “Should Everyone Go to College?” there are multiple figures depicting the return of investment on different Bachelor’s degrees. Among the lowest ROIs include the majors of liberal arts, literature, and the arts (215). These are majors which on average, don’t pan out well for those who invest in them. As we often forget, college is an investment in a future career, and so there are certain majors which just aren’t good ones to make. Other majors, such as engineering, computers, math, science, and business, are fantastic investments based on the work-life earnings on different careers pertaining to these majors. These are the ones which are the best ones to invest money in if someone’s looking for a college route, and if they are having trouble finding a way to pay for it, they should consider looking to methods such as doing some time in the military, applying for scholarships, or going to a community college, in order to help them achieve their