Summary of “Even for Cashiers, College Pays Off”
By David Leonhardt
According to Leonhardt’s article "Even for Cashiers, College Pays Off" in the New York Times Sunday Review (June 26, 2011), critics have argued that a college education today has less value than in the past because college costs a great deal, because it doesn’t necessarily guarantee a position, and because it isn’t essential for many kinds of work. This article argues against that claim in several ways.
First, it recounts the benefit that public education has had on American history—public high school education over nearly the last 100 years provided an American populace that offered more skills to American labor and aided American industry in expansion. Later on, the article refutes critics by mentioning that, currently, college is fairly affordable because of financial aid, and that the initial cost of college is defrayed a great deal by the financial benefits college provides later on. Thirty years ago, the difference in wages between full-workers with a bachelor’s degree and those with just a high school diploma was 40%; today, that gap has widened to 83%. Those possessing college degrees are also less likely to be unemployed, which gives an economic buffer in lean times.
Leonhardt also cites a study stating that college’s advantages extend even to those who are in professions that don’t necessarily require a college degree. Workers in these fields possess more skills, can more easily become part of higher paying companies, and establish their own businesses.
Lastly, Leonhardt demonstrates that the very same critics who are arguing against the value of college are hypocritical in that they frequently have college degrees themselves and in that they are often investing in costly private schools for their children. He acknowledges that colleges aren’t perfect in every regard. However, he sees the solution as investment in improving colleges, not forsaking them.
Response
In general, I think that the author does effectively answer the arguments against the importance of having a college education. Certainly, in today's economic climate, a college education is critical to being able to compete with others. I do think, though, that because of the increasing number of college graduates now, graduating from college is more of a basic requirement that people have to check off, rather than an accomplishment that sets them as individuals above other people in the playing field. In economic terms, it is true that a college degree confers someone with more financial opportunities later on, once his or her career gets started. Yet, it also seems that college graduates today walk out of their university or college doors with a much higher debt level than in the past, which can delay their financial independence and affect the sociey as a whole, as these graduates may delay beginning families or be able to spend time with these families less because of financial obligations. All in all, I believe that college is vital, but that college graduates of today face a new set of challenges than their predecessors.
First, it recounts the benefit that public education has had on American history—public high school education over nearly the last 100 years provided an American populace that offered more skills to American labor and aided American industry in expansion. Later on, the article refutes critics by mentioning that, currently, college is fairly affordable because of financial aid, and that the initial cost of college is defrayed a great deal by the financial benefits college provides later on. Thirty years ago, the difference in wages between full-workers with a bachelor’s degree and those with just a high school diploma was 40%; today, that gap has widened to 83%. Those possessing college degrees are also less likely to be unemployed, which gives an economic buffer in lean times.
Leonhardt also cites a study stating that college’s advantages extend even to those who are in professions that don’t necessarily require a college degree. Workers in these fields possess more skills, can more easily become part of higher paying companies, and establish their own businesses.
Lastly, Leonhardt demonstrates that the very same critics who are arguing against the value of college are hypocritical in that they frequently have college degrees themselves and in that they are often investing in costly private schools for their children. He acknowledges that colleges aren’t perfect in every regard. However, he sees the solution as investment in improving colleges, not forsaking them.
Response
In general, I think that the author does effectively answer the arguments against the importance of having a college education. Certainly, in today's economic climate, a college education is critical to being able to compete with others. I do think, though, that because of the increasing number of college graduates now, graduating from college is more of a basic requirement that people have to check off, rather than an accomplishment that sets them as individuals above other people in the playing field. In economic terms, it is true that a college degree confers someone with more financial opportunities later on, once his or her career gets started. Yet, it also seems that college graduates today walk out of their university or college doors with a much higher debt level than in the past, which can delay their financial independence and affect the sociey as a whole, as these graduates may delay beginning families or be able to spend time with these families less because of financial obligations. All in all, I believe that college is vital, but that college graduates of today face a new set of challenges than their predecessors.
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