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Kaitlin Hale
James VanderMey
English 111
14 December 2015
Do People Need A College Education to be Successful in Life?
What is success? Everyones definition of success varies, simply because everyone has
different goals that our set. The favorable or prosperous termination of attempts or endeavors;
the accomplishment of one's goals (Dictionary.com). This is the true definition of success; I
believe this definition can go along with just about anyones goals. Their is not just one type of
success. To be successful it could simply be just having an average lifestyle, or maybe being
famous, or rich. So that being said I truly believe anyone can be successful without a college
education, because people can still accomplish their goals without a college education.
Throughout my entire life, I have always been taught that in order to have a successful career, or
life in general, for that matter, people need to have a college education. I have heard this from
my past teachers, my parents, even from some of my peers. In todays society, there are many
opportunities for jobs with a good pay that do not require a college degree. Many jobs today,
people have different alternatives rather than going to college, such as a trade school, educating
yourself, building a business on your own, or building a brand. There are many different options
that are possible other than college. A lot of students struggle to even make it through high
school, simply because school is just not for them. Why would they waste their time on trying to
get into a college, pay for all the classes, and then end up failing? They would be setting
themselves up for failure, when really, they could be successful with having a job that does not
require a college education.

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After reading the article College Isnt for Everyone, by W.J. Reeves, I questioned myself.
This really made me think if students struggled in high school, why would they put themselves
through college? A person can still be successful without college. If people can't apply
themselves in college then why go? Todays world offers many different alternatives. Reeves
begins to talk about and use other sources to explain how students need to apply themselves in
order to do good in college. His first step was being there, in class. In order to do good in
college, students need to show up to class to know how to do their work and know what
assignments they need to have done. If people arent in class and dont know the material how
are they supposed to do good on their final exams, or just on any homework they have. He
continues to tell a students excuse to why they were not in class Some of them have amazingly
intricate excuses, such as one student who explained that his parents credit card had been
canceled and by the time hed driven home to get the new card, the bookstore had sold out the
texts hed needed (342). Sense he did not have the book he just didnt show up to class. Even
though he could had somehow found a solution he decided to just not show up. This, I believe,
adds in with the childish behaviors that leads college students to failure. Another main point that
Reeves considers important to carry on a good education is reading the material that is assigned
to the student. As a student myself, I find it difficult to sit down on my free time and make
reading assignment a priority. I have discovered that you cannot just sparknote your college
reading assignment and then get a decent grade on the assignment that the reading was over. This
was something that I was able to do in high school and still manage to get a good grade. It is
important to actually read the material that the professor tells the students to read even if it is
optional. Basically if nothing from what Reeves says doesnt apply to a student, they should not
waste their time and money to go through college, when they do not have to even attend college

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to be successful. This article has made me realize that if college isn't for you then dont go, there
are many different opportunities that are offered in today's society to become successful.
College is not the only way to be economically successful. In a specific part of the
reading A matter of Degree: College Is Not an Economic Cure-All, by Clive Crook he
specifically talks about how college is not necessarily a guarantee for a great paying job like
most people seem to think.
Everybody understands that, as a rule of thumb, more school means a bigger
paycheck. On average, having a college degree, rather than just a highschool degree,
increases your earnings by about two-thirds. A problem arises, however, if you try to
gross up these gains across the whole population. If an extra year of education equip
students with skills that increased their productivity, then giving everybody another year
of school or college would indeed raise everybody's income. But take the extreme case,
and suppose that the extra year brought no gain in productive skills. Supposed it merly
sorted people, signaling higher ability to a would-be employer. Then giving an extra
year of school to everybody would raise nobodys income, because nobodys position in
the ordering would change. The private benefit of more education would remain, but the
social benefit would be zero (366).
What Crook is saying in this passage is that college can make people economically successful if
they are productive during the extra year of school, however if the student is not productive than
it was simply just a waste of time and they could be working as something else that did not
include a college education. There are many alternatives to not going to college. A great
example would be myself, when in highschool I got the opportunity to attend a vocational school
because my school offered it. I chose to go through a Occupational Health course. After doing so,

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I was able to take a state test that would certify me as a CNA (certified nurse assistance.)
Although I am choosing to continue my education, I would easily be able to work as a CNA my
entire life and economically survive. I know this because I am currently working as a part time
CNA at Masonic Pathways and making almost the same amount of money as what my parents
make with their jobs, and I remind you this is only a part time job. With a vocational or trade
school, students take a course for a short period of time and then become certified or licensed.
Its cheaper than college, and it may also be possible to have a job that pays better than someone
that has a college education. People also have the option to just educate themselves, using things
such as cheap or inexpensive websites. Some sites may cost money but are not comparable to the
cost of a college education. People do not need a college education/degree to build their own
business. Many people in todays world have successful lives by having and running their own
businesses. This could be more time consuming but if people have the dedication and interest,
they're not going to waste time and money on college. It is also possible to get a job as a
waitress, and invest that money in the business, that way they wouldnt have to worry about
loans. Lastly, brand making is an option. If people have a creative mind and are good at
entertaining others, making a brand could be the career for they can go into. There are literally
thousands of bloggers and vloggers on YouTube that make millions of dollars from their
channels. Some of these examples might not necessarily be cheaper, but the way I see it, people
would have more time to work and earn money while trying to accomplish their goals. The
money that they earn could go towards their goals. If they were going to college, they would not
have the time to work and even if the decided to be a part -time student their paychecks would be
going toward their schooling instead. Todays society gives people many options for a career
that does not need a college education/degree to be successful.

