As cliche as it sounds, my first year of college did change my life. It changed the way I think, and the way I act. The privileged education I received has given me different perspectives on how I should look at the world. One particular fact I would like to focus on is the use of education in today’s society and culturally. I’ve always been told that knowledge is power, and education is an important element if you want to live a better life. For as long as I can remember, there was always someone always telling me that getting an education is a way to give back to the culture that made me who I am. But lately I’ve really wondered how important higher education really is. It is a high privilege that not everyone is able to receive, so if it’s no easily accessible, how great can it be?

I definitely agree that education is important. I know that my education is a powerful key that can get me far in life. I clearly won’t be going to college for four years then three more years of law school for no reason. The education I receive will always be a part of me, and no one can take that away. All the struggles of late night readings, working on essays for days only to cram in one night, and feeling like I haven’t slept for seventy-eight hours will pay off one day. My education will help me become a leader to help others who have not been as fortunate as me. Because that’s the point of getting a degree: to help others.

Getting that degree, however, is difficult. In a system where they try to keep minorities away and institutions that were not meant for us, we have to work twice as hard to earn our place in the world. It should be noted that only 6% of Latinx actually graduate college and less than 1% have a PhD. Of course if we want to change the statistics, we have to work for it. Maybe we, as Latinx, have to change the way we look at ourselves first. We’re not just a pawn made to control by racialized institutions. We are meant to change the world, whether it be with a degree or without.

Because in reality, how important is a degree? In a world where you’re seen as better for going through four extra years of education, how is it going to make you a better person? If you’re not willing to give back to those who may have helped you achieve your goals, what is the point?

My parents, who neither of which have a college degree, are still human beings who are just as good as someone with a PhD. Having a degree does not make you better, and it does not make you smarter. It means you went to college and worked hard to get through school, but it does not mean you’re in any way superior to anyone without a degree. Particularly within the Latinx culture, a degree somehow elevates you to an admirable position, and that should not be the case. We’re all deserving of respect no matter how much of an education we were able to receive.