Taking Yourself to the Next Level: The Value of College Education

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“You have four years to be irresponsible here. Relax. Work is for people with jobs. You’ll never remember class time, but you’ll remember time you wasted hanging out with your friends. So, stay out late. Go out on a Tuesday with your friends when you have a paper due Wednesday. Spend money you don’t have. Drink ’til sunrise. The work never ends, but college does… ("Tom Petty Quotes.").” -Tom Petty I would say Tom Petty believes in more of the laid-back style of college. However, in reality, one must bust their hump everyday to achieve a college degree. In the race of life, one must take whatever they can to exceed oneself passed their competitor. I believe college is worth it in the aspects of receiving valuable contacts, general skills, internships, and certain majors. However, the education itself is only valuable if you have a plan to pay off the associated college debt, and have a plan for a career route. First, colleges prepare many students with valuable contacts that they might one day use to acquire a job position. Jeff McGuire wrote an article, titled “College Internships,” explaining how building a network of “who you knows” through college student internships can pay great dividends upon graduation. It is these programs and people who may be the deciding factor if one gets the job or not. In addition, schools like to keep in touch with alums. Actually, most schools have specific departments dedicated to this purpose (McGuire). These departments help past students of a school receive jobs in the future. Moreover, internships are great starting blocks for a career. Jeff McGuire explains how in today’s educational system, schools have specialized offices and employees whose primary responsibility is to help you... ... middle of paper ... ...nt/csearch/majors_careers/232.html>. McGuire, Jeff. "College Internships." - Importance of Internships to College Students. Web. 24 Feb. 2012. . Pope, Justin. "Average Student Loan Debt: $25,250." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 11 Mar. 2011. Web. 24 Feb. 2012. . "Tom Petty Quotes." Tom Petty Quotes (Author of Conversations with Tom Petty). Goodreads Inc, 2012. Web. 24 Feb. 2012. . Wax, Dustin. "10 Skills You Need to Succeed at Almost Anything." Your Daily Digest on Productivity and Life Improvements. Stepcase Limited, 30 July 2011. Web. 24 Feb. 2012. .

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