College Access Writing Competition - Third Place: "An American Lifestyle"

 

By Nirdhvaitha Thinniyam Sakthi Kumar

Third Place Winner of College Access Programs' Writing Competition

From kindergarten to high school, students have devoted their lives to institutions set to educate the youth of the future. Students constantly strive to reach the best version of themselves possible and that begins at a young age. Why not pursue further goals to achieve greater success?

Since the beginning of America’s democratic foundation, college has been a great and important aspect of American life. The first colleges were established to instruct and educate Americans on their duties to God, and the role that God plays in their lives. This further led many Americans to become ministers and religious preachers. But due to its early roots, many argue that college is considered a “traditional” path that is forced upon a person, leaving no room for one’s own decisions. This is not entirely true though. College stands as a path to extend one’s desired knowledge and helps educate anyone to reach sought success. While success cannot fully be guaranteed even while holding a college degree, the chances of grasping high-paying or competitive jobs vastly increase. According to the article ‘Education Pays 2020’ by Elka Torpey, a graph displays the various types of degrees an individual can obtain, ranging from a high school diploma to a doctorate. Torpey connects degrees to the median weekly salary, determining that “workers with a bachelor’s degree had median weekly earnings of $1,305 in 2020, compared with $781 for workers with a high school diploma,” (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). In 2020 especially with the lockdowns and outrageous unemployment rates, those with college degrees suffered a 5.5% unemployment rate, while those with only a high school degree suffered a 9.0% unemployment.

With the chances of gaining a job increasing, many connections are developed during one’s time at college, expanding new opportunities through college. In The Chronicle of Higher Education by Ben Weidel, a quote from the cofounder of Paypal, Peter Thiel, describes the

incredible opportunities to “work with a network... of mentors...further developing ideas in their fields”. Many argue that Peter Thiel actually regretted his college path, and wishes that he went straight into trade according to author Ben Weidel, but his college foundation set his path for Paypal and all the students’ opportunities. For many people, college is a chance to escape rough home conditions and start individual paths. In the book Educated by Tara Westover, her very conservative Mormon family restricted her from having an education her whole life. With their traditional beliefs, her father did not believe in education as well as medicine. Working in a metal scrap yard caused many injuries to various family members. One of Tara’s brothers suffered a brutal head and leg injury, leaving him unable to work for months. Their mother was in a car crash and was sensitive to light, and had cognitive problems for years. Tara herself was put in life-threatening situations resulting in great injury to which her father declined medical assistance. Tara began educating herself and got accepted into BYU, and later studied at Cambridge and Harvard. As college helped her to become successful and independent, she was finally out of reach within the danger of her home. Tara’s story shows an example of college assisting those seeking independence and an escape.

People argue that success does not always come from college. These people provide examples of highly successful millionaires and billionaires such as Kylie Jenner, or Mark Zuckerburg. While these people are described to be self-made without the support of the college, many founders almost always have a starting base with money and connections. Kylie Jenner and Mark Zuckerburg both started their companies rich. Zuckerburg had the support of his “wealthy parents”, while Jenner was “born into a rich lifestyle” according to the article ‘Billionaires Who Were Born Into Riches’, by Money Control News. Due to this “born into rich lifestyles,” many argue against college because of its high costs. Most that attend college often

do require financial aid of some sort, whether it’s scholarships or student loans. To this statement, people may say that not everyone receives scholarships or aid, but various colleges have lots of money for those eligible in various categories. Calvin itself actually grants all 100% of its students some sort of financial aid, and even with debt, there are many on-campus jobs at Calvin, and other colleges to maintain a balanced education and income.

Given the context above, college is a core priority for those passionate enough to extend a vast path.

This essay was received as part of a writing competition promoted by College Access Programs at Calvin University.