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As you prepare to visit the many college tables looking for and receiving information about your possible future education, this is probably as good a time as any to consider the various reasons for wanting to attend a post-secondary institution. There are many post-secondary schools to consider, and there are also many reasons for wishing to attend one. All of these reasons are very good ones. To name a few of the more important ones:
- If the job or career you wish to pursue requires a college education or special educational training, then you must obtain it.
- Your high school subject selection meets the admission requirements of the desired institution.
- Your high school record (averages, class rank, standardized test scores) is sufficiently high to insure some degree of success in college.
- Your financial resources (parent contribution, summer jobs, savings, grants, loans, scholarships) are sufficient to cover the considerable expense of attending a school beyond high school.
- Your level of social and intellectual maturity is such that you will be able to make the adjustment from a protected home and high school situation to the independent status of a college student.
- You have developed enough ambition and a good set of study habits that will enable you to successfully complete the rigorous program of a college education, with the long hours of study required.
- You are 100 percent certain that you wish to pursue an education program after high school.
Just as there are reasons for going to college, so also are there reasons which should give you cause to think twice before making the final decision. Some of these are:
- If you are not 100 percent certain about going to college, it may be best to put the decision off for a while, until you become certain one way or the other.
- Sometimes students whose academic records (high school course program, marks, test scores) are of such a level as to make success in college very doubtful. In other words, there are some people who just should not go to college because they do not possess the capabilities.
- Lack of social or intellectual maturity or weak study habits should not deter you from thinking of college, because attending a community college, or other institution where you can live at home may help to overcome these problems, as well as to cut expenses, which leads us to the next problem.
- No matter how you look at it, a college education is expensive, often costing more than $20,000 per year.
If your financial backing is shaky or not certain, it may be best to postpone college in favor of a temporary job to save up money ahead of time, or consider a hitch in one of the military services which will provide considerable financial educational aid, or settle for a less expensive school such as a community college or other live-at-home institution. If you can obtain scholarships, grants-in-aid, and/or a work-study program to help you financially, all well and good, but consider a large loan as a last resort. Even at a low rate of interest, repayment may be difficult. Many students who borrow their way through college begin their career in substantial debt.
Deciding whether or not to go to college is one of the most nagging questions facing high school students today. Thinking through the following statements and questions may help you make a good decision.
Reasons for Going to College
- To train for a position which requires a college education.
- To increase the possibility of success in life, economic or otherwise.
- To provide greater economic security for yourself and your family.
- To develop independence and self-discipline.
- To learn to use your mind to the limit of your ability.
- To acquire a greater appreciation of the world of culture.
- To cultivate an awareness of social problems, and a desire to help solve them.
Who Should Go to College?
- Those who possess the intellectual capacity to complete the high school academic program satisfactorily.
- Those whose standard aptitude and intelligence tests indicate the capacity for success in college work.
- Those who possess an intellectual curiosity and interest in some particular field of learning and work which requires a college education.
- Those who possess or can develop the self-discipline and independence which college study requires.
- Those who are willing to work hard and make many sacrifices in order to attain the goal of a college education.
- Those who, through whatever means available, will be able to finance a college education without incurring insurmountable debts.
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