UNITED STATES—It has been a debate that has existed forever and I think it will always exist. Is the cost of higher education actually worth it? That is a difficult question to answer because you have pros and cons to it. Do you have to go to college to be successful in life? The answer is simple: NO! There are plenty of successful people in this country who did not go to college, but then you have to answer the question, what dictates success?
Most people would argue money, while others would say not so much. Money doesn’t always dictate success because people tend to flaunt what they don’t actually have! In other words, people fake the lifestyle they want the world to think they have, so college education may or may not have anything to do with it. However, let’s get back to the issue at hand; higher education is costly.
People don’t want to hear it, but it can break the budget in massive ways, especially for parents who are footing the bill. It is not fun cutting a check and it’s worse if you’re cutting a check and your kid or kids (you might have more than one in college) NOT delivering on the grades that you want to see from them. Some of the classes that the universities force students to take make you question the WHY element? Why do I have to take two years of a particular science, whether biological or physical science that has absolutely nothing to do with my core curriculum for my major? Humanities courses for what? Yeah, now that I reflect, it feels like the courses for close to two years were simply extra money for the university to get from students instead of allowing them to go directly into their programs of interest.
Hell, now that I think back to it as an undergraduate who got to choose what courses or requirements are fitting for an English major who is focusing on Film Studies. I can speak on the matter at hand because of pursuit currently on a doctoral degree where I feel like I’m close to the finish line, but the cost of tuition alone has been brutal and if there is one thing I don’t like doing it is wasting money in any capacity. Every single penny I can save is literally utilized to put food on the table, take care of the electric, gas, rent, transportation and so many other expenses on a daily and monthly basis.
You might be pursuing a higher education, but that doesn’t mean life stops in the process. Do I think having a higher education sometimes opens the door to more opportunities? I do believe that, but I am a believer that you sometimes have to create your own opportunities as you can. You may not see it clearly in the beginning, but there is always an opportunity within an opportunity, you just have to see it when it seems it is not obvious.
Working on a dissertation is no easy task, you’re talking about a particular subject for an elongated period that has to have clear focal points and details that make sense and doesn’t feel like a person just rambling for the sake of rambling. As an undergraduate it was a goal of mine to do my best to limit what I took out in student loans because I was paying for college out of my own pocket. My parents could NOT afford to send me to college. If I wanted to go to college it was up to me to make it happen, which I did, but I never expected a doctoral degree to be in my future, but the opportunity was there and I grabbed it by the horns.
I am glad I did because I feel like I’m doing something that really matters to me, and when it comes to writing and film in particular it is my happy place. I can talk about cinema all day all long and just being forced to hone in on a particular issue or topic and dissecting it seemed so daunting at the beginning of my program, but as I get closer to the end the realization hit me: you know so much more than you imagine and the impact I want to make in the industry and particular genre is something I haven’t seen.
It’s not just about scholarly work it’s about changing the perception of dynamics in how society sees and receives it, and it is opening a door for me to learn more about an industry that has fascinated me and to mingle and connect with those who have some insight that I am lacking. Education is costly and IF YOU FEEL it matters, then go for it, but if you feel you don’t need it, guess what, don’t feel forced to go. Opportunities come and go, but I’m a firm believer you make your opportunities and that you take access to them whenever possible.
