Why is it important to go to college?

Answer 1

It's important because it's a WONDERFUL experience for a lot of people--you will have more fun, and learn about more interesting things, than you would have believed possible. A college degree is also a requisite for lots of jobs.

However, it's NOT a requisite for lots of other ones. And having a college degree in and of itself doesn't mean a ton, I've found out the hard way, without significant work experience. So if you're planning on going to college because you want to do it for your career, I'd suggest looking closely at where your life is going. So many of the people I know after college ended up working at DirectTV or Enterprise Rent-a-Car or something like that, where they totally didn't use or need the education they'd paid so much and worked so hard for.

Try to find out what the qualifications are for jobs you're interested in--talk to people who are doing it, look at job listings, or check out this website:

http://www.bls.gov/oco/home.htm

See what degrees are required (maybe a 2-year is enough! Maybe it's more important to know certain computer programs.) and how much work experience is required. Realize that, especially now, when technical knowledge is so important for a lot of jobs, a college degree isn't necessarily as important as you may think it is.

That said, it can also open doors that would otherwise be inaccessible.

Bottom line: you don't HAVE to go. And all sorts of people take a year or two off between high school and college, before getting a bachelor's degree. The path isn't as straight and narrow as many would have you believe. Make your own choices, but be informed about them.

Answer 2

there are many reasons....one being you need a good education if you want to make a decent amount of money to live comfortably. second is say for instance you want to be a dancer. that's all fine and dandy, but what if it doesn't work out? you will need to have something to fall back on, so having a college degree will help you after your "dream" doesn't go as planned. see where i'm coming from? plus I love to learn, and if you get the opportunity to further your education, I would jump at the chance. I'm going back to college this fall because I'm tired of having to scrape the bottom of the barrel. I want to live comfortably and I want to be able to say "I have a college degree" wouldn't that make you feel wonderful about yourself?

Answer 3

College changes the way you think. It is sometimes said that a college graduate in the States has more in common with a college grad in Australia than s/he does with a high school grad in the same town.

Answer 4

A college degree doesn't guarantee success, and neither does the lack of one guarantee failure.

But your odds of being successful go way up with one.

Answer 5

because your high school teachers aren't doing their job, so they got everyone believing that college is the next step

Answer 6

Is a College Education Worth It?

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in 2004 the unemployment rate for adults aged 25 years and older who had not completed high school was 8.5 percent. For those who had completed high school, the rate was 5.0 percent. But for those with bachelor's degrees, the number was just 2.7 percent. In other words, those without a college degree were nearly twice as likely to experience unemployment.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, bachelor's degree holders earn on average double the annual salary of someone with just a high school diploma. And if the size of your monthly paycheck isn't enough to motivate you to get your degree, consider this: Over an adult's working life, high school graduates earn an average of $1.2 million; associate's degree holders earn about $1.6 million; and bachelor's degree holders earn about $2.1 million. Those are some serious differences

The Institute's 1998 report lists encouraging demographic statistics for college graduates. For example, many with college degrees have priceless health benefits such as longer life expectancy. People with four-year degrees smoke less and tend to make better consumer choices to benefit their health and lifestyle. Even more important to many parents who are considering going back to school, kids raised by parents with college degrees are more likely to graduate high school and go on to college. And teenage daughters of college grads are less likely to become unwed mothers.

The salary, employment, and fringe benefits that college graduates enjoy allow the unexpected benefit of the fun factor. Because college graduates have a higher disposable income and get more vacation time, they're more likely to visit amusement parks and art museums, attend sporting events, and go hiking and camping. They also tend to read more, and for many people that is fun in and of itself.

While having better benefits, more money, and more leisure time are surely very valuable reasons to get your college degree, there are many intangible reasons why pursing a degree is worthwhile. For example, you will have the satisfaction of learning about things that interest you and expanding your knowledge and skills. It's unlikely that most college students think about the rewards of their studies in these terms, but these perks are greatly appreciated after graduation.

And if that isn’t enough consider the following

Higher Education Means Lower Mortality Rates
(AmeriStat, August 2002) When asked to list the benefits of a college education, most people name higher incomes and a rich intellectual life. Now it is clear that better health should be added to the list.
Mortality rates for Americans ages 25 to 64 who have attended college are less than half the rates for those who stopped education after completing high school. In 1999, the most recent year for which final mortality rates have been published, there were 219 deaths per 100,000 people per year for those with 13 or more years of education, compared with 474 per 100,000 for those with 12 years, and 585 per 100,000 for those with fewer than 12 years of education. These differences are somewhat greater for men than for women.
The mortality advantage for Americans with higher education has been growing in recent decades, according to several studies that used census and survey data. And there is an added advantage for educated people in rates of illness and disability, so that those with some college education enjoy extra years of healthy life. Two factors that partly explain the education advantage are lifestyle (educated people are less likely to smoke or engage in other risky behaviors) and health insurance (people with more education tend to have better coverage than those with less education).
Note: Rates are adjusted to the 2000 age distribution. Rates are not published for those less than 25 years old, for many of whom education is not yet completed, nor for those over age 64, for whom death certificates often do not contain precise information on educational attainment. Data for single years from 1994 to 1998 are available from the National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control, Health, United States, 2001 (table 35) at www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus01.pdf.