The price of college has risen numerous times over the years. Many on the left have pushed to erase student loan debt from attending college. Some degrees leave students needing to enroll again for another degree, potentially a degree in a different field, to acquire a job. College can be a costly expense that can take some decades to pay off. Examples like this have caused many to say that college is unnecessary.
You do not need a college degree to make it in America. There are countless success stories of people who never enrolled in college. College is not for everyone. If you dream of owning a plumbing business, you do not need a humanities degree to be successful. An English degree will not land you a job on a construction site. You do not need a bachelor's degree to own a boutique. It could be practical to have a business degree if you want to own your own business. You could, however, look up the course requirements and the books needed for a business degree and self-learn. It is cheaper, and you would gain experience faster than someone waiting to finish college to open their own business.
The problem with college is how others promote it as a get-rich-quick scheme. A college degree makes you more likely to be successful, but it does not guarantee success. Some graduate, end up with 6 figure debt, and then take a job outside their field of study. Or perhaps they did find a job in the career field they studied, but the position they attained will never pay enough to pay off the debt. College is not what guarantees success, but what guarantees success is how hard individuals work for it.
In some fields, having a piece of paper showing a degree helps. As with computer science, it can get your foot in the door. But if you have projects you created, that will help get you the job over someone else. With healthcare jobs, such as nursing or being a doctor, you must have a college degree. Some fields do require a college degree. However, we should not push high school graduates to get degrees they do not need.
College is a fantastic time for some and a costly mistake for others. The best thing someone can do is to get experience. If your dream is to be a writer, a degree will help, but you need to start writing before enrolling in a course. You need to get involved in your local news company. Not all jobs require a college degree, but every job requires drive and a work ethic. Colleges typically are a great place to network but not the only place. Networking is what can change the course of your career forever. Throwing yourself out there can be scary, but failing or having debt you will have to pay for years should be horrifying.
We should encourage those seeking a college degree to evaluate if the job they want truly warrants a degree. If self-learning isn't your strong suit or you want to enter a field such as being a doctor that requires a degree, by all means, charge forward. But if you can get into the career you want by self-learning or creating, that isn't a terrible way to achieve your goals. Hiring managers are impressed by individuals who teach themselves new skills. Self-learning does equate to being a self-starter. College-educated or not, individuals should learn a new skill every year. More skills mean you bring more to the table when applying for jobs. After a few years, you will likely have more skills than your peers. Diversify your talent. College is a great way to get started if you do it right, but college is not the only path to success. We cease to believe in the American Dream if we tell people the only way to achieve great things is to follow a rigid track.