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NPR ED
Is College Worth It?
Recent Grads Share Their Experiences
Throughout the last academic year, we've followed a group of students
who graduated from high school a few years ago in Montgomery County,
Md.,
When young adults set out to pick a college back in 2010 and 2011, they
were making a decision of a lifetime amid big financial obstacles:
soaring tuition and the great recession.
And as they progressed through their college careers, a debate over the
value of college grew louder.
A long held mantra – that the best investment is a good education – is
increasingly being called into question. Some politicians, high-profile
entrepreneurs and even educators, have become publicly skeptical of the
worth of a degree that costs hundreds of thousands of dollars to obtain.
In that context, NPR's Robert Siegel set out to learn how nine bright
and engaging college students feel now about the choices they made back
then.
How have they handled the financial burden? And how well positioned do
they feel for the future? Robert spent a year visiting with people who
made a variety of decisions – attending a big state university, private
college and community college.
Alejandra Gonzalez
College: University of Maryland, College Park
Major: Political Science
Where She Is Now: Graduated college in May 2016. Teaching English in
France for a year.
"I had absolutely no idea what I was jumping into when I decided to
attend college. Going to UMD was about getting to know people with
completely different experiences from my own." (Sept. 2016)
Karie Cheung
College: University of Maryland, College Park
Major: Community Health
Where She Is Now: Graduated from college in December 2015. Currently
working at the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human
Services.
"Because both my parents didn't get the experience of college ... I
just wanted to have that traditional, live-in-the-dorm freshman year,
go to all the orientations." (Sept. 2015)
"I always thought that going to college was getting that higher degree,
to be the first in my family to get a college education. But I realized
I grew a lot at the University of Maryland ... socially, emotionally
and definitely mentally." (Sept. 2016)
Rhys Hall
College: University of Maryland, College Park
Major: Sociology
Where He Is Now: First-year graduate student in Sociology at the
University of Connecticut.
"I will not hide the fact that college was going to validate the sense
of security in myself, a sense of accomplishment in myself." (Sept.
2015)
"One tip that I would give based on my experience is applying to grants
and scholarships. You might fill out 10 applications for essays and
only win one, but you know what? You've just won $500. And it builds
up." (Sept. 2016)
Becca Arbacher
College: Columbia University
Major: Physics and political science
Where She Is Now: Graduated from Columbia in May 2016. Now works at
Booz Allen Hamilton as a data scientist in Washington, D.C.
"I've been very lucky to grow up in a family that treated my
undergraduate education as a time for exploration and really figuring
out what I wanted to do." (Sept. 2015)
"Columbia was sometimes difficult to enjoy in the moment. There's a lot
going on, there's a lot of expectations ... Since graduating, it's a
lot easier to look back and appreciate the benefits and the incredible
opportunities that I had while there." (Sept. 2016)
Evan Bonham
College: NYU Tisch School of the Arts
Major: Recorded music
Where He Is Now: Graduated in May 2016. Looking for a job in music
production. Hoping to move back to New York City.
"Anybody could honestly learn how to produce music on their laptop.
[The] whole basis of coming to this institute was learning how I could
walk into any studio, right now, and basically run a session, how to
use different programs to make music, how to work with an artist, how
to make money off of making music." (Dec. 2015)
"My parents made it possible for me to go into school and intern every
year. I wish I could have had the ability to have a job during school
and help pay off some of my loans or help pay off some of my living
expenses, but I'm glad I took that opportunity." (Sept. 2016)
Margie Fuchs
College: Georgetown University
Major: English
Where She Is Now: Graduated in May 2016. Spent the summer teaching
English in Hungary and Slovakia.
"At Georgetown, most of the classes, for me at least, are smaller,
which means that it's a more intimate setting where you really get to
interact with material and other students and professors, in ways that
challenge how you're thinking. You see new points of view and I think
that is fantastic." (Sept. 2015)
"I graduated with a lot of student loans and yes, since graduation I
can definitely feel that clock ticking for when it comes time to start
paying your student debt back." (Sept. 2016)
Carlos Mejia-Ramos
College: Montgomery College
Major: Political Science
Career Goal: Law school
"I didn't feel like I was making less of a decision by going to
Montgomery College ... I was able to stay at home and save money."
(Sept. 2015)
Nancy Chen
College: Montgomery College, Takoma Park
Major: Nursing
Where She Is Now: Planning to graduate in May 2017. Works at the
National Institutes of Health and is a volunteer firefighter/EMT in
Rockville, Md.
"I'm able to save money for vacations and my future. It's taken me a
little longer, but I'm in no debt and I'm still enjoying life to the
fullest." (Sept. 2016)
Jake Meile
College: Montgomery College, 3 years. American Academy of Dramatic
Arts, 1 year.
Major: Theater
Where He Is Now: Acting student starting his second year at the
American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Manhattan.
"In private school, I felt stupid for not getting into a four-year ...
Montgomery College was an attainable goal, a small-scale place I could
take time, then transfer." (Sept. 2015)
"I've gotten to meet all these people from all over the world, with all
these different experiences. From the acting standpoint, you realize
how similar humans can be, just put into different situations." (Sept.
2016)
How We Did This
Throughout the last academic year, we've talked to students who went to
high school in Montgomery County, Md., just outside Washington, D.C.
It's considerably more diverse than the rest of the nation: Nearly
one-third of its residents are foreign-born. It's also more highly
educated: with more than double the national average for bachelor's
degrees.
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