Liberal Arts Education Worthwhile Essay

587 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essay about liberal arts education

Is a liberal arts education worthwhile?
The question “Should education be a liberal or vocational?” has been a controversial topic. Many people think that education should be for a specific career field. Those people believe that a liberal education would be a waste of time. However, if education was liberal, it would be more effective. A liberal arts education is worthwhile because you can have a variety of job to choose from, you can save money and time, you will have room to change your mind and it is in high demand.
Liberal arts education is worthwhile because depending on your major, you can have a vast variety of jobs or positions to choose from that aren’t necessarily specific. For example, my major is business administration. When I graduate from Lawson State Community College I will have an associates degree in business administration. I want to own my own business in the future. If I decide that I do not want to own my own business, it is a decision that is reasonable for me. I can work for someone else’s company or business. If I want to get a higher position or I decide to follow through in opening my own business, I will able to do that because I’ll have experience in something very general and essential but without it being specific. …show more content…

For example, if a student wants to be an occupational therapist, they would need to be taking a certain class in junior college that is solely based on their career choice. If that student decides that being an occupational therapist is not what they aspire to be any more after they graduate for their Junior college, they would have to basically start over. During the season that they have decided to start over will involve a lot of money and extra time they will have to spend in class opposed to getting a degree in liberal

Show More
Related

  • David Dewey A Model For High Schools Summary

    748 Words  | 2 Pages

    If they are taught correctly, liberal arts classes have the potential to help “students cross social boundaries in their imaginations. Studying a common core of learning will help orient them to common tasks as citizens; it will challenge or bolster… their views and, in any case, help them understand why not everyone in the world (or in their classroom) agrees with them,” explains Gitlin in his article “The Liberal Arts in an Age of Info-Glut.” By exposing students to this in high school, they will be more prepared when this moment occurs in their careers. I, along with many students throughout the country, have been exposed to incorrectly-taught liberal arts classes. Students taking English, for instance, must read specific novels while assessing a theme that is already pointed out to them. Then, they must answer a question that has only two answers. This type of curriculum not only eliminates the development of opinions, but it keeps the students from being exposed to most of the author's beliefs and the author’s point of view, which is the main purpose of liberal arts classes. Without this exposure, students are left incapable of working with others and accepting their opinions in order to develop solutions to

    Read More

  • William Cronon's The Goals Of A Liberal Education

    760 Words  | 2 Pages

    Since high school and now through my second year of college I have had one goal for my future, that goal was to graduate college with a degree in criminal justice. Not being interested in math or science, I was discouraged by the fact of taking classes that had nothing to do with my career choice. Thus being said, many people that I talked too felt the same way as I did. Which constantly led me to question what the importance of a liberal education was. After reading an essay called The Liberal Arts Are Not Elitist by Martha Nussbaum and relating it to an essay by William Cronon called The Goals of a Liberal Education, my perspective changed. An education is more than just a degree in your field of study, but an overall basic knowledge in which will inspire people to be the absolute best they can be.

    Read More

  • In Defense Of A Liberal Education By Fareed Zakaria

    900 Words  | 2 Pages

    But the best argument against a liberal education is perhaps the simplest. When students go to any college, they choose a major and take classes that are related to that major. However to get to those classes they have to take courses in , reading, writing, and history. I don’t think that Zakaria realises this. By the time these students graduate, they will be able to understand all of the technical aspects of their field, as well as being able to express their thoughts and ideas clearly. All of this without a traditional Liberal

    Read More

  • Preparing For A Career By Derek Bok: Article Analysis

    976 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Preparing for a Career, Bok said “The practical question then is not whether many students are unwisely choosing vocational majors, but whether both liberal arts and vocational programs could do a better job of reconciling the career needs of students with the other goals of a rounded undergraduate education” ( 341). According to Bok, many students majored in vocational college because it is more beneficial for them; vocational majors are in high demand and pay more than liberal arts. Bok argued that it doesn’t matter what majors the students chose but what can college do to help students in both field. According to Bok, “Employers who complain about the college graduates they hire grumble not only about the lack of sufficient technical and vocational skills but also about deficiencies in speaking, writing and other competencies long associated with a traditional college education” (343). Bok states that most college graduates are lack of writing, and speaking skills because students does not take liberal arts major seriously; they take liberal arts because it is a

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The New Liberal Arts

    790 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the article “The New Liberal Arts,” Sanford J. Ungar presents the argument of why liberal arts schools are still competitive and useful today. The beginning of the article immediately addresses the problem that Ungar is defending, “Hard economic times inevitably bring scrutiny of all accepted ideals and institutions, and this time around liberal-arts education has been especially hit hard.” The author provides credibility through his time of being a liberal arts presidents, applies statistics about the enrollment and job security outside of liberal college, he addresses the cost factor and how a student may find compensation, and that a liberal arts college is not preparing students for success. The article “The New Liberal Arts,” addresses

    Read More

  • Why Are Many Young Americans so Uncomfortable With Liberal Arts?

    978 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sanford J. Ungar, a journalist and president of Goucher College, is one of those faculty members actively trying to disprove the accusations against liberal arts colleges and educations. In his February 2010 article from the academic journal The Chronicle of Higher Education, Ungar gives readers many examples of common misunderstandings about liberal arts and then informs them why those examples are incorrect. Appropriately titled, Ungar’s “7 Major Misperceptions About the Liberal Arts” is an easy go to guide when a person wants to learn more about liberal arts. These readers, mainly students and parents looking towards a higher degree of education, can read Ungar’s essay and find new knowledge about the liberal arts discipline.

