The Reality of Graduating College

In this article, Tamar Lewin of the New York Times discusses the recent concern towards the lack of college completion. The main issue is that the people who do go to college tend to overestimate their chances of completing college.  They have expectations that they will finish college on time so that they can graduate and get a better job with a good pay. However, many students who don't receive credentials and have debt from student loans are in trouble because of the unlikeliness that they will find a job.A report by higher-education advocates known as “The American Dream 2.0,” suggests that colleges should make it easier for students to apply for financial aid so that college completion is both the priority of the school and student.  The problem is that colleges focus too much on admissions and not enough focus on graduation rates. 

In the United States, we value education, so it doesn't surprise me that so many people have the dream of completing college and receiving a degree. I think that it is very typical for any high school student to expect a diploma from the college they will attend. There has been a point in time that most people didn't go to college and instead worked for their family business or married off in order to get money to survive comfortably. Now that education is valued so strongly, many people focus on getting into to college more than actually finishing college. Ideally, Americans want to go to college, find a good job, and have a decent salary. Realistically, many Americans fail to realize that, while hard work is valued and can get you into college, hard work is not the only factor that goes into play when graduating college. Some students don't have enough money to continue at college and many schools don't fight hard enough for the students to stay. Like the name  "The American Dream 2.0," suggests, it is the goal of most Americans to receive a higher-education and diploma, but setbacks that should be avoided make it more difficult to obtain. I believe that colleges should make an effort to help the graduation rates so that America can have more fully-educated citizens which in turn would help society as a whole.

Introduction

I have chosen Education as my topic. Education was not my first choice, however, I think that this topic can be interesting. It might give me a different perspective of my education as a student. Because I am going to further my education in college in a few years, it might be interesting to see how education is seen in a different point of view. I am also thinking about becoming a teacher so this might be something that will help me in the future.