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His task is to fill the students with the contents of his narration- contents which are
detached from reality, disconnected from the totality that engendered them and could give them
significance (57). This statement coming from Paolo Freire, The Banking Concept of
Education, is an example of how teachers today educate students. The education system hides
students from reality. As we grow up, the education system teaches us that getting straight As
throughout school is the only way we can have a successful life. From personal experience, my
parents, teachers, and even peers told me this was true. Even now, as a college student, I still
strive for perfection in my grades. Is being brought up like this really preparing me for the real
world? Nothing about life is perfect, so why is our education system teaching us that the only
way to have a successful life in general, is to get perfect grades so that we can get into a good
college and graduate because that is the only way to have a successful career. Life doesnt allow
perfect records and you will most likely lose more than you win in the real world, simply
because life is more about imperfection, rather than perfection. After graduating college and
entering the real world, kids believe that they have a guaranteed job, but not just any old job, a
high paying job with a great title, perks, benefits and bonuses. As Thomas Reeves says Going to
college has became a nation fad, a rite of passage, millions hope, into the world of hefty salaries
and McMansions. That is not the real world. When reading the article College Isnt for
Everybody, and Its a Scandal that We Think It Is, by Thomas Reeves, he talks about how high
school education system does not prepare students for college, yet they still demand that students
need a college education to have a successful life. A lot of what what Reeves talks about goes
along with my idea of the education system not really preparing us for success. One paragraph
that specifically caught my attention, was paragraph five, Reeves states,

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Even more important is the impact of intellectually unprepared people on the
educational process itself. Anti-intellectualism is the Great Enemy of the educator, and
with a classroom full of people who do not read, study, or think, academic standards
inevitably suffer. In the article titled The Classroom Game, I described my own
tribulations with students in an open-admissions environment. The most well-intentioned
professor cannot educate those who refuse to be educated. All too often, such students
demand that they be passed through the system and awarded a diploma, as they were in
high school (347).
What he says in this section, is that students expect college to be just as easy as highschool. No
student was really prepared for the stresses and the academic difficulties that comes along with
college. I would add on how the college education does the same as the what Reeves states, for
the real world. This is why many believe that going to college is a must, the education system
that we all have grow up knowing is telling us the only way to be a success in life is if we go to
college. People do not have to attend college to have a successful life, even though that is what
many grow up thinking they will find out that this isnt true and that they have many options that
can lead them to success.
Many might argue that having a social life and meeting new people is a very important
opportunity that a college education can offer. Having social skills is very important to have
when going out into the real world. Not only do people get to make new friends, but they also
get to learn about different points of views and/or frame of references. Learning about different
cultures or diversity can decrease negative thoughts and let someone understand more about
other peoples views. However, I strongly believe that after graduating high school, entering the
workforce or attending a trade school can give someone a social life. When going to work,

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people have the same opportunity to talk to coworkers and see a lot of diversity just as a student
can in college. Overall, I believe that you can meet someone anywhere at anytime whether you're
at college or not. Even though some say people need a college degree in order to have a
successful career or life, however that's not completely true in today's society. I definitely
understand that having a college degree or going to college can help you advance in your career,
but I also think that you do not have to go to college in order to have a successful career that
pays good, and possibly better than someone with a college education/degree. A lot of people just
arent meant for college.
To conclude, there are many different alternatives rather than going to college, such as a
trade school, educating yourself, building a business on your own or building a brand. These
opportunities are beneficial, simply because it takes up less of your time, and they are all cheaper
options. Our education systems teach us to strive for perfection, but let's all face it, when in the
real world, perfection is not a real thing. You do not need a college education to be successful in
life.

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Work Cited
Crook, Clive. A matter of Degree: College Is Not an Economic Cure-All Pg.
Exploring Relationships: Globalization and Learning in the 21st Century
Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com. Web. 18 Dec. 2015.
Freire, Paulo. "Chapter 2." Pedagogy of the Oppressed. pg. 57. New York: Continuum,
2000.
Reeves, W.J. "What and Who Is College for?" Pg. 342. Exploring Relationships:
Globalization and Learning in the 21st Century
Reeves, Thomas. "College Isnt for Everybody, and Its a Scandal that We Think It Is" Pg. 347.
Exploring Relationships: Globalization and Learning in the 21st Century