Janie B. Cheaney: Rethinking college

NICK EICHER, HOST: Today is Wednesday, April 30th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Nick Eicher.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: And I’m Lindsay Mast. High school graduations are right around the corner and while many know what’s next, WORLD commentator Janie B. Cheaney says college may not be for everyone.

JANIE B. CHEANEY: Like the weather, the increasing cost and declining value of college is a subject that gets talked about continually. And for all the talk…not much is getting done about it. Rising costs seem as intractable as falling barometers. But when the barometric pressure breaks, nature takes its course…lots of clouds, rain, and wind…not to mention the joint pain and headaches for us older folks. Have we reached our breaking point with education? There’s a storm brewing. With student loan debt at $1.7 trillion dollars and rising, a dropout rate hovering around 33 percent, and graduates so burdened by debt they’re delaying home ownership and family formation, something needs to give.

But as long as guidance counselors and university administrators talk up the necessity of college, and the federal government doles out money for overvalued degrees, most middle-class high-school seniors will assume that Anyplace U is their next stop. But before filling out that first loan application, teens and their parents should take time to think about the long term. The university is far too expensive to serve as a default plan or holding tank, unless you cruise in on a full scholarship or your parents’ trust fund.

Arthur Brooks spent a lifetime studying human happiness. He delayed college until his late twenties. He suggests three principles for deciding whether to pursue higher education. First, find the sweet spot between interest and earning potential. A course of study that will sustain your interest with the best prospects of paying off…even if it’s less than enchanting.

Second, avoid debt as much as possible. This may mean attending community college for the first two years or taking advantage of distance learning. The traditional “college experience” of dorm life and sorority pledging and keg parties is over-rated…and may be too rich for your blood.

Third, if you hate school, why go? God gives to some gifts of learning, to others a capacity for serving, to still others the skill of working with their hands. Plumbers and electricians make good money with just a few years of formal training, and can still read Plato on the side if they want.

Let’s be honest. Most eighteen-year-olds who don’t have a career path firmly in mind. They might benefit from a gap year of minimum-wage work and self-directed study. And frankly, a lot more prayer. Christian young people shouldn’t be making their next big move without pouring on the prayer. It’s amazing how many of them do…I know I didn’t pray enough about it. Prayer and careful consideration might eliminate some pitfalls—and bank-account shortfalls.

Kids in high school should be encouraged to read good books on vocation and calling. Also to take advantage of a neglected resource: other people. Older friends, church leaders, and extended family often have valuable insights into a young person’s gifts and abilities. Even strangers can help. A casual conversation at the ballpark or McDonald’s could lead to: What do you do? How did you get started with that? What do you like about it?

These conversations may point to trade or vocational school as a better option. Young entrepreneurs might be better off apprenticing, with a view to starting their own business someday. You won’t avoid mistakes, but mistakes are built into the project of living. At least you can make them purposefully. And have shelter when the storm front of unsustainable college finally breaks.

I’m Janie B. Cheaney.

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