What a College Education Buys - Essay Example

What a College Education Buys When a parent enrolls his/her son/daughter in a college, their focus is primarily on the qualifications that will be acquired over the four years. This fact that is rightly appreciated by many parents the world over. In contrast, the value of the non-educational benefits accrued over the years in college is underestimated. The importance of college education has been priced a little higher than the peace being sought in the Middle East (Caldwell, pp 213). It is estimated that most people find, or at least identify, their spouses while in college.

Perhaps this is a matter of the lustful nature of the youth, but nevertheless, it is not to be assumed. I strongly feel that the social setting within which colleges are run is perfectly ideal for people from different backgrounds to build relationships. These relationships are not, however, confined to partnerships of love. People from different races end up in the same classes and can, therefore, appreciate the beauty of human diversity at a better scale. Colleges can also be viewed as impacting positively on the students’ leisure time.

I cannot start to think of how boring life would be if these four years were spent otherwise or elsewhere other than in college. To qualify this argument, it is important to think of the many professional athletes that build their careers during their stay in college. Most professional baseball, basketball, tennis and even boxing players make their careers out of their talents identified mostly during college. Growing one’s talent forms part of the reasons why most people end up enrolling in colleges (Caldwell, pp 514).

It is unimaginable of how crooked citizens would be if they did not pass through the college system of education. It is here that behaviors are shaped, and morals of otherwise immoral people perfected. To a great extent, parents too are beneficiaries of the college system. Their sons and daughters are taught about life, by life itself, away from home. This way, parents do not have to go through the monotonous duty of shaping their children’s attitudes towards life. In a nutshell, college education can be seen as an avenue of civilization.

Most business partners, the world over, have a previously shared life. This shared life usually ends up being their college life. Students have the chance, albeit unknowingly, in fostering future business partnerships while they are still in college. It happens more often that the supplier of raw materials to a manufacturing company was a fellow student to the founder of the enterprise. Experts have advised that students need to make friendship with fellow students from as many education fields as they possibly can to better their chances of success in the future.

Though the cost of college education has been on a steady increase over the recent past, the benefits surpass the costs. Among these advantages, non-educational value stands out boldly, perhaps owing to the realization that colleges are not just there for educational qualifications. Works cited Caldwell, Christopher. "What a College Education Buys." Writing from Sources. Ed. Brenda Spatt. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011. 213-215. Print.