Higher Education in the United States

As a definition, Higher education is an educational level that follows a

completion of a school providing a secondary education, such as a high
school,secondary school, or gymnasium.
On the one hand, Higher education includes teaching, research, exacting
applied work (e.g. in medical schools and dental schools), and social services
activities of universities. Within the realm of teaching, it includes both
the undergraduate level, and beyond that, graduate-level (orpostgraduate level).
The latter level of education is often referred to as graduate school, especially in
North America.
On the other hand, Higher education in some countries, including the United
States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Ireland, specifically refers to post-secondary
institutions that offer Associate's degrees, Bachelor's degrees, Master's
degrees, Education Specialist degrees orDoctor of Philosophy degrees, or their
equivalents, and also higher professional degrees in areas such as dentistry, law,
medicine, optometry, pharmacology and veterinary medicine.
Such institutions may also offer non-degree certificates, which indicate completion of a
set of courses comprising a body of knowledge on a particular topic, but the granting of
such certificates is not the primary purpose of the institutions. Tertiary education is not a
term used in reference to post-secondary institutions in the United States or Canada.
Higher education in the United States is an optional final stage of formal learning
following secundary education. Higher education also referred to as post-secondary
education, third stage, third level, or tertiary education occurs most commonly at one of
the 4,726 Title IV degree-granting institutions, either colleges or universities in the
country . These may be public universities, private universities, liberal art
colleges. High visibility issues include greater use of the Internet, such as massive open
online courses, competency-based education, cutbacks in state spending, rapidly
rising tuition and increasing student loans.
School education:
The age of entry to compulsory education in the U.S. varies, according to the state,
between 5 and 7 years of age, 6 being the most common. The age at which compulsory
schooling ends varies between 16 and 18 years of age, the most common being 16.
School education does not end until age 18, or completion of the 12th year of school and
those who leave school at the end of compulsory education without earning a secondary
(high school) diploma do not receive any certificate or recognition - they are considered
to be secondary school drop-outs. Students may graduate a year earlier or late
depending on when they entered school. Gifted students may graduate earlier because
they skipped grades, and students may graduate later because they repeat grades.
School years are referred to as "grades" in the United States.
Higher education:

Higher education in the U.S. is also called postsecondary education, but the latter term
also refers to all formal education beyond secondary school, whether higher education
(defined as degree-granting education) or not. Postsecondary education is broadly divided
into two different sectors: postsecondary vocational education and training, which is nondegree but can produce some transferable credits under certain circumstances; and
higher education, which includes studies undertaken in degree-granting institutions for
academic credit. However, the U.S. higher education system is not legally organized into
separate university and non-university sub-systems as are some other national systems,
but is comprehensive. It is a diverse and autonomous community of publicly and privalely
supported institutions.
Current data indicate that there are 6,479 postsecondary institutions, including 4,182
non-degree institutions. Of the degree-granting higher education institutions, some 1,732
award only the associate degree plus sub-bachelor's certificates and diplomas; 702
award only the bachelor's degree; 1,094 award degrees and certificates beyond the
bachelor's degree but not the research doctorate; and 654 institutions award the research
doctorate. The United States does not use an official classification or typology for its
higher education institutions. While different institutions offer varying levels of degrees,
U.S. accreditation policies result in degrees at any given level adhering to certain
minimum standards regardless of the institution that grants them. The privately derived
but popular Carnegie Classification organizes U.S. institutions according to different
schemes.
The U.S. higher education system is characterized by accessibility, diversity, and
autonomy and is known for both its size and quality. The federal government has no
jurisdiction or authority over the recognition of educational institutions, members of the
academic professions, programmes or curricula, or degrees or other qualifications. Nearly
all U.S. postsecondary institutions are licensed, or chartered, by a state or municipal
government to operate under the ownership of either a government (if public) or a
private corporation (if independent), and may be for-profit or not-for-profit enterprises.
Religious institutions are considered independent, or private. Quality assurance is
achieved via the system of voluntary accreditation by specific accrediting agencies that
are recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and meet the standards for
membership in the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). Accreditation is a
self-regulating process of quality control engaged in by the U.S. postsecondary education
community to ensure minimum standards of academic capability, administrative
competence, and to promote mutual recognition of qualifications within the system. Six
(6) regional accreditation associations set minimum standards for institutions chartered in
the states of their respective jurisdictions.
In addition, there are recognized accrediting agencies for specialized institutions and
programmes. While all recognized and accredited institutions are licensed or chartered by
state governments, states vary greatly in the degree of supervision and quality control
that they exercise, and there is relatively limited reciprocity of recognition across state
borders. Accreditation by recognized agencies, therefore, remains the primary means of
ensuring academic and institutional quality and the mutual acceptance of credits and
qualifications across and outside the United States.
For many individual students preparing to graduate from high school, wondering whether
or not they should pursue a higher education at a university or other learning institute is
an issue that weighs heavily on their minds. It is a very difficult decision that depends on
many different factors, such as the individuals personal goals. Some students choose to
go straight from high school directly into the workforce after graduating. Other students
choose to go into the military after graduating from high school. While these are all
different options, recent research indicates that higher education is extremely valuable.
Recent research indicates that higher education is extremely valuable. For, individuals
whom attended a university and obtained at least a four-year bachelors degree make
more money on average than people who have never obtained a university degree