    Read More

  • Liberal Education: Why is it important in today's workforce?

    1617 Words  | 4 Pages

    Now, let us define liberal arts or liberal education. According to Michael Lind, liberal arts should be understood in its original sense as “elite skills” (54). We all know that liberal arts include cour...

    Read More

  • Jung, Gardner, and Freud Comparison

    1140 Words  | 3 Pages

    Today’s education is more liberal than it has been in the past. A liberal education teaches people to think for themselves and it provides people with a broader education. The classes that are part of a liberal education are not just the general education classes, they are also electives. A liberal education teaches people to challenge what they do not believe, but a person with a more conservative education would never challenge what they were told. In challenging what they do not believe, they can further research it. In doing this it frees people from the restraints in their everyday life, and allows them to control the forces in their life.

    Read More

  • Are Too Many People Going To College Analysis

    973 Words  | 2 Pages

    Many people who possess academic ability study liberal college education don’t have interest in pursuing one. Certain students may be in college for vocational training because they are interested in that particular field of work. If someone tries to push them by setting up a demanding academic curriculum that they are not interested in, they may transfer to another school or even give up on their education. Many students at college today do not choose liberal education courses because their interests and the skills they wish to develop can be found elsewhere. This does not make these students lazier than others who do not want to put in the work to become a master chef, for example. A liberal education just doesn’t make sense for everyone because not many people enjoy reading for hour after hour and day after

    Read More

  • The Argumentative Essay: The Value Of Liberal Arts

    633 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Hence you see why “liberal studies” are so called; it is because they are studies worthy of a free- born gentlemen. But there is only one really liberal study – that which gives a man his liberty. It is the study of wisdom”, said Lucius Annaeus Seneca, the Roman Stoic philosopher who lived during the time of Jesus Christ. Historically speaking, learning liberal arts we learn ourselves to be passionate, loyal, brave and what is more important, generous. The word “freedom” has been the fundamental component of any American Dream. Today we celebrate our nation’s independence and allowance to govern ourselves.

    Read More

  • Charles Murray Are Too Many People Going To College Summary

    1037 Words  | 3 Pages

    Charles Murray argues in his paper, Are Too Many People Going to College?, whether or not students should go to college and if the students going to college are going for the right reasons. He believes people should head off to college to grow and become "capable and cultivated human beings" (Tyler, 2012). He also argues that these students are being geared toward a specific job in comparison to the liberal education that these individuals have received prior to attending college. Murray states that “everyone should have a liberal education rather than go to college” (Murray, 2008). Murray argues that students should know their skills and limitations before picking a job so one will be successful in that job. I agree with Murray because everyone

    Read More

  • Myth: A Liberal Arts Education Is Becoming Irrelevant By Carol T. Christ

    788 Words  | 2 Pages

    In modern times, the importance of liberal arts is questioned. The article “Myth: A Liberal Arts Education is Becoming Irrelevant” by Carol T. Christ makes the argument that a liberal arts education provides a broader range of knowledge which is useful because it produces a critically thinking student. Obtaining a career is the main focus of college education. Knowing this, Christ emphasizes how a liberal arts education is useful when looking for employment. She refutes the conception that a liberal arts education is irrelevant in today’s society by identifying the useful qualities it provides the employers look for such as, “Flexibility, creativity, critical thinking, strong communication skills (particulary writing)” (Christ,

    Read More

  • Sanford J. Ungar's The New Liberal Arts

    639 Words  | 2 Pages

    In ancient civilization, a liberal arts education was considered essential for free people to take place in civic life; without them people would not be willing to disregard one's traditional values, and analyze a broad variety of arts, humanities, and sciences to create new opinions and ideas. In the 21st century many Americans are doubtful that liberal arts degrees are actually worth the cost of college. In his essay “The New Liberal Arts”, Sanford J. Ungar discusses seven “misconceptions” of liberal arts degrees in modern-day America.

    Read More

  • The Pros And Cons Of Liberal Arts

    884 Words  | 2 Pages

    Positive’s to my standing on liberal art education is experience and development. Liberal art gives you new experiences that you may or may not like. For example, you may want to be a teacher, but when you take a science or math class you may find your love for chemistry. A liberal art education also develops students and gives them capacities and abilities they never thought they would have. Liberal art colleges get students out of their safety zone and help them develop into a well-rounded human being. A Negative of my opinion is that liberal art education is too broad and not focused. An example would be a science student taking public speaking and theology. The main reason people don’t like a liberal art education is because they think students should be focusing on their major and

    Read More

  • Education Major Essay

    487 Words  | 1 Pages

    The major I have selected is an Education Major. More specifically an Elementary Major to fulfill my lifelong dream of becoming an Elementary Teacher. I love to be around children, and having a degree in Education will help me to achieve my goal because that is all I could see myself being. I want to be able to make an environment for students that make them want to come to school every day. To have that comfortable environment to establish rules that help maintain the classroom as well as letting students know they can trust me.

    Read More

More about Liberal Arts Education Worthwhile Essay

Open Document