For many students and working adults, the decision to pursue a collegedegree can be a difficult one. The time and financial commitments involved mayseem overwhelming at time, especially to someone at the beginning of theiracademic journey. Thankfully, there are many option available for students whowish to pursue their education but are limited by free time and resources.Online learning has revolutionized education by allowing students to attendclasses whenever their schedule permits from wherever internet access isavailable. Federal and private loans are available for students needing tofinance a portion or all of their tuition. Still, the time and effort requiredto make the arrangements to get into college, much less attend and graduatefrom an educational institution, may lead some to question the necessity ofearning a degree.
In today’s society, earning a college degree is essential for success in theemployment market. Few positions in the workforce with upward mobility or ampleadvancement opportunities are available for those without an education beyondthe high school level. Of course, the type of career path one chooses cangreatly affect factors such as these, but overall, those who earn a collegedegree simply have more and better job opportunities.
Financially, earning a college degree is a wise choice. The rate of returnin future earnings for every dollar a student spends on education more thanmakes up for the cost of earning a degree. Bachelor’s degree holders gain anestimated one million dollars in lifetime earnings over those who only hold ahigh school diploma, according to a recent report by the U.S. Census Bureau.But getting a college degree is about more than just higher earnings, and manyof the benefits can have a profound impact on graduate’s lives.
College graduates enjoy better health, participate in more leisureactivities, save a greater amount (by percentage) of their earnings, offer animproved quality of life for their children and report higher levels ofpersonal happiness than adults with a high school diploma, according to theInstitute for Higher Education Policy. Furthermore, a recent study by theCenter for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education revealed thatcollege graduates are less prejudiced, exhibit greater rationality and are moreaware of world affairs than their non-degree holding counterparts.
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