Learning styles vary immensely, colleges vary immensely, and people vary immensely. Even with such broad vague scopes, society leans in a direction of a college education must be pursued no matter what. There is merit to this thought, because a college education provides exposure to subject matter and materials that a student may not otherwise have the opportunity to be exposed to. The four year college education provides a student the opportunity to explore different subject matter, then study a field in greater depth and scope, and prepare that individual for a career in that specified field. To complicate this notion, having a four year education focus on a specific practice does not guarantee success in that field. Many students have gone to college and picked a major based on what the earned income potential is, rather than what holds their innate interest. Not having an innate interest in the job can cause job dissatisfaction and mediocre job performance as opposed to having a job in the area that an individual is innately good at. According to a 2014 Conference Board poll, 59 percent of people were happiest at work when they had an interest in their work. With that said, comparing an individual who spends the time and money in …show more content…
For some individuals, a four year education can positions themselves for long term financial success, broadens their scope of critical thinking and problem solving skills, and opens up the opportunities to new subjects and possibilities. For others, gaining knowledge, skills and abilities through life-learning instead of classroom learning can lead to stabilized financial success, strong critical thinking and problem solving skill through real world application, and intrinsic happiness by following what an individual is instinctively good at. Ongoing education is a personal choice that can only be answered on a basic, individual level. All the statistics, data and graphs cannot account for the combination of an individual’s financial situation, personal goals and interest, and critical thinking skills. It is up to the individual to answer – is college the best