Can somebody please tell me what a college degree is worth these
days? Not much, I’m thinking.
In an era marked by war, volatile market climates and rapid
technological growth, it’s easy to miss many of the gradual
and less apparent social transitions of the past two decades.
Perhaps most grossly overlooked is the growing accessibility to
higher education. This has resulted in ruthless competition in high
schools and the decreasing value of an undergraduate degree.
As early 21st century college students, we stand at the
forefront of this fundamental paradigm shift, having dealt with
these changes since high school.
He-Man and My Little Pony aside, as children of the baby boom,
most of us were brought up to believe that college is a natural
progression from high school. We were indoctrinated with the idea
that a university education is not optional. We maintained these
parentally instilled notions until reaching high school where we
suffered a terribly rude awakening.
Prompted by the rapidly increasing number of “echo
boomer” applicants, real world competition for jobs suddenly
found its way into high school hallways. What once was a natural
progression became a personal marketing exercise, one in which we
were simultaneously both seller and product. In addition to good
grades and SAT scores, we were forced to take up social services
and a laundry list of clubs to keep up with everyone else. Even
then, many still didn’t make the cut.
As an out-of-state high school student with a 3.2 GPA and nearly
all fives on my Advanced Placement exams, I was rejected from every
University of California school to which I applied before
transferring here from Santa Monica College. I’m almost
certain the same scores would have landed me acceptance to at least
one of the UC schools 10 years ago, a testament to the changing
rules of the game.
Though high school is behind us, the same problems will plague
us echo boomers even after college. While getting in has never been
more difficult and highly coveted, a college degree has never been
worth less. Degrees are now a dime a dozen.
Everyone knows or has heard of someone who possesses all the
necessary qualifications for a entry-level position at a good job
but absolutely can’t find one. Today, it seems as though the
road less taken can prove more advantageous than the cookie-cutter
tracks our parents had originally planned for us.
Case in point: My step-sister Caroline manages the Los Angeles
branch of a public relations firm whose client list includes Blur,
Pete Yorn, Jack Johnson and Moby. At 21 she is already more
successful than many of us will be long after we graduate from
college. However, unlike those of us who will leave UCLA with an
undergraduate degree or better, Caroline landed her job armed
solely with an off-beat resume and a high school diploma.
Caroline’s journey up was characterized by vehement
opposition from her dad, who represented an opinion typical of many
parents: the notion that success is dependent on a college degree.
While this was true perhaps as early as a decade ago, we now know
it is a bunk and antiquated notion. Caroline landed her job because
her boss was impressed by the presence of mind and independence she
demonstrated in defying her father’s cookie-cutter plans for
her future. Her boss was not impressed by her fantastic performance
in school and participation in, say, Habitat for Humanity.
While it’s too late to reverse the current competitive
trend, we can start by ceasing to pitch the college experience as
the end-all-be-all of a person’s life. Much of the problem
lies in that too many youths have been conditioned to believe that
college is a mandatory step in the life process. This leaves a
generation of people who have no idea what they want to do with
their lives just because they can’t pick a career from the
relatively short list of majors offered them by the
universities.
College has for too long been painted as a necessary step for
success. With the exception of most South Campus students, if
success is what you’re after, the reality is that you might
not necessarily attain it through UCLA or any other college
campus.
I’m here because I enjoy learning and wish to grow as a
person before entering the grind. Why are you?
Dang is a third-year political science student. E-mail him at
ndang@media.ucla.edu.