A high school degree plus a college degree equals a good job after graduation.
That’s been the formula we have been accustomed to for generations. It’s what our parents did. Therefore, we expect future generations to continue that tradition.
But, what if that formula no longer works? What if getting a college degree doesn’t equal getting a well-paying job – or any job? What if some high school graduates don’t find themselves drawn to that approach in the first place?
Many of our high school graduates are heading off to college to pursue degrees in their fields of interest. But once they have their college degrees, it’s no longer a sure bet they will find work. The economy is still sluggish, and depending on the career paths college students take, they may find they will have to wait several months – perhaps more than a year – before getting a job in their chosen field. And even when they find work, they may discover that their paychecks may not help them deal with all of the bills they will encounter.
One expense they may have to deal with for years comes from all the college loans they must secure to further their education. It costs a lot of money to attend a four-year college – even ones within the State University of New York system, which promotes itself as an affordable alternative to private school. For example, the average New Yorker attending the University at Albany can expect to pay more than $80,000 to receive a bachelor’s degree in four years. Doesn’t sound affordable, does it?
We’re also at a point in our history where parents aren’t as able as they once were to foot the bill for their children to attend college. With all of the economic stress average Americans face trying to stretch their pay to make their mortgage, car loan, credit card and utility payments on time – not to mention their own student loan debts, if they have them – they may find paying thousands of more dollars per year to send their children to college beyond their means.
This leaves today’s high school graduates searching for scholarships to make college more affordable to them, seeking loans that may take them decades to pay off or putting off college to get whatever jobs they can in order to save up their own money for a college degree. It can be very stressful, especially when scholarships fall through or other obstacles come up.
It’s not as if college is for every high school graduate, either. Some find the coursework too difficult or are not in the right frame of mind to buckle down for another 4-6 years. Others may know exactly what they want to do with their lives after high school and plunge themselves into careers that don’t require a college degree. Depending on their ambitions, some do quite well for themselves without ever receiving a diploma from an institute of higher learning.
So, maybe the traditional formula isn’t for everyone. And maybe, we shouldn’t push this formula on our children anymore. Maybe we should let them have some time after high school to determine what they really want to do. If it’s something that requires a college degree, then we should encourage them to seek scholarships or save as much money as they can to help pay for it. If it’s something they can do on their own without continuing their education at the next level, then we should encourage them to do that. And if they don’t know what they want to do, the best thing is to let them explore as many options as possible before choosing their path.
The world is wide open to high school graduates. They shouldn’t have to follow a formula to successfully navigate it.