10 College Myths Debunked

10 COLLEGE MYTHS DEBUNKED HLAW The four-year college experience is as American as apple pie. So is the belief that higher education offers a ticket to a better life. But with student loan debt surpassing the $1 trillion mark and unemployment of college graduates at historic highs, people are beginning to question that value. Is a college diploma still worth pursuing at any price? We debunk the 10 myths that have been reinforcing this belief for the last decade. Myth 1 MOST STUDENTS GRADUATE IN 4 YEARS LOL - IF a student graduates (there are some 400,000 dropouts a year), a high percentage (apr. 58%) take six years to do so. STATE PRIVATE 4 YEARS TOTAL COST 4 YEARS TOTAL COST $48,000 $168,000 6 YEARS TOTAL COST 6 YEARS TOTAL COST $72,000 $252,000 Myth 2 MAJORS DETERMINE YOUR FUTURE If you're into the hard sciences or math. According to Forbes, in 2012 these were the most valuable majors* : STARTING SALARIES MID-CAREER PAY $155,000 $97,800 $97,900 $98,600 $84,700 $87,800 $88,600 $90,200 $83,000 $88,200 $97,900 153,800 56,600 $54,900 $51,700 $52,600 $53,100 45.300 51.000 41.700 E=mc BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING SOFTWARE PETROLEUM ENGINEERING APPLIED MATHEMATICS BIOCHEMISTRY COMPUTER SCIENCE ENVIRONMENTA GEOLOGY MANAGEMENT INFORMATION ENGINEERING ENGINEERING ENGINEERING * based on starting salaries. mid-career pay. growth of salary and wealth of job opportunities The 10 Lowest-Paying Majors * MEDIAN SALARY ON OF UNEMPLOYMENT 10.5 10.8 $28,000 $30,000 $30,000 $30,000 $30,000 $30,000 $30,000 $32,000 $32,000 $32,000 ANTHROPOLOoGY FLM, VIDEO AND UBERAL ARTS HISTORY FINE ARTS PHILOSOPHy AND RELIGIOUS MUSIC PYSICAL FITNESS COMMERCIAL AND PARKS RECREATION ENGLISH ARCHEOLOGY PHOTOGRAPHIC ART AND LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE ARTS STUDIES GRAPHIC DESGN *based on unemployment rates and median salary (provided by Georgetown University's Center oan Education and the Workforce, from the 2009 and 2010 American Community Survey) Myth 3 UNIVERSITIES CARE ABOUT YOUR EDUCATION Universities are businesses and are in it to make money. Big $ is spent on: • advertising • resort-like amenities (lazy rivers, luxurious dorms, theaters, climbing walls, hot tubs, dining and concierge services) • sports programs • administration • faculty salary raises • healthcare DEBT & CAPITAL INSTRUCTIONAL SALARY $123.27 (2.5%) $1,415.52 (28.7%) UTILITIES $199.69 (4%) University of Texas SCHOLARSHIPS $275.17 (5.6%) at Austin tuition breakdown STAFF SALARY $883.68 (17.9%) for undergrad resident architecture OTHER OPERATING (MISCELLANEOUS OPERATING COSTS SUPPORTING THE ACADEMIC MISSION OF THE UNIVERSITY AS WELL AS ONGOING ROUTINE student (2011-2012) MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR OF INSTRUCTIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE FACILITIESI $611.52 (12.4%) STUDENT SERVICES $792.48 (16%) EMPLOYEE HEALTH BENEFITS $636.61 (12.9%) Myth 4 THE COLLEGE EXPERIENCE IS A RITE OF PASSAGE In recent years, the residential college experience has been supplemented with low-overhead courses and degrees. More students are opting out of on-campus housing in favor of commuting to save money. 30% MIDDLE-SKILL JOBS OVER 6 MILLION 2 out of every 1O students are currently enrolled in a residential college full time. (Associates or trade school degrees) will account for 45% of all jobs through 2014. of post-secondary students take at least one online course students are enrolled in online education programs. Myth 5 YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR In a study comparing the "more prestigious" University of Pennsylvania grads versus Penn State grads, research showed that while there were some differences in the average starting salaries and mid-career salaries, there is virtually no significant difference between the lifetime earnings of each group of graduates. Yet, the student that goes to University of Pennsylvania spends $43,738 (2013) on his education a year while the State student only shells out $16,444 (2013). University of Pennsylvania Penn State $56,100 $46,800 AVERAGE STARTING SALARY FOR GRAD $102,000 $77,400 MID-CAREER SALARY Myth 6 STUDENT LOANS ARE A TEMPORARY FIX There is nothing temporary about a student loan It took President Barack Obama 13 years to pay off his law school loans. AVG. MEDICAL SCHOOL LOAN $164,000 at 4% interest and a $1000 monthly payment will take 192 YEARS to pay off. YEARS AFTER GRADUATION 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 AVERAGE PRISON SENTENCE 2.9 YEARS AVG. LOAN AMOUNT: $27,000 at 4% interest and a $200 monthly fixed payment will take 15 YEARS to pay off Myth 7 COMMUNITY COLLEGE IS FOR LOSERS Um, no. Generally, the degree is what counts. 