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Roxanna Walker
Professor Beavers
RHET 1312
17 November 2016
Is College Education Worth It?
An Annotated Bibliography
Cassidy, John. College Calculus. New York Times. Conde Nast, 2016,
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/07/college-calculus. Accessed 16
November 2016.
According to the New York Times article, College Calculus written by John
Cassidy, a college education is a necessity for competing for jobs in todays economy.
However, a college tuition in the United States is four times more expensive than in other
countries; nevertheless, the percentage of those attending college is steadily increasing.
Even though the pay gap between those with degrees and those without is evident, that
gap has ceased to grow. Many families encourage higher education because it is believed
that having a bachelors degree or higher is the gateway out of poverty. The main reason
students obtain a college degree is to illustrate to future employers that they have the
cognitive competence to successfully do their job and work in group settings. In addition
to this, to compete for entry level openings requires a college degree. Yet, it has been
noted that some employers are more concerned with where a potential employee
graduated from not the grades or the major they graduated with. However, the need for
higher educated workers have decreased and the demand for low paying occupations
have increased caused those with degrees to work at jobs that they are overqualified for.

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The solution to these issues is to stress more importance on more affordable colleges such
as community colleges that offer two year degrees instead of expensive four year degrees;
in addition to this, those who attend college should major in degrees that lean towards
liberal art degrees, that enhances the life and provide lessons that extend beyond a
particular job.
Leonhardt, David. Is College Worth It? Clearly, New Data Say. New York Times, The New
York Times Company, 2016, http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/27/upshot/is-collegeworth-it-clearly-new-data-say.html. Accessed 17 November 17, 2016.
In the article, Is College Worth It? Clearly, New Data Say, author David
Leonhardt addresses the question frequently asked about attending college: is a college
education worth it? Due to the fact that those who graduate college either have trouble
finding work or feel overqualified at the jobs they accept employment from. In addition
to this, the amount of student debt has reached an all-time high of $1 trillion. However,
Leonhardt believes that attending college is better even with student debts and the
struggles of employment after graduating. He argues that the wage gap between those
with college degrees and those without are higher than before according to recent data
research. Furthermore, he argues that having a college degree for those who grew up in
poverty is the key to moving into the middle class or beyond.
Manning, Dr. Kevin. Making College Career Preparation a Deliberate Process. Huffington
Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc., 2016, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-kevinmanning/college-career-prep_b_2567522.html. Accessed 17 November 17, 2016.
The issue in todays socio-economic climate is whether college students are
prepared for careers after graduating. In the Huffington Post article, Making College

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Career Preparation a Deliberate Process written by Dr. Kevin Manning, he states that
there have been conflicts between the liberal arts values in higher education and career
values. However, he argues that the two need to come together on the behalf of the
students. Because he believes liberal arts values and career values should be combined he
offers a multi-step process that mentors students called the Career Architecture. This
process involves three steps, personal direction, professional know-how, and discipline
expertise. Through these processes students define their personal values, gain and apply
knowledge in a practical manner, and discover new experiences and mentors to reinforce
their growth. Because of this, students are prepared for workplaces, making them
competent, directional, and creatively flexible for life after college.
Matthews, Steve. Fading College Dream Saps U.S. Economy of Productivity Miracle.
Bloomberg, Bloomberg L.P., 2016, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-1117/here-s-how-employers-are-gearing-up-for-new-u-s-overtime-rules. Accessed 17
November 17, 2016.
Although throughout the years the growth of college graduates had increased, it
has begun decreasing due to aging population, increase in college tuition, and health rates
of hiring that lessen the demand for learning. In an article written by Steve Matthews,
Fading College Dream Saps U.S. Economy of Productivity Miracle, he contrasts the
facts of college graduates after college and those without college degrees supporting his
information with testimonies from those who have or are trying to find work with and
without degrees. He concluded that those with higher education backgrounds compete
better in the workplace and those without struggle finding secure jobs. As a result, it is

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more beneficial for people to obtain higher education and then look for work after
graduating than for those who dont have college degrees.
Stossel, John. Dont Go to College! Reason, Reason Foundation, 2016,
http://reason.com/archives/2015/05/27/dont-go-to-college. Accessed 17 November 2016.
A college education is only beneficial to those who have full ride scholarships
and/or for those who have parents rich enough to pay for their education according to
John Stossel in the Reason article, Dont Go to College! According to Stossel, college
has become a scam due to the fact that half of those who graduate work at jobs that do
not require higher education. He argues that those who went to elite schools tend to have
better chances of finding employment after graduating, because employers place more
value on elite university they graduated from rather than the potential graduate. In
addition to the preference in universities potential employees graduate from, college
tuitions has rapidly increased making it more of a financial burden to obtain a four-year
degree than if they had not attended college. As a result, Stossel proposes that people
should discourage others from attending college and suggest that they look for alternative
routes of becoming financially stable.