There is a mindset in today’s society that equates success with college (Carew). However, there have been several cases where this is not true. Famous, and very successful, entrepreneurs such as Bill Gates, Walt Disney, and Mark Zuckerberg never completed or even attended college (ProCon). Even if a higher education seemed ideal, most people can’t afford to attend without leaving with debt. Since 1983, the cost of college has increased by five times the rate of inflation, while the average wages of a college graduate have stayed constant (“Is college worth it? Higher education”) A college education is not worth it because it costs too much, it causes inequalities, and there are other options.

When costs of monetary value, issues with everyday life, and unreliable outcome are taken into consideration, a higher education isn’t worth it. Since employers that are college graduates will normally only hire other college graduates, colleges and universities have been permitted to create their own monopoly. Since so many jobs require a college degree, costs of tuition and extra fees can be increased, forcing those looking for a job to take on even more student debt (ProCon). Also, a lot of degrees have very little value when compared to the debt they caused. An example of a scenario where someone pursued a degree that interested them and it fell short, is that of Kennesaw State University graduate that majored in Spanish. Her graduation had left her with $35,000 in student debt, and since she couldn’t find employment with her degree, ended up working for no more than $11 per hour (“Is college worth it? Higher education”). Since there were no available jobs pertaining to a Spanish degree or any that paid very well, the graduate had trouble paying back her student loans. Even if a student goes to college for more a pragmatic degree that is insured to offer employment, the wages for new graduates is still down 6% from 2007, even as the labor market is recovering (Carew). Another cost of a higher education is that of everyday life. As a result of the monetary costs of college, a graduate’s adult life is delayed. Actions that mark adulthood such as buying a car, purchasing a house, or getting married get put to the side while the college graduates try to figure out how to finance their debt into their current income. Also in the life of a college student, there is the inevitable overwhelmed feeling and stress that comes along with a higher education. In a 2012 study, over 40% of college students reported feeling overwhelmed and stressed on daily basis. This stress has many different roots, ranging from competing for the best grades to relationships. Not only does stress cause anxiety and depression, it can also lead to more long term health issues like chronic digestive disorders, high blood pressure, and insomnia (Procon). Even after you stumble through the debt and health problems college has caused, there is still uncertainty as to whether or not the aftermath will be worth the costs. In 2011, only 50% of college graduates under the age had a full time job. Even the ones that were working had a high chance of not being employed in college level work. As of 2008, the Department of Labor recorded 17 million college graduates in the United States being employed in jobs that didn’t require a college degree. There was also 33% of all college graduates in 2012 that were working in jobs that required only a high school diploma, and sometimes even less (Procon). Still, the graduates that did make it into the workforce in their education range were in trouble. Only a reported half of all college graduates felt truly prepared for employment in their field of study (“Is college worth it? Higher education”). Part of the problem with the job market for college graduates is the fact that the value of a bachelor’s degree has nearly diminished. Since college is seen as the only way to be successful, almost everyone in the United States has been earning at least a bachelor’s degree. As a result of this degree no longer being rare, the employers now have the power to choose from a much larger pool of people (Procon). A college education, when it comes down to the costs, isn’t worth the money, stress, or unknown aftermath.

Another problem with obtaining a college education, is that it creates inequalities among minorities and majorities, the poor and the wealthier, and between employment and wage opportunities. It’s a well known fact that, in the United States, minorities such as blacks and hispanics, as well as the people that have low income, are much less likely to enroll in or complete college. A lot of minorities don’t want to cause anymore rifts or conflicts than there already are. Most will stay away from obtaining a higher education and enter in the minimum wage jobs. The low income citizens of the United States are relatively forced away from college. Since the price of an education has increased to staggering amounts, most can’t afford to continue after high school. These people will also have to enter into the less desirable jobs (Carew). There is also the other inequality that’s formed from in the form of wage gaps. College degree holders make an average of $35,000 annually, while those that may have been forced out of the college market make only $13,000 or less per year (Draeger). As a result of college being important in making money, there is a distinct lack of middle skills jobs. This is caused by going to college, instead of learning trades to become professions such as plumbers and electricians (Procon). While this may seem like not a big deal, in reality, it is spelling disaster for the economy. Since there is no longer people to fill middle skill jobs, the majority of new jobs created are low skill. Obviously those with college educations are chosen first, those who have no degree are being forced out of the work force. This chain reaction is causing unemployment rates to increase dramatically (Carew). The more people choose the path of higher education, the more inequalities will be present.

Many people think that college is the only way to be successful, but there are other options and plenty of reasons to opt for them. In a study done by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, of the 30 jobs that are projected to be the fastest growing between 2010 and 2020, 18 required a two year education or less. Only four of that 18 required an associate's degree, which can be obtained by a community college, which normally has much cheaper tuition than four year programs (Procon). There has always been the option to obtain an industry certification. An industry certification is a process of evaluation that decides whether or not an individual is prepared for that field of work (Carew). Another option for those who are not interested in college, is a trade profession. These careers; which include construction workers, plumbers, and hair stylists, require much less education, usually make well above minimum wage, and will always be necessary for society to function (Procon). Another way to opt out of college is to change the way employers function. If employers began offering specific training, instead of insisting their employees attend college, they would have many more well prepared workers (Carew). This problem comes from the fact that the college system is beginning to fail. Most graduates have no sense of how to manage their time or how to be organized. There are four million jobs in the United States that remain unfilled because employers can’t find people that are prepared enough to fill them (“Is college worth it? Higher education”). There has also been the common worry among people that college professors are so close minded, that they are indoctrinating their students, or using their authority to force their beliefs onto their students (Procon). If this were to occur, students would be less ready to enter into the real world, where everyone’s opinions matter. Studies have shown that dropout rates have been extremely high in the past years. The average completion rate for a four year degree was only 38.6%, meaning roughly 60% of individuals that entered college with the intent on earning a bachelor’s degree either failed or dropped out (Carew). Statistics have also told the telling story that after four years of a college level education, 36% of all students showed no significant improvement in testing (Procon). In the long run, there are much cheaper options than college, and a plethora of reasons to choose them.

Even though college continues to have incredible costs and causes inequalities among citizens, people still argue that college is the only key to success. People that think this way often believe that to solve the problem of not being able to pay back student loans, people should start applying themselves to degrees that are more practical for the workforce (“Is college worth it? Higher education”). These degrees include ones such as nursing or accounting, which have high employment and pay rates. However, if everyone only went to college for degrees that, in the past, have had large payouts, degrees that shape culture, but not bank accounts, like liberal and fine arts would disappear. There is also the argument that “the more you learn, the more you earn”, meaning the more time a person spends in school, the more they will make (“More education: Higher earnings, lower unemployment”). While this may be true in most cases, the state of the national job market right now doesn’t ensure the employment to make these higher wages. In a study, 42% of recent college graduates are employed in jobs that require less than a four year degree, and 41% of people who received degrees from the nation’s best colleges couldn’t find jobs that were in their field of study (“Is college worth it? Higher education”). Overall, even though some college graduates benefit from their higher education, a large percentage wishes they had done something different along the way.

In 2011, a study showed that 57% of all Americans believed obtaining a higher education didn’t provide a good enough value in comparison to other variables (Procon). When weighing pros and cons, a college education isn’t worth it because of the costs, the rifts it creates, and because there are other, better options.