college degree

Four-Year Myth, a report from the national nonprofit, Complete College America, declares that a 4-year degree has become a myth in American higher education. The study finds that the majority of full-time American college students do not graduate on time, costing them thousands of dollars in extra college-related expenses. Policy experts who analyzed the statistics believe a more realistic benchmark for graduation is six years for a bachelor’s degree and three years for a “two-year” certificate.

Outstanding student debt across the United States has reached $1.2 trillion according to Forbes, and is increasing at a faster rate than mortgages and auto loans. Seventy-one percent of 2013 college graduates had student loan debt, with an average of $29,400 per borrower, and more than half of Californians have student debt with an average of $20,000, according to data compiled by the Institute for College Access and Success.

In the current economic climate, and with the boom of the technology industry, college students may be drawn to fields like computer science, business, and avenues of study that lead into specific career paths. On the other hand, many students who graduate with degrees in the liberal arts and humanities struggle financially after graduation, even to the point of  requiring federal assistance. This struggle is part of an ongoing conversation of the “crisis” in the humanities and a concern for those who are trying to succeed with degrees in English, Art, History, and Philosophy, to name a few.

According to a recent Associated Press analysis of government data, 53.6 of bachelor’s degree-holders under the age of 25 are unemployed or underemployed. News flash: The job market is tough for everyone. It has been since before we entered college. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate in 2000 was at a 30-year low at 4 percent. We are now hovering around 8 percent, and that’s pretty positive.