Discussion boards are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, the student is required to create a thread in response to the prompt provided for each forum. Each thread must be at least 400 words and demonstrate course-related knowledge, including at least 2 in-text citations with full references listed at the end of the post. In addition to the thread, the student is required to reply to the threads of at least 2 classmates. Each reply must be at least 200 words and include at least 1 in-text citation.
Topic: Academic and Career Outcomes
Discuss how attending different types of institutions can impact a student’s academic and career outcomes. Does it matter where students attend college? Are postsecondary institutions responsible to ensure that students complete a degree, accumulate little or no debt, and enter a job that with a high paying salary? What is the Christian’s perspective on making long-term decisions and facing the implications of choices? In your replies, express your agreement or disagreement with students’ comments on these issues
Reply 1:D. Grider
Academic and Career Outcomes
The type of institution an individual attends can directly affect their career opportunities. Now, that does not mean you if you go to X college, then you will never be able to hold Z job. However, the type of institution you attend can hinder your ability to get Z job. I attended a junior college and was the vice-president and then president of an InterVarsity Christian Fellowship Chapter. My plan was to graduate from there and go to a Christian university to study youth ministry to become a youth pastor. My sophomore the staff member from InterVarsity approached me essientially asking me to come work for InterVarsity. However, the condition for with being going to a public university and continue my work with InterVarsity there. Since, I felt called to youth ministry and thought I would not be adequately prepared for that calling by a public university, I decided to leave InterVaristy behind. These two career choices were directly conflicting because of the types of institutions required to attend for each of them being different. Now, this makes a good allegorical example but how does the implications of choosing from multiple institutions truly affect an individual as they look for a career? They are many intangibles that could affect this but one factor that is easy to look at is the affect of cost. Inside Higher Ed. reports that almost 20% of students who were accepted by their number one school, eventually turned it down for cost (Seltzer, 2017). A study conducted by Sallie Mae says that almost seven out of every ten families eliminate a college just because of cost (How, 2017). The type of institution has correlation to the cost. There are cheap private colleges and expensive state schools. So, if a student’s academic goals is to go to an Ivy League school but cannot gather the money to attend, then the problem with the cost is probably that it is the cost associated with an Ivy League school. CNBC quotes a paper that is recent project and has yet to be published but the paper states that for “additional $2,500 in education loans brings down an individual’s likelihood of being employed in a job closely related to their major by almost 5 percentage points (Nova, 2018).”
Does it matter where students attend college? I think the allegorical portion of this post kind of answered this. For certain degree paths, it does matter what kind of institution you attend. However, I believe that the institution you attend does not determine your career path. You may get looked over by the job you expected to get right out of college. That does not mean after gaining experience on top of a degree from that institution you will be looked over again. So, the type of institution you attend my change your dream time line but with persistence, I think you could still get you dream job.
I think these expectations of the responsibility of the institution would be ridiculous. However, that does not mean they should not strive towards these things. Schools should always be pushing to up their retention and graduation rates. They should always be trying to help their students accumulate as little debt as possible. Their goal should not be to get their student a high-paying job but help the student get the job that the student believes is best for his/her own soul. Some people want to go into fields where they can help people. This could be teachers, pastors, or any social worker, these types of jobs do not often have high-monetary pay associated with them. However, society needs these kinds of people, but acccumulating an amount debt that they cannot reasonably pay off, can turn people away from these positions. I would love to see a more graduated system of tuition cost. Majors that expect to make X% more pay X% more for tuition. I think many people would have a problem with this method but it would allow us to keep people in the positions we need them.
I think Phillipians 4:6-7 gives a good voice as to what to do in the face of a tough decision. To not be anxious about anything and in every situation pray about it and then let God do the rest ( BibleGateway). When facing tough decisions we need to seek wise counsel. There is no more wiser counsel than God but he also puts people in our lives to be physical reminders of his wisdom. So, do not be anxious but seek out God’s wisdom through prayer and counsel of others.
Reply 2: A. Hailey
It should not matter what higher education institution you attend, as long as you attend one, right? Well studies have shown otherwise. Students who attend less selective institutions have a lower chance of graduating, as their graduation and retention rates are lower than more selective institutions. An audit study simulating the job search process for recent bachelor’s degree earners found that employers respond, on average, 6 percent more frequently to applications from graduates of very selective private nonprofit four-year colleges than from very selective public four-year colleges (Bastedo, 2016). This says that employers believe that private nonprofit institutions prepare their students better than public institutions.
It should not matter where students attend college, but in some instances it does. An employer is more likely to hire someone with a degree from Duke University, than a public state institution. There is some belief that public state schools or for-profit institutions offer a lesser quality of education. I believe that it does not matter where you attend college, as long as you assess the skills you need in your industry. Just because a school is well known and respected it does not mean that the student has left prepared. Education is what you make it and it takes a goal oriented student to learn the skills needed. For-profit and public institutions can very well teach the same skills and information, and produce even better professionals. It is saddening to see hiring committees choose their next employee based on where they attended college.
I do believe that postsecondary institutions should be held accountable for students’ success. It is important that institutions help students navigate through the challenges that their students may face. It is a shame to see students accumulate thousands of debt and have no degree to show for it. Institutions should have support programs in place for degree completion and repayment of loans. I know that students have to complete loan counseling, but it would be nice to see more being done throughout the completion of the degree with budgeting and how to avoid loans. Also, institutions should coach students on how to obtain a job with a high paying salary. Interviewing skills should be taught, schools should be able to connect graduates with companies in their field, and be able to assist students with a backup plan when they are not prepared to obtain a job in their field.
The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all (Ecclesiastes 9:11). It is important as Christians that we continue to run the race. While we may become tired and weak, we have to stay and finish the course. There may be times when we doubt the decisions that we have made, but better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit (Ecclesiastes 7:8).
References:
Bastido, Michael N, Altbach, Phillip G and Gumport, Patricia J. American Higher Education in the 21st Century. 4th Edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2016.
Holy Bible: Containing the Old and New Testaments: King James Version. (2010). New York: American Bible Society.