45% of four-year college graduates in 2010-11 came through a community college pipeline. Amount than "I'm only here becouse of a brief addiction to pills that / was told would help me focus, but they actuolly made me lose my scholarship and virginity." Other reasons community college is a good idea: CAN BE SAVED • weak high school grades/test scores M • work and/or family obligations V • career choice doesn't require a bachelor's degree M • unsure about going to college V • time to define major on tuition with community college: $6,800-$35,000 - Annie Edison, Community Myth 8 AMERICAN SCHOOLS ARE THE BEST IN THE WORLD Not anymore. The U.S. now ranks 14th in the world in the percentage of 25-34 year-olds with higher education (42%). RUSSIAN FEDERATION (S2.0001 NORWAY (S596) CANADA (S5.974) UNITED KINGDOM ($5.288 ENGLAND WALES) 12 BELGIUM (S6501 US (S18,497) IRELAND (S6.506) 0 LUXEMBOURG (SO-781SEMESTER) JAPAN (511,865) FRANCE (S585) KOREA ISRAEL IS7,000 FOR PRIVATE COLLEGE) (S2,714 PUBLIC) 13 COUNTRIES BEATING THE US IN STANDARDS FOR HIGHER EDUCATION AND ON AVERAGE THEY COST LESS: AUSTRALIA (S7,692) NEW ZEALAND (S3,118) Myth 9 GRADES MATTER A's account for 43% of all grades given in colleges across the country. Why have grades become so inflated? DISTRIBUTION OF GRADES AT AMERICAN COLLEGES To protect a school's reputation and rank AND UNIVERSITIES AS A FUNCTION OF TIME PERCENT LETTER GRADE GRADE More adjunct professors are willing to give A's, since their employment is based on positive class evaluations 45 40 35 25 Pressure from parent/student expectations 15 B+ The average grade at Stanford in 2009 1960 1968 1976 1984 1992 2000 YEAR "It Takes More Than A Major" - a recent survey by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, asked 318 executives what really mattered to employers when hiring: ETHICAL JUDGMENT AND INTEGRITY 96% COMFORT IN WORKING WITH PEOPLE OF DIVERSE CULTURAL BACKGROUNDS 96% A DEMONSTRATED CAPACITY FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND CONTINUED NEW LEARNING 94% INTEREST IN GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY 71% KNOWLEDGE OF GLOBAL CULTURES, HISTORIES, VALUES, RELIGIONS AND SOCIAL SYSTEMS 55% They also want colleges to place more emphasis on: 82% 81% 80% 78% 78% Critical thinking/ analytical reasoning Ability to analyze/ solve complex problems Effective oral Effective written Application of knowledge/skills to real-world settings communication communication 72% 71% 67% 64% Ability to locate, Innovation, creativity Teamwork/collaboration Ability to connect choices/actions to ethical decisions in diverse group settings organize, evaluate info from multiple sources Myth 10 TEACHER KNOWS BEST Technology is changing the way we learn, as witnessed with Knewton's adaptive learning software used by remedial math students at Arizona State University. Pass rates for the course rose 66% 75% from 66% to 75% during the first year. As it turns out, a student, who can learn at his/her own pace and save money while doing The technology was successful because: • it taught basic skills by engaging students in games • left higher-level concepts to professors to explain • allowed the student to finish at his/her own pace • allowed professors to track students' progress and follow up with students who need more in-class help it is the one who knows best. Online course enrollment increased to 6.7 million students in 2011, up nine percent from 6.1 million in 2010. An online study by the Instructional Technology Council, found out the following: Students OVER 26 are more likely to MORE THAN 60% The need for more The economic downturn enroll in an online support staff has DECREASED of online students has resulted in learning course than students 18-26. INCREASED are women. with online learning. online enrollment. Sources: Forbes | Bureau of Labor Statistics | The Chronicle of Higher Education | Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce Instructional Technology Council | | collegedata.com | oecd.org I nces.ed.gov | science20.com | wsws.org I payscale.com | abcnews.go.com COLLEGE (UN)BOUND Get the full story on the future of higher education and what it means for students in College (Un)bound by Jeffrey J. Selingo. Incisive, urgent, and controversial, College (Un)bound is a must-read for prospective students, parents, and anyone concerned with the future of American higher education. @jselingo NEW amazon www.jeffselingo.com HARVEST JEFEREN 1. SELINGO LEARN MORE