according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. In a study conducted by the
United States Bureau of Labor conducted in 2009, it was concluded that someone with a
four-year bachelors degree makes on average $20,748 more per year than someone
without the degree. In a report done by the United States Census Bureau published in the
Current Population Report by ?Jennifer Cheeseman Day and? Eric C. Newburger, it is
estimated that high school graduates earn on average $1.2 million throughout the course
of a lifetime. It is also estimated in the report that individuals with a bachelor's degree will
earn on average $2.1 million total throughout their lifetime. As you can see, the facts
show that getting a higher education is worth more value financially than stopping an
education
after
graduating
from
high
school.
In addition to the high financial value of higher education, higher education also makes
individuals much more intelligent than what they would be with just a high school
education. The more intelligent an individual is, the better quality of life they are likely to
have. In Wechsler's Measure and Appraisal of Adult Intelligence, 5th Edition by Joseph
D. Matarazzo, Matarazzo states that the average intelligence quotient (IQ) of a high
school graduate is 105 points. He also states that the average intelligence quotient (IQ) of
a college four-year graduate is 115 points. To quote Sociologist Linda Gottfredson of the
University of Deleware, IQ scores predict a wider range of important social outcomes
than perhaps any other psychological trait; ... bright people have a tail wind in virtually all
aspects of life. What she means by this quote is that the higher an individuals
intelligence quotient, the higher the quality of life that they will have.
This is true because those with higher intelligent quotients have higher problem solving
abilities that correlate to better life qualities. In an Australian study studied by
Gottfredson, motor vehicle fatalities were studied, correlating intelligence quotients with
motor vehicle fatalities. In the study, there was a direct correlation discovered between
those with lower intelligence quotients, and higher death rates per 10,000 people. Ian
Deary of the University of Edinburgh, in the United Kingdom did another study that shows
how those individuals with higher intelligence quotients have higher qualities of life than
those with lower intelligence quotients. For his study, he looked into the childhood
intelligence quotient scores of a group of 80 year olds. In his study, he found that those
who scored the highest on their childhood intelligence quotient tests were also the
healthiest at age 80. These studies serve as evidence that having a higher intelligence
quotient improves the quality of your life. College students who graduate with at least a
Bachelors degree have on average higher intelligence quotients than those students who
didnt attend college, which means that those students who do graduate college with a
degree
will
have
a
better
quality
of
life
than
those
who
dont.
Another reason why getting a higher education is very valuable is because it offers
many new opportunities to students that they would be unable to get without having
attended a university. Most, if not all, universities and other higher education systems
offer many activities in which students will get to meet many other new students. Many
students will meet new friends who often become some of the best friends that theyve
ever had. There are also almost always sports, clubs, and other activities to get involved
with that would be unavailable to those not attending a higher education system. Many
people participate on sports teams in high school such as football, baseball, field hockey,
soccer, basketball, wrestling, track and field, and softball, to name a few. After they
graduate high school they do not have many opportunities to participate in their favorite
sports ever again. Whether it is for competitive purposes or just for enjoyment purposes,
universities offer the opportunities to participate in some of their past favorite sports, or
experiment
with
new
ones.
Another opportunity that students of higher education systems have exposure to that
those who do not attend higher education systems do not have as readily available is the
opportunity to study abroad. Studying abroad means taking educational classes in a
country other than ones own. Unless they are particularly financially wealthy, the
majority of the individuals that do not attend higher education systems never get the
opportunity to live in foreign countries for the entire length of a semester. According to a
BBC news report, about 114,000 higher education system students study abroad each

year at universities in foreign countries. Studying abroad is a great opportunity for higher
education system students to take advantage of. When one studies abroad, they get the
chance to learn about another culture through first hand experience, they get the chance
to learn how to fluently speak a foreign language by merely being exposed to it for a
period of time, and it is very prestigious to have on a resume. Author W.E.B. DuBois
among other successful celebrities studied abroad. He studied at the university of Berlin
in Germany for two years. Studying abroad is just another example of a way that higher
education systems give their students more opportunities than those who do not attend
them.
Higher education systems can also be considered very valuable because they provide
individuals with life skills that are essential to being successful in life. While studying at a
higher education system, one is forced to develop essential time management skills
much more so than at the high school level. With time needed for studying, attending
classes, completing homework, relaxation, and doing fun things as well, one needs to
manage their time in order to avoid failing out. These time management skills help out
individuals later on in life. Another important life skill that individuals who attend higher
education systems gain is money management skills. Some higher education system
students work part-time jobs, but the majority are unable to find the time to do so on top
of their schoolwork, so the only money they have for spending is either money their
parents give to them, or money that they saved up before going to college. Either way,
most students are on tight financial budgets that require discipline to maintain. Students
learn to only spend money on things that they absolutely need, and to save up their
money rather than spending it all at once. These money management skills help the
students
later
in
life.
While attending a higher education system offers many positives, it also offers certain
negatives. One negative is the fact that higher education schools are often very
expensive. Colleges are expensive, and it is hard for a lot of families to afford to pay for,
however this is not a good reason for not attending. If one starts early enough, they can
save money, look into financial aide opportunities, and apply for scholarship opportunities
to help pay for their tuition. It has already been shown that the amount of money that
college students will make after graduation is much higher than the amount of money
those who do not attend will make, so if someone can make sacrifices in order to pay for
college then when they have a career someday they will make it all back plus more.
Another negative to going straight to a higher education system is that people are
getting later starts to their careers. Some people choose to work minimum wage jobs, or
take other opportunities like opening their own businesses. These options are all
respectable, and sometimes do end up making people large sums of money, but the facts
given to us by the United States Bureau of Labor show that the vast majority of the time
this is not the case. No matter how tempting it may be to take a good wage job right after
high school, it is always more financially beneficially to attend a higher education
system.
In conclusion, the evidence shows us that attending higher education systems is
extremely valuable. One reason that it is extremely valuable is that it offers many great
financial benefits. Another reason is that it makes individuals more intelligent. Those who
attend higher education systems also have more opportunities available to them than
those who do not attend them. Attending higher education systems also teach great skills
that are essential for being successful in life. In short, higher education systems are
extremely valuable.