For many of us, the idea of going to a four-year university or a college is ingrained from a young age. It is almost like it is expected of us to go to college as soon as we graduate high school, no questions asked. For us to be taken seriously in the real world, and to be considered marketable and employable, having a college degree is basically a must in the United States. This is because, since our primary school education, we have been taught that higher education is essentially the “great equalizer,” through which we can be given a shot at life and better our socioeconomic standing within society. However, as many college graduates know, this is not necessarily the case, and the results are far more discouraging.
Living in a country in which the top three richest people own as much wealth as the bottom 50 percent of the population, it is more evident than ever that social inequality and an extremely large wealth gap exists, which prevents a lot of people from climbing up the social ladder. Of course, this is not to say that one should avoid pursuing a higher education or should not consider getting a degree, because education is an invaluable experience that can help a person become more open-minded and expose them to ideas that they may not have believed in prior to going to college.
In fact, in addition to basic primary and secondary education, higher education should also be subsidized by the federal government and every person should have the opportunity to be able to pursue a degree without having to stress over massive student loan debt or struggling to balance work so as to pay the bills and afford to go to school at the same time.
With the average U.S. student loan debt at $37,172, averaging at about $1.5 trillion total throughout the country, there is no doubt that this massive amount of debt serves as both a deterrent to some who are considering pursuing a higher education, and also severely limits the opportunities that one has in life to advance and become independent.
It is no coincidence that fewer and fewer millennials are now able to own homes, something that was once common and almost a rite of passage into adulthood. Factors such as student loan debt, unemployment rates, and the massive wealth gap have not only prevented youth and college grads from being able to afford their own homes, but also things like cars, health care, groceries, etc.
The reality is, even with a bachelor’s degree, or even a master’s degree, unemployment among recent grads is a serious problem, and is a big reason as to why things like food insecurity, poverty (or homelessness), or not being able to move out of their parents’ home are serious issues amongst today’s youth.
And while some may point to successful, extremely rich people like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Michael Dell, all of whom dropped out of college, as examples of why college degrees are not absolutely necessary to become successful and/or wealthy, the notion that many of us can one day become rich CEOs is highly unrealistic. This capitalistic idea that if we pull ourselves up by our bootstraps and work hard, we can be successful and achieve the American Dream, is a facade for the majority of us working class people.
The brutal reality is that income inequality is a serious problem in this country, and not everyone starts out on a level playing field (in regards to socioeconomic status, etc.). While some may say that it is easy to prevent the issue of student debt by applying for scholarships and financial aid, or doing work study, it is not so simple. While grants and aid may help, it does not nearly cover all expenses, such as housing, and the idea of one getting a full scholarship is slim to none. The probability of one becoming the next Steve Jobs is slim to none as well. The fact of the matter is that the majority of working class people are bogged down with economic burdens, and a lot of us lack the connections (like the Trumps) to become successful.
This is why we see so many millennials and college grads working for DoorDash and Über, taking on multiple jobs to make ends meet, and working for substandard wages while the CEOs of the companies they work for (such as Jeff Bezos of Amazon) continue to get richer and richer. Thus the problem is systemic, and instead of scapegoating immigrants for “taking our jobs,” (which is a futile and reactionary claim), this requires an overall change in the structure of this country.
