In moments of distress, when we find ourselves plundering through loads of powerpoint documents, internally crying during agonizing late night studies and early morning exam cram sessions... we've all pondered over the often thought question of whether or not college was really worth it.
It's funny because, recently I came across an article published by US News & World Report where they stated the infamous Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, recently launched a new higher education initiative to combat the posed question.
"More than at any other time I can remember, students and families across America are asking themselves, is college worth it,'" Sue Desmond-Hellmann, president of the Gates Foundation, said. "As the cost of a credential rises and student debt goes to record levels, people are actually asking a question I never thought I'd hear, 'Is going to college a reliable path to economic opportunity?' This question of value needs to be addressed, and we feel that it needs to be addressed urgently."
Specifically focusing on education statistics post-high-school graduation, A 30-person panel was convened to evaluate these numbers within lower-income neighborhoods and children of color.
According to Sue Hellmann, the three-pronged goal of the commission is to develop a definition of the value of college, create a way to measure how individual colleges and universities create value for students – including where major gaps exist by race, ethnicity, income, and gender – and create a set of recommendations for policymakers, politicians and higher education officials.
I think that the findings from this study could really be beneficial to not only education officials but students as well. Here, we not only see benefits from college educations but drawbacks and implications that may arise. Of course, America makes us believe that higher education is one of the vital things needed to succeed in this world but there are individuals who prove otherwise. This is something that will not only challenge the thought process behind the individuals who believe this but the education system as a whole